Australia & New Zealand Encompassed — Self-Launched

Land at Tullamarine and take the SkyBus ($22 AUD, ~30 min) to Southern Cross Station, then walk or tram to your hostel in Fitzroy or the CBD. Free day to shake off jetlag — wander the Yarra riverside and grab dinner on Brunswick or Lygon Street.

🚌SkyBus airport express ~£11

🛏Hostel dorm, Fitzroy/CBD (£22-30)

• →SkyBus to CBD
• →Evening walk along Southbank

Do the laneway circuit yourself: Hosier Lane street art, Block Arcade, Royal Arcade, Degraves Street coffee. Free walking tours leave from the Town Hall most mornings (tip-based). Afternoon: Queen Victoria Market and the NGV (free entry).

🚌Free tram zone in CBD

🛏Hostel dorm (£22-30)

• →Self-guided laneway walk
• →Queen Victoria Market
• →NGV free galleries
• →Tip-based walking tour

Train to Brighton Beach (~£3) to see the coloured bathing boxes, then take the Frankston line to Frankston and a local bus down to Mornington or Sorrento. Check into a peninsula hostel or caravan-park cabin.

🚌Metro train + local bus ~£8

🛏Hostel/cabin, Sorrento or Rye (£30-40)

• →Brighton bathing boxes
• →Beach walk at Sorrento

Hire a bike or catch the local bus between beaches. Options: Peninsula Hot Springs (book ahead, ~£35), a cellar-door wine tasting in Red Hill, or the Sorrento-Queenscliff ferry for the crossing view. Beach day is free.

🚌Local bus/bike hire ~£8

🛏Hostel/cabin (£30-40)

• →Optional hot springs
• →Beach time
• →Optional Red Hill winery

Take the Sorrento–Queenscliff ferry (~£9), then join a one-day Great Ocean Road small-group tour from Geelong/Torquay (GetYourGuide ~£55-70) hitting Bells Beach, the 12 Apostles at sunset, Loch Ard Gorge and a Great Otway NP rainforest walk. Alternatively, rent a car share for the day. Overnight in Port Campbell.

🚌Ferry £9 + GOR day tour £60

🛏Hostel dorm, Port Campbell (£30-38)

• →12 Apostles
• →Loch Ard Gorge
• →Great Otway rainforest walk

Bus/coach from Port Campbell via Warrnambool to Ararat, then on to Halls Gap (~£22 total, 4-5 hrs). Afternoon at Brambuk Indigenous Cultural Centre and Tower Hill-style wildlife spotting. Kangaroos and emus wander through the caravan parks at dusk.

🚌Regional coach ~£22

🛏Hostel/cabin, Halls Gap (£28-35)

• →Brambuk Cultural Centre
• →Dusk wildlife walk

Self-guided: the Pinnacle trail (3 hrs return, best views), MacKenzie Falls and the Balconies lookout are all walkable or a short shuttle from town. Bring water — no shops on the trails.

🚌Walking, optional local shuttle £3

🛏Hostel/cabin (£28-35)

• →The Pinnacle hike
• →MacKenzie Falls
• →The Balconies lookout

Coach to Adelaide (~5 hrs, £28-35 with Firefly/V-Line). Check into a hostel in the CBD or North Adelaide, then do a self-guided walk of North Terrace, the Botanic Gardens and Rundle Mall.

🚌Regional coach ~£32

🛏Hostel dorm, Adelaide CBD (£22-30)

• →North Terrace walk
• →Adelaide Botanic Garden

Options: free tram to Glenelg beach, a Barossa Valley wine day tour booked direct or via Klook (~£75-90), or a ferry-and-bus run to Kangaroo Island for a day tour (~£150). Cheapest: Adelaide Central Market food crawl (£15).

🚌Free tram / day tour transport

🛏Hostel dorm (£22-30)

• →Glenelg beach tram
• →Optional Barossa wine tour
• →Central Market food crawl

Budget flight Adelaide–Yulara (book early, ~£95-130 one way). Shuttle from airport to Yulara (free with some passes, ~£15 otherwise). Book the Uluru sunset viewing area entry yourself; BYO sparkling wine from the Yulara IGA instead of the tour's champagne toast. Overnight at the Ayers Rock Campground cabin or Yulara hostel.

🚌Domestic flight ~£110 + shuttle £15

🛏Campground cabin/hostel, Yulara (£30-45)

• →Uluru sunset viewing
• →Cultural centre visit

Free ranger-led Mala Walk (daily, ~90 min from the Mala car park) then continue the 10.6 km base walk self-guided — flat, 3-4 hrs, carry 3L water. Optional outback astronomy tour in the evening (~£35).

🚌Shuttle/bike hire ~£10

🛏Campground cabin/hostel (£30-45)

• →Ranger-led Mala Walk
• →Uluru base walk
• →Optional astronomy tour

Morning flight Yulara–Cairns via Sydney or Alice (~£140-190). Afternoon in Cairns: esplanade lagoon (free), Night Markets for cheap eats. Book reef and Daintree tours for the coming days at the hostel tour desk or GetYourGuide — cheaper than on-the-day.

