12 Best Tours in Australia I’d Do Again in a Heartbeat

If you’re wondering what are the best tours in Australia to save for, then this article is for you.

We’ve spent a lot of money on Australian tours over the years. Some have been absolutely worth it, but some haven’t been great.

We’ve been fortunate to see most of Australia over the years. When we did our big van trip with Star RV a few years ago, there were so many bucket list experiences that we really had to pick and choose between. This is because they aren’t cheap on that side of Australia because of the remoteness.

A scenic flight might only last an hour but cost hundreds of dollars. A full-day trip to the Great Barrier Reef can take up an entire day of your holiday. And once you start adding tours for two people into a three-week Australia itinerary, you can burn through a lot of money.

For me, a good tour needs to give you something you probably wouldn’t get by doing it yourself. That might be access to somewhere remote, an expert guide who completely changes how you understand a place, or simply seeing a landscape from a perspective you could never get from the ground.

These are the tours I would do in a heartbeat again.

Table of Contents

Quick Comparison Of Our Top 10 Tours In Australia

Experience	Best for	Time to allow	Guide?	Best fit
Horizontal Falls	Big Kimberley adventure	Full day	Yes	Everyone
Cage of Death, Darwin	Adrenaline and crocodiles	1–2 hours	Yes	Adults, older teens
Bungle Bungle scenic flight	Seeing the Kimberley properly	2 hours	Pilot commentary	Everyone
Sydney Harbour sunrise kayak	Seeing Sydney differently	2–3 hours	Yes	Couples, solo travellers
Yellow Water sunrise cruise	Wildlife and Kakadu	Around 2 hours	Yes	Everyone
Heart Reef & Whitehaven flight	Whitsundays from the air	1–3 hours	Pilot commentary	Everyone
Wintjiri Wiru	Aboriginal storytelling at Uluru	1.5–3 hours	Hosted	Everyone
Broome camel ride	Cable Beach at sunset	Around 1 hour	Yes	Families, couples
Tangalooma quad biking	Easy adventure near Brisbane	Around 45 minutes	Yes	Families, couples
Lucky Bay & pink lakes flight	Esperance from above	1–2 hours	Pilot commentary	Everyone

1. Horizontal Falls from Broome, Western Australia

Horizontal Falls is probably one of the most memorable things we’ve ever done in Australia.

We did the Kimberley Day Cruise to Horizontal Falls from Broome rather than the flight over it. I’d recommend the cruise as you really get to enjoy the scenery of the Buccaneer Archipelago in all it’s glory.

David Attenborough said Horizontal Falls should be the 8th natural wonder of the world.

It is a very long day, as you’ll spend 6 hours on the cruise, but it is totally worth it. Nothing will prepare you for when you see the falls in action. It truly is a once in a lifetime experience and a must visit!

I’d absolutely do it again.

2. Cage of Death at Crocosaurus Cove in Darwin, Northern Territory

I still can’t believe I voluntarily got into a tank next to a massive saltwater crocodile.

The Cage of Death at Crocosaurus Cove in Darwin basically puts you in a clear enclosure in the water with one of their crocodiles. I mean it sounds crazy and even a bit wrong, but we were told these specific crocs were becoming too much of a problem (ie killing a lot of cattle or getting too close to humans in the wild) so they have been retired here. It’s actually a super interesting place where you learn all about crocs in the heart of Darwin so you don’t necessarily have to jump in a tank with them like we did.

We’ve done the Jumping Crocodile Cruise near Darwin as well, which is obviously a much better option if you’d prefer to watch crocodiles without actually getting in the water with one.

I’d recommend both for completely different reasons.

3. Bungle Bungle Scenic Flight from Kununurra, Western Australia

There are certain parts of Australia where I think you almost need to see them from the air to understand them.The Bungle Bungles is one. This is without a doubt the most jaw dropping experience I have ever done in Australia.

The landscape is enormous, and when you’re flying above those striped sandstone domes you suddenly understand just how remote Purnululu National Park really is.

This is one of those Australia tours where the journey itself is the experience. You’ll also fly over the world’s largest diamond mine site from 2018 as well as the famous Lake Argyle. You can read my Bungle Bungles Scenic Flight guide if you’d like to learn more about it and watch my viral Instagram Reel here.

If you love the outback, national parks and those huge Australian landscapes that make everything else feel tiny, put this high on your list.

