Australien

When it comes to Byron these days, cries of 'Paradise lost' echo in the surrounding hills, while nearby unassuming beach towns puff out their chests in pride of being dubbed 'the new Byron'. Sure, this is a place suffering under the weight of its intense popularity – traffic-choked streets, no car spaces and lengthy cafe queues – but while it might not be what it used to be, it's still pretty special.

Australia's most populous state is home to its largest city: glitzy, vibrant, intoxicating Sydney, an unforgettable metropolis in a privileged natural setting. Bondi Beach and the harbour are justly famous, but in reality the whole NSW coast is simply magnificent: a mesmerising sequence of beach after quality beach backed by a series of excellent national parks and interesting coastal towns.

Bruny Island is effectively two islands tied together by a string-thin, 5km-long sandy isthmus called the Neck. Renowned for its wildlife (little penguins, echidnas, muttonbirds), the island's two halves – North Bruny and South Bruny – exude very different characters: the rural north and, luring most visitors, the rugged south with its high cliffs, beaches and national park, which runs a frame around much of South Bruny's coast. Access is via a short car-ferry chug from Kettering to North Bruny.

The Daintree represents many things: Unesco World Heritage–listed rainforest, a river, a reef, laid-back villages and the home of its traditional custodians, the Kuku Yalanji people. It encompasses the coastal lowland area between the Daintree and Bloomfield Rivers, where the rainforest tumbles right down to the coast. It’s a fragile, ancient ecosystem, once threatened by logging but now protected as a national park.

The local Butchulla people call it K’gari – 'paradise' – and for good reason. Sculpted by wind, sand and surf, the striking blue freshwater lakes, crystalline creeks, giant dunes and lush rainforests of this gigantic sandbar form an enigmatic island paradise unlike any other. Fraser Island is the largest sand island in the world (measuring 120km by 15km) and the only known place where rainforest grows on sand.

Reveling in isolation, naturally beautiful Tasmania is busting out with fab festivals and sensational food and drink, riding a tourism-fueled economic boom that's the envy of all Australia.

The traditional land of the Wurundjeri people, scenic Yarra Valley is now Victoria’s premier wine region and weekend getaway – partly for its close proximity to Melbourne, but mainly for its wineries, superb restaurants, national parks and wildlife-viewing opportunities. This is the place to rise at dawn in a hot-air balloon and to kick back at world-class wineries in the afternoon.

A place of flawless beaches, coveted surf and laid-back, sun-kissed locals, the Sunshine Coast spreads a golden 100km from the tip of Bribie Island to the Cooloola Coast. Resort towns dot the coast, each with its own appeal and vibe, from chic, cosmopolitan Noosa to easy, hip Caloundra. For tens of thousands of years, these coastal plains have belonged to the Kabi Kabi (Gubbi Gubbi) people, known as the mwoirnewar (the saltwater people) to the Jinibara people of the neighbouring hinterland.

On the traditional lands of the Minang Noongar and Wagyl Kaip peoples, Albany is the oldest European settlement in the state; it was settled in 1826, shortly before Perth. Albany is now the bustling commercial centre of the southern region, and is a mixed bag comprising a stately and genteel decaying colonial quarter, a waterfront in the midst of sophisticated redevelopment and a hectic sprawl of malls and fast-food joints. Less ambivalent is its spectacular coastline, from Torndirrup National Park's surf-pummelled cliffs to Middleton Beach's white sands and the calm waters of King George Sound.

Home terrain for three Aboriginal tribal groups – the Banggarla, Nawu and Wirangu peoples – the vast, straw-coloured triangle of Eyre Peninsula is South Australia's big-sky country. It's also the promised land for seafood fans. Meals out here rarely transpire without the option of trying the local oysters, tuna or whiting. Sublime national parks punctuate the coast along with world-class surf breaks and low-key holiday towns, thinning out as you head west towards the Great Australian Bight, the Nullarbor Plain and Western Australia.