Australia - The great outdoors

Huge in size but sparsely populated, it’s really the great outdoors that makes Australia a unique destination in my mind. Visitors need to be prepared to juggle with distances, money and time before making any firm destination choices. I think that it's essential for anyone visiting for less than three weeks to plan and book their itinerary before they leave the UK.

I did just that for my personal holiday, although I've been lucky to visit Australia several times on business. I have had so many wonderful memories; the majority are linked with the scenery and the wildlife there.

Let me share some with you...

Driving through Aboriginal lands on the red dust desert roads, you are lucky if you see a vehicle or person - you might spot a kangaroo though! The journey from Alice Springs to Ayers Rock/Uluru takes two days with a stop at Kings Canyon. There we feasted on a seven course meal with a different wine to complement each course, sat out under the canopy of the southern stars with our personal waiter.

Heron Island is located at the southern end of the Barrier Reef and is nature’s paradise. Imagine our joy each evening to watch loggerhead turtles come ashore to lay and bury their eggs in the sand whilst at the same time watch the hatchlings scamper out of the sand and run towards the sea. The waters are teeming with fish and marine life. You can snorkel from the beach, do reef walks and dive from thirty sites. The turquoise water is the most amazing I have seen anywhere. The Outer Barrier Reef was where I first learnt to snorkel amongst schools of fish, turtles and colourful coral - so I have been truly spoilt. Seeing a rainbow across the reef was breathtaking.

For keen bird-watchers and for bush-walking Lamington National Park in Queensland is a great place to visit all year round. We were lucky to hear the Albert's Lyrebird mimicking other birds and sounds of the forest.

Sunset with a chilled glass of Sauvignon Blanc watching kangaroos on the lawn at our hotel in the Flinders Ranges was magical. Better still was bush-walking and spotting kangaroos in the wilderness at sunrise.

Sydney harbour is a sight that we are all accustomed to. I had to pinch myself the first time I saw the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. On my second visit I booked tickets to see La Traviata in the Opera theatre. The acoustics are fantastic; in the interval we had a drink on the terrace looking out at the Harbour Bridge and after the show sat on the Promenade at an Oyster bar.

The journey along the Great Ocean Road is spectacular and understandably one of Australia’s most scenic drives. The sea on one side with dramatic cliffs and the rainforest on the other, where we caught sight of a koala bear in a gum tree. My husband still recalls the wonderful Vietnamese lunch of noodles and prawns he ate at the quaint coastal town in Lorne.

We flew quietly over the Queensland countryside in a hot-air balloon at sunrise - only in Australia would you be asked to help pack the balloon up in a bag afterwards!

From Cradle Mountain Lodge in Tasmania there's a wonderful walk around Dove Lake. Home to crystal blue water, blue skies, bathed in sunshine the lake is framed by majestic mountains with snow covered peaks. Stunning! And to top it off I saw some wallabies in the wild.

Swimming or trying to swim with wild dolphins was an interesting and amusing experience in Adelaide. Picture this; wetsuit on, holding onto a rope tied to the back of the catamaran, head down in the water with a snorkel and mask on, humming a tune to attract the dolphins! It didn't work for me, however for the few that persevered, going in and out of the water, on the seventh occasion were lucky to swim with the beautiful creatures. I managed to take some close up photos.

Just a few of the wonderful experiences I have had on my travels Down Under. I hope you have enjoyed reading them and that they have tempted you to visit...