4. Sydney Harbour Sunrise Kayak, Sydney, New South Wales

Sydney-sunrise-kayak-fun-date-ideas-in-Sydney

I lived in Sydney for years, so I’m always interested in experiences that can make the city feel new again. And I tell you what, this was a complete pinch me experience.

You head out onto Sydney Harbour early in the morning before the ferries and the rest of the city really get going.

If you’re interested in doing the same tour as we did, you can get 20% off here by using my code: ANNIE20

Seeing the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House from a kayak is completely different from walking around Circular Quay with thousands of other people. Plus it’s the perfect tour to get some iconic shots and videos for your Instagram feed.

And because it’s a small group tour, it doesn’t feel like some huge organised sightseeing excursion.

If you’ve already done Bondi Beach, the Opera House and the usual popular attractions in Sydney, I’d seriously consider doing this.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge opened in 1932 and the Sydney Opera House was completed in 1973, but they somehow look completely different when you’re sitting on the water underneath them at sunrise.

5. Yellow Water Sunrise Cruise, Kakadu National Park near Darwin, Northern Territory

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If you’re going to Kakadu National Park, the one tour you have to do is the Sunrise Yellow Water cruise. It blew our minds and definitely made us feel like we were in the Africa of Australia.

Kakadu is one of those places where having a good tour guide makes a massive difference because otherwise it’s very easy to look at a wetland and think, “Yep, that’s a wetland.” But it’s far from that.

Once somebody starts pointing out the wildlife, explaining the ecosystem and giving you some context around the landscape and history, you see it completely differently.

Kakadu also has ancient Aboriginal rock art and an incredibly strong connection to Aboriginal culture, so I think this is somewhere where you get much more out of your visit if you slow down and actually learn about where you are.

Read My Review of the Kakadu Tour We Did to learn more about this incredible part of Australia.

6. Heart Reef and Whitehaven Beach Scenic Flight, from Airlie Beach, Queensland

If there’s one Whitsundays tour you have to do, it’s this Whitehaven Beach Scenic Flight. Make sure you book the one that goes to the famous Heart Reef as well!

We absolutely loved this tour in the Whitsundays, it is incredible and well worth doing as this is also where you really start to understand the scale of the Great Barrier Reef.

The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef system, with more than 2,900 individual reefs, and seeing even a tiny section of it from the air gives you a completely different sense of what that actually means.

I’d also recommend the Ocean Rafting day trip to Whitehaven Beach as well. You have to see the famous beach for yourself!

Find out more by checking out my Best Whitsundays Tours guide before you go.

7. Wintjiri Wiru drone show, Uluru Northern Territory

We’ve done a few paid experiences around Uluru, including a helicopter flight and Field of Light, but Wintjiri Wiru is the one I’d particularly recommend for the ultimate special experience.

It combines drones, light, sound and traditional storytelling to tell an Aṉangu story in the desert.And I think this is really important when visiting the Red Centre. Uluru is obviously one of the most famous natural wonders in Australia, but it’s also a place with enormous cultural significance.

If you visit Uluru purely to take a photo of the rock and leave, I think you miss a huge part of what makes the place special. We spent 3 days here and we were running around trying to tick everything off. There is SO much more to do here than you’d think.

Australia now has hundreds of Aboriginal cultural experiences available around the country, from storytelling and bush-food tours to guided walks such as the wukalina Walk in Tasmania.

For first-time visitors especially, I’d try to include at least one Indigenous-led or culturally focused experience on your Australia trip.

Check out our Uluru Guides:

8. Camel Ride on Cable Beach, Broome Western Australia

I know a camel ride on Cable Beach is super touristy but it’s actually way more of a pinch me moment than you’d ever realise. I really loved this Cable Beach Camel tour maybe because I had seen photos of this years ago and couldn’t believe I was there experiencing it.

The sunsets in Broome are absolutely fantastic and if you time it right, you have to see the incredible Stair Way to the Moon as well like we did.

If you’re visiting Broome, this is one of the famous experiences I think is actually worth doing.

9. Quad Biking at Moreton Island near Brisbane Queensland

Now quad biking isn’t usually a thing I’d be interested in but I really loved it with Tangalooma Island Resort near Brisbane. You don’t need to worry about speed as you’ll be put into groups for confidence levels and you actually go to the top of the island where you’ll get amazing views out to the ocean.

I’d also like to mention quad biking at Port Stephens in New South Wales too as this was also an amazing experience on the world’s largest moving sand dunes!

Port Stephens is probably the more dramatic adventure because you’re riding through the huge sand dunes around Stockton Beach and Tangalooma is a bit easier in that sense.

