Australian Highlights with New Zealand Add-ony

This small-group tour with Just You begins with several days in Sydney, where the Harbour Bridge, Opera House, Bondi Beach and Mrs Macquarie’s Chair provide landmarks that are familiar yet worth revisiting. From there the route follows the Australian east coast to the sand dunes and bays of Port Stephens, before dipping into the Gold Coast surf culture and city life of Brisbane.

After a flight north to Cairns, the Great Barrier Reef offers a chance to see marine life from a semi-submersible or simply snorkel above coral gardens. Later stages include the red earth and sandstone monolith of Uluru and a bush barbecue near Alice Springs. A coastal drive along the Great Ocean Road takes in formations like the Twelve Apostles, before the tour crosses to New Zealand.

In New Zealand, the itinerary moves north to Auckland and through geothermal Rotorua before reaching Art Deco Napier and coastal Wellington. The South Island section includes the TranzAlpine train, glaciers near Franz Josef, and a cruise on Milford Sound. Queenstown offers free time or optional adrenaline pursuits before the tour loops back to Christchurch for the journey home.