For all those who have always had Australia on their bucket list, 2024 is the year to start vacation planning to your dream travel destination. Tourism Australia has created a great list of top things to do in Australia in 2024, recommended by local Aussies.
Given the increasing enthusiasm among Canadians to explore Australia, evident in a remarkable 94% recovery rate compared to 2019, it’s clear why this destination is swiftly becoming a top choice for travelers.
I just returned from a fabulous visit to Sydney, Tasmania and Western Australia. On previous trips I’ve been to Queensland, Victoria and the Northern Territory. It’s a country I dearly love.
Some of the standout highlights include:
Queen’s Wharf, Brisbane/Meeanjin, Queensland
With the first stages arriving in April 2024, this spectacular multipurpose tourism, leisure and entertainment resort development, Queen’s Wharf, is set to transform the soul of Brisbane/Meeanjin, ahead of the 2032 Olympics. The 12-hectare riverside space will be home to world class gaming facilities, four hotels including The Star Grand, Dorsett and Rosewood Hotel, plus 50 restaurants, cafes and bars, 2000 residential apartments and 12 football fields of public green space.
Leighton House, Evandale, Tasmania
Twenty minutes from Launceston and deep in Tamar Valley wine country, Leighton House is a new, 12-person friends and family getaway that blends heritage architecture, contemporary style and a melange of mod cons set on 300 hectares of green farmland. Spend evenings in front of the outdoor fireplace cooking dinner in the pizza oven as the sun dapples the sky with pastel splashes over the Ben Lomond Mountain Ranges.
Southern Ocean Lodge, Kangaroo Island, South Australia
Southern Ocean Lodge rises again, more elegant and luxurious than ever. Sitting on the same footprint as its predecessor and designed by original architect Max Pritchard, the reimagined property features 25 suites along the wild Kangaroo Island coastline, plus the new ultra-premium Ocean Pavilion. There’s also a wet-edge pool and more spaciousness to the Southern Spa than the previous incarnation. As with the original property all food, drinks and signature experiences are included.
The Stockman Experience Tour, Katherine, Northern Territory
Between the months of October and April, Top End visitors can get a glimpse of what life is like working on a remote cattle station as part of Katherine Outback Experience’s new behind-the-scenes, hands-on tour. Over 90 minutes, learn how wild horses are tamed, how Aussie working dogs round up their herds and take part in farm animal feeding.
W Sydney, Sydney/Warrane, New South Wales
Packed with quirks, colour and infinite cool, the new W Sydney has thrown open its 588 rooms and suites to welcome guests to its new Darling Harbour location. The silvery, curved building rises like a wave beside the city skyline and is home to a two-storey rooftop bar 29/30, a 30-metre infinity pool and 1300sqm of event space. Food and beverage is taken care of at BTWN, helmed by an ex-Aria chef, Chris Dodd, and the indulgent 2am: dessertbar. I stayed here in November and absolutely loved the design, food and rooftop pool.
Pelorus Private Island, Queensland
“Utter seclusion” is the promise at Pelorus, the latest Great Barrier Reef island to transform into an exclusive reef-and-relaxation retreat. The exquisite, beachfront resort accommodates just eight guests across four suites on the 400-hectare private island, a 30- minute helicopter flight from Townsville, or accessible by yacht. Private chefs are on hand to tailor cuisine to guest’s tastes, and the underwater kaleidoscope of fringing reefs are footsteps away.
Yagan Square, Perth/Boorloo, Western Australia
When this energetic and exhilarating production of West Side Story first lit up Sydney Harbour in 2019, it quickly became the most successful Opera Australia HANDA Opera partnership of all time, selling a record-breaking 65,000 tickets. The smash hit opera, directed by Francesca Zambello, is set to return in 2024 for a limited four-week season between March and April. It will be accompanied by a range of innovative dining options and nightly fireworks.
The Lawns of the Lobby, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
The iconic Lobby at King George Terrace in Australia’s capital is midway through an exciting revitalisation project to become Canberra’s newest food, wine, experience and event precinct, The Lawns of the Lobby. Koto Dining from sushi master Shinya Nakano has brought intricate and creative Japanese cooking to the area, with Mediterranean takeaway Rosa’s and bar concept Ballyhoo to follow.
Sydney Fish Market Redevelopment, Sydney/Warrane, New South Wales
A soft wave shape and distinctive fish scale pattern are the visual hallmarks of the revamped Sydney Fish Market, which is set to open in 2024. Expecting to attract six million people annually, it’s the most significant harbourside construction in the city since the Sydney Opera House. Designed by celebrated architects 3XN, the markets will still operate as a working seafood exchange, as well as retaining its status as a major food and dining attraction.
Levantine Hill Estate boutique hotel, Yarra Valley, Victoria
The Yarra Valley near Melbourne/Narrm will soon be home to a new 33-room boutique winery hotel. Levantine Hill Estate’s new accommodation will complement the existing cellar door and wine production facility, which opened in 2021. The design of the environmentally sensitive hotel, expected to open in September 2024, pays homage to the Yarra Valley region, with rooms featuring expansive circular spa baths and private balconies with mountain and valley views. Plans for a second 47-room lodge are also in development.
Ardo, Townsville, Queensland
The northern Queensland town of Townsville is about to get a taste of sun-drenched luxury with the arrival of the 132-suite Ardo, set on the coast of the Coral Sea. The hotel will feature two restaurants, a day spa and a rooftop pool and bar with jewel-blue views across the ocean. It’s a perfectly picturesque jumping-off point for trips to Magnetic Island, the visually extraordinary MOUA (Museum of Underwater Art) and the thundering Wallaman Falls.
Sea Kayak Expedition, Pilbara Coast, Western Australia
Exmouth Adventure Co has introduced a new five-day Dampier Archipelago and Murujuga National Park sea kayaking and island camping expedition. Explore the numerous islands, tidal channels, mangrove creeks and sweeping beaches on a double or single sea kayak, and on land and discover the fascinating collection of rock art with a ranger from the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation.
Koorie Heritage Trust, Melbourne/Narrm, Victoria
In December 2023, Koorie Heritage Trust reopened across three floors of the Birrarung Building (formerly Yarra Building) at Federation Square. The expanded footprint will further the work of the trust in nurturing, honouring and celebrating the vibrant and evolving cultures and Songlines of the First Peoples of south-eastern Australia. Latest exhibitions include Fired Up: Stories Through Embers and Earth which explores clay as an art and design medium from artists from a range of different backgrounds, experiences and mobs.
Fossil exploration tour, Flinders Ranges, South Australia
The 60,000 hectare Nilpena Ediacara National Park in the Flinders Ranges around 500km north of Adelaide/Tarntanya, is South Australia’s newest national park, has officially opened. Once an ancient sea floor, the park is significant for containing some of the earliest fossil evidence of life anywhere on earth, believed to date from 560 million years ago. Nilpena Station and Prairie Hotel owner Ross Fargher leads an extended fossil exploration tour as an adjunct to the park’s regular two-hour tour.
The Lodge Wadjemup, Rottnest Island, Western Australia
In late 2024, the AUD$40 million redevelopment of a site on Rottnest Island is expected to be completed, emerging as The Lodge, Wadjemup. Located between the Thomson Bay settlement and the Island’s picturesque salt lakes, the hotel will offer 109 guest rooms, a relaxed restaurant and a swimming pool.. The ‘Gathering Ground’ area will acknowledge the cultural significance of the island, which is located a 30 minute ferry ride from Perth/Boorloo.