If you’re visiting Moreton Island as a family or just want something fun that doesn’t take up your whole day, it works really well.

Check out our Moreton Island guides:

10. Lucky Bay and Pink Lakes Scenic Flight

While everyone raves about how beautiful Lucky Bay in Cape Le Grand National Park is, I don’t think many people realise you can do a scenic flight which also takes you over the pink lakes.

Esperance already has some of the best beaches in the world, but flying over that coastline takes it to another level. You get the ridiculous blue water around Lucky Bay, white beaches and the colours of the lakes from above.

The Pink Lakes are just unbelievable and will make you feel like you’re on another planet (watch my reel). We even saw green and yellow lakes too. It’s literally like two scenic flights in one and I highly recommend booking it.

Read my guides:

11. Snorkelling at Lady Elliot Island, Southern Great Barrier Reef, Queensland

lady-elliot-island-southern-great-barrier-reef-australia

If you want to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef, Lady Elliot Island is one of my favourite places we’ve been.

The difference here is that the reef is right there. You’re not necessarily spending hours on a huge cruise boat travelling out from the mainland before you get into the water. You can snorkel straight from the beach, and the marine life is incredible.

It’s home to the world’s only pink mantraray (spotting it is quite rare though) and the ecosystem is incredible. It’s really set up for conservation and education where they have sessions to teach kids all about marine life. It is easily one of if not the most impressive place we’ve been to in Australia.

12. K’gari 4WD Tour, from Hervey Bay Queensland

central-station-fraser-island-tours-kgari

K’gari — formerly Fraser Island — is another place where I think taking a tour can make life so much easier.

There are no normal sealed roads across the island, so if you’re driving yourself you need to think about sand driving, tides and conditions and to be honest be really experienced with driving on sand.

We did a 4wd tour and had the best time. You can just get on with seeing the rainforest, lakes, beaches and wildlife without spending half the day wondering whether you’re about to get bogged.

Guided tours can sometimes feel restrictive, but in places where the logistics are part of the challenge, I think they’re worth the money. Plus, we learnt loads about K’Gari that we wouldn’t have done so if we just went by ourselves.

Read my Fraser Island guides:

A Few More We’d Do Again

I could easily make this list twice as long but I’ll keep it relatively short!

The Kangaroo Sanctuary in Alice Springs is brilliant if you love wildlife and a real eye opener into saving kangaroos when they’ve been hit on the road.

Paronella Park near Cairns is awesome and has a much more interesting history than I expected before we went. You’ll feel like you could be in The Amazon when you go there and it’s totally worth the money.

Peninsula Hot Springs near Melbourne is perfect when you’ve spent days driving and sightseeing and just want to stop. If you visit in Summer like we did, they tend to have movie nights on where you can just sit in the pools and watch them.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb is expensive, but standing on top of the bridge looking across Sydney Harbour towards the Opera House is one of those classic Sydney experiences that actually lives up to the hype (I’ve done it twice).

We also loved Deckchair Cinema in Darwin, which isn’t really a tour at all. It’s simply an outdoor cinema, but it’s exactly the type of thing I remember when I think about Darwin and is way more of an experience in itself.

And our helicopter flight over Uluru was another reminder that sometimes seeing a famous landscape from the air is worth paying for.

How I’d Choose Which Tours Are Actually Worth Booking

I wouldn’t fill your itinerary with tours. Some of our favourite days travelling around Australia have cost virtually nothing.

The Great Ocean Road, hidden laneways in Melbourne, discovering hidden pristine beaches, national parks and huge sections of the Australian landscape can be explored for free.

But I do think paid tours are worth it when they give you one of four things: access you wouldn’t otherwise have, knowledge from expert guides, specialist equipment, or a completely different perspective on somewhere.

That’s why scenic flights appear so many times on this list.

It’s also why I’d choose a guided cultural experience at Uluru, a wildlife cruise in Kakadu or a small group tour somewhere remote over paying somebody to take me around a city I could easily explore myself.

Australia is massive. If you’re travelling between Sydney, Cairns, Alice Springs, Darwin, Adelaide, Perth and other destinations, don’t underestimate how much distance you’re covering.

Pick the experiences you really care about first.

Then build the trip around them.

Because after doing a lot of these over the years, the best paid experiences in Australia aren’t necessarily the most famous or the most expensive.

They’re the ones that let you see a place in a way you simply couldn’t have done on your own.

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