Travel guide for Whale Watching

Ride a ferry to a beautiful natural landscape populated by fairy penguins, koalas, echidnas, kangaroos, and wallabies. Penneshaw, known as the 'gateway to Kangaroo Island', is the place where you first disembark a ferry from the mainland and open your eyes to see a wonderland of beauty. Kangaroo Island is a magical place to holiday, offering stunning vistas, tranquil waters, friendly locals and a place to truly appreciate the uniqueness of Australia’s animals.    Things to do: Fairy Penguin tour: This is certainly a highlight of Penneshaw. The fairy penguin tour leaves from Penneshaw Penguin Centre, and allows visitors to see these adorable creatures waddle up to their burrows from the beach after sunset. Tours last around 45 minutes and include entry into the interpreti... Read more

Pregnant women frequently hear, “You should put your feet up while you can because once your baby is born, you’ll be too busy for ‘me’ time.”  While there is some truth to this, 'me' time can involve much more than sitting around waiting to pop. Instead, consider exploring the wonderful country you’re bringing your baby into, while crossing some items off your life’s 'to-do' list! Now may not be the best time to try out every wild attraction available in Australia but letting your baby have their first adventures in utero doesn’t need to involve skydiving. Maybe snorkelling the Great Barrier Reef is something you’ve always wanted to try. Or perhaps camel-riding through the vast red deserts of Central Australia, or cycling aro... Read more

Holiday journalling for kids: It can be exciting for a child to develop their own scrapbook, and with the many family-friendly accommodation options on takeabreak.com.au, you’ll have endless choices to explore with your children. Each evening, have them write, type, or illustrate their experiences. It may be as simple as asking a preschooler to draw their favourite memory of the day, or asking a toddler to paste ticket stubs, pamphlets and photos into a book alongside their photos. Older children can use the computer to write out their journal entries, or if doing it the old-fashioned way, can neatly write onto the pages and then attach their favourite photos and travel memorabilia.   Including the family pet: If you’ve travelled to one of the many pet-frie... Read more

Terrigal is the perfect base to explore the Central Coast as there is so much to see and do. It is halfway between Sydney and Newcastle, which makes it a great holiday destination without having to travel too far, although we came from further afield and it was definitely worth the trip.   Things to do Terrigal has something for everyone... one of the great pleasures is walking along the beach with your loved one and hearing delighted squeals as children play in the water and build sandcastles on the beach. There are many activities in the area from sailing to kayaking, and pelican feeding tours to horseriding, which are all available on Holiday Inspirations under Terrigal activities.   If shopping is your thing, then you will enjoy the many great shops, with everything fr... Read more

The bronzed Aussie with a nose covered in zinc cream, a surfboard, and big happy grin is a stereotype held by many people throughout the world. The bronzed part is easy enough – even with sunblock, t-shirts, and hats, lovely tans are hard to avoid given our abundance of sunshine. The zinc cream is our way of saying, “Hey – it’s cool to be sun-safe – protect yourself!” The surfboard (or fishing rods, scuba gear etc) is because there are so many adventures to be had at each of our beaches. And the big happy grin? Hey – when you have thousands of kilometres of coastline, you just can’t stop smiling. For this reason, Australia welcomes millions of visitors to our shores, all hoping to catch a taste of the Aussie life, even if only for a week. ... Read more

Those of us who live in Australia grow up understanding the joys, dangers and safety rules that make it such a great place.  However, many visitors to our country find Australia an alien, but starkly beautiful country, and they have little or no understanding of the best way to stay safe and enjoy their time here. A few very simple rules can help to make a visit to Australia a safe and pleasurable experience, and Tourism Australia has a brochure available for download that lists safety tips in a variety of languages. Driving tips One of the first things to remember is that speed limits are strictly enforced in Australia, more so than in many countries overseas.  Generally, when driving in urban and suburban areas, the speed limit is between 50 and 60 kilometres per hour. When ... Read more

We know that our teenage children can be delightful, exasperating, funny, sullen, adventurous, shy, talkative, slothful and manic – and sometimes that is just in the space of an hour!  All these moods are magnified when it comes to travelling, be it in Australia or overseas, as teens and parents are forced into one another’s company without a ‘get out of jail free’ card, such as time with friends. Travelling overseas with teenagers tends to be a better experience for a number of reasons, such as the brilliant entertainment systems now available on most flights, menus that let them eat things they like, resorts that have activities that cater for most age groups and the “wow” factor.  So let’s concentrate on surviving travelling in Austra... Read more

Byron is one of those places that appeals to almost everyone – because it offers something for everyone.  Once nothing more than a sleepy little surfing village, it has enjoyed a special place in the tourism world for some time now, as it manages to be a hippy haven, upmarket holiday retreat, shopping mecca, dining delight and more. These days Byron seems to be edging more towards the visitor with money to spend than the backpackers, but there is no doubt that all the market segments are catered for when it comes to accommodation and activities. As the eastern-most point on the Australian mainland, Byron commands magnificent views and also boasts a very rare north-facing beach at Watego’s.  Main Beach is a glorious stretch of sand, as is Tallow Beach, Broken H... Read more

If you are looking for the quintessential sleepy, laid-back and almost undiscovered place for a holiday, you will find it hard to go past South West Rocks.  Actually it is easy to go past it – located as it is just off the madness that is the Pacific Highway in holiday time – but take the turn-off and discover something the locals have known for years … this is an absolute gem! It is almost a shame to blow the cover on South West Rocks and let everyone know what they have been missing, because the feeling of an old-time seaside holiday haven is one of its most endearing features. Located on the coast just north of Kempsey, South West Rocks is where the Macleay River meets the sea and it has it all:  subtropical climate, a beautiful cove with pristine waters, ... Read more

For many, it is a dream to travel to the Land Down Under.  The Great Barrier Reef is a natural phenomenon many long to see for themselves, as is the giant Uluru (formerly known as Ayers Rock) sitting smack in the middle of the country. Seeing kangaroos in the wild, the chance to cuddle a koala, and just experience the laid-back attitude for which Australians are famous, may seem like an impossible dream. Happily, it takes only a day to travel to this great island continent, and with flights more reasonably priced than ever, and plenty of deals available throughout the year, you could soon be chatting with the locals while marveling at the mixed-up features of a platypus. Getting there Plenty of airlines travel to Australia, including their main carrier, Qantas. How much you pay to t... Read more