You can’t go to Australia without smelling the ocean air of Fraser Island or walking through the softest sand in the world on the Whitsundays! Read on for my time on the east coast of Australia and how to plan your own getaway.
One Piece Bathing Suit | Boat Hat
I traveled on the east coast of Australia at the very beginning of my trip down under. You can read all about my time in Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney and the Gold Coast including my favourite things to do and places to eat!
The first two weeks of my trip, I decided to try solo traveling for the first time! If you’re going to go anywhere by yourself, Australia is a great place to start. It has tons of people traveling alone, and tons of options of trips for you to take based on your preferences. I opted to book with Peter Pan travels, which basically is a travel agency that you tell them your dates and main stops you want, and they plan the rest!
I started in Brisbane and bused all the way to Rainbow Beach for my first adventure.
Rainbow beach is a little town that serves as the main gateway to Fraser Island. Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world, and SO beautiful. We stayed in tents (which was not ideal), but it all worked out okay. It was basically 3 days of driving on beaches, hiking to lakes and enjoying the sun.
I 100% recommend making Fraser Island a stop on your east coast Australia tour!
We first drove over to Lake Wobby and hiked to the actual lake. It was about a 45 minute walk to a huge sandbar and then over the hill was the lake. This was probably my favourite part of my time on the island, so the first day was off to a good start! If you’ve ever heard of those pedicures when the fish eat the dead skin on your feet… this lake had the fish naturally! It was bizarre to feel little fish tickling your feet.
Day 2 we headed over to Lake Mackenzie, Indian Head and the Champagne Pools. Lake Mackenzie reminded me so much of lakes here in Canada; picturesque with perfect clear water! Indian Head is a big rock that you climb up to see views of the island. This is also the best spot on Fraser Island to see sharks and other animals in the water! The sharks didn’t come out for us but we saw a couple manta rays, which was a win in my books!
The last stop on day 2 was the Champagne Pools! This is a little spot where the waves crash into rock pools and create the perfect area for lounging.
One Piece Bathing Suit
Finally, day 3 had us stopping at the Shipwreck on the beach which was a boat from World War 2 (I think!) and floating down Edi Creek! Edi Creek is pretty much a lazy river that you grab a tube and relax for the 15 minute ride to the ocean.
Jean Shorts | Boat Hat | Sandals
After Fraser Island, I headed back to Rainbow Beach and spent a few days lounging in the hostel and on the beach. There’s a beautiful beach right in town, so I grabbed the best sandwich I’ve ever had in my life from Somewhere Over Coffee, and headed down! If you’re stopping there, go to Arcobaleno on the Beach for dinner and get a pizza. Best pizza I had in all of Australia was from that little shop! Make sure to make a reservation or go early because it fills up.
My next destination was Airlie Beach.
This is more of a tourist destination because it’s the gateway to the Whitsunday Islands! If you’ve ever seen a famous photo of crystal clear waters and white sandbars, chances are it was from the Whitsundays.
With Peter Pan travel, they ask you what kind of Whitsundays boat experience you’re after, and then match you to the boat that they think would be best. Now I didn’t really know what I was getting into and they ended up booking me on the biggest party boat in the islands. Let’s just say that wouldn’t have been my first choice. Either way, it turned out to be an amazing trip!
Jean Shorts | Boat Hat
If you’re in the Whitsundays, you NEED to find a way to get on the water and sleep under the stars.
We stopped at the famous Whitsundays beach, but other than that, spent the rest of the time on the boat. I have never experienced nights like I did on that boat. The stars were INCREDIBLE and at one point, dolphins started swimming around the boat. They stayed there for hours. It was amazing!
This was my first true solo traveling trip and I liked it but I didn’t love it. I think everyone should solo travel once in their life to see if it’s something for them. You learn a lot about yourself and you really push yourself out of your comfort zone.
My trip to the east coast of Australia was amazing! I will go back there in my lifetime if only to see the stars like that one more time.
xx Victoria
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