🚌Domestic flight ~£165 + airport shuttle £8

🛏Hostel dorm, Cairns (£18-26)

• →Cairns Esplanade lagoon
• →Night Markets

Take the 1-day Cape Tribulation/Daintree tour (GetYourGuide/Klook ~£90-110) including the Kuku Yalanji-owned Cooper Creek Dreamtime Walk — a direct equivalent of the operator's included Indigenous rainforest walk. Overnight in a Cape Trib rainforest cabin or hostel.

🚌Tour coach included

🛏Rainforest cabin/hostel, Cape Trib (£25-35)

• →Kuku Yalanji Dreamtime Walk
• →Daintree River cruise
• →Cape Tribulation beach

Morning swim at Mason's Store swimming hole and a boardwalk stroll, then afternoon bus back to Cairns (~£22, 2.5 hrs). Evening: check reef trip availability and prep for the Whitsundays.

🚌Local bus/coach ~£22

🛏Hostel dorm, Cairns (£18-26)

• →Mason's swimming hole
• →Daintree boardwalk

Full-day outer reef trip from Cairns (book direct or Klook ~£110-140 incl. snorkel gear and lunch) — two reef sites on a fast cat. Optional intro dive ~£45 extra.

🚌Included in reef trip

🛏Hostel dorm, Cairns (£18-26)

• →Outer Great Barrier Reef snorkelling
• →Optional introductory dive

Greyhound/Premier coach Cairns–Airlie Beach (~8 hrs, £40-50) or the overnight option to save a night's accommodation. Airlie is the backpacker hub for the Whitsundays. Book your sailing day for tomorrow.

🚌Intercity coach ~£45

🛏Hostel dorm, Airlie Beach (£22-30)

• →Airlie Beach lagoon
• →Hostel social night

Book a day sail (GetYourGuide direct, ~£85-110) to Whitehaven Beach with snorkel stops on the fringing reef — this is the self-booked equivalent of the tour's included Whitsunday sailing excursion. Back in Airlie by evening.

🚌Included in sail

🛏Hostel dorm (£22-30)

• →Whitehaven Beach
• →Whitsundays snorkelling
• →Hill Inlet lookout

Long coach day Airlie Beach–Byron Bay (or fly Proserpine–Ballina for ~£80 to save 12 hrs). Byron hostels in the Arts & Industry Estate are cheaper than town-centre ones. Evening at the lighthouse for sunset.

🚌Coach ~£60 or flight ~£80 + bus £5

🛏Hostel dorm, Byron Bay (£25-32)

• →Cape Byron Lighthouse sunset walk

Book a morning surf lesson (~£35) or kayak with dolphins around Cape Byron (~£45, Klook). Free option: the Cape Byron walking track and Wategos Beach. Afternoon: farmers market or Main Beach.

🚌Walking / local bus ~£4

🛏Hostel dorm (£25-32)

• →Optional surf lesson
• →Cape Byron coastal walk
• →Main Beach

Coach south (~6 hrs, £35). Pop into the Koala Hospital (gold-coin entry) — the same optional stop the group tour makes. Overnight in a Port Macquarie hostel or YHA.

🚌Intercity coach ~£35

🛏Hostel dorm, Port Macquarie (£22-30)

• →Koala Hospital visit
• →Town Beach walk

Coach or train to Sydney (~5.5 hrs, £30-40). Check into a hostel in Glebe, Newtown or the Rocks. Evening: Circular Quay and the Opera House exterior at dusk — free.

🚌Train/coach ~£35

🛏Hostel dorm, Sydney (£28-38)

• →Circular Quay walk
• →Opera House exterior

Free tip-based walking tour of the Rocks, then the Bondi to Coogee coastal walk (free, 6 km) — matches the tour's Coogee–Bondi walk. Optional Opera House guided tour (~£25) or harbour ferry to Manly (~£5 with Opal).

🚌Opal card ferries/trains ~£6

🛏Hostel dorm (£28-38)

• →The Rocks walking tour
• →Bondi to Coogee walk
• →Manly ferry

Train from Central to Katoomba (~2 hrs, £4). Do the Scenic Railway/World (£30 combo) or do the free hikes: Prince Henry Cliff Walk, Three Sisters and the Giant Stairway into Jamison Valley. Overnight in a Katoomba hostel.

🚌NSW TrainLink ~£4

🛏Hostel dorm/guesthouse, Katoomba (£25-35)

• →Three Sisters
• →Jamison Valley hike
• →Optional Scenic World

Shuttle/tour to Jenolan Caves (~£40 transport, cave entry from £25 for a guided show cave) — book direct with Jenolan Caves. Or substitute a free day of waterfall walks around Wentworth Falls if you'd rather save money. Return to Sydney in the evening.

🚌Shuttle ~£30

🛏Hostel dorm, Sydney (£28-38)

• →Jenolan Caves guided tour
• →Blue Mountains lookouts

Budget flight Sydney–Christchurch (~£120-160 one way booked ahead). Pick up a NZ SIM at the airport, then wander the Christchurch city rebuild — cardboard cathedral, Botanic Gardens (free), Riverside Market for dinner.

🚌Domestic flight ~£140 + airport bus £5

🛏Hostel dorm, Christchurch (£22-30)

• →Cardboard Cathedral
• →Botanic Gardens
• →Riverside Market

InterCity coach (or book seats on the scenic route) to Lake Tekapo (~3.5 hrs, £22). Church of the Good Shepherd, Tekapo Springs hot pools (~£17) and the Dark Sky Reserve stargazing (free with your own eyes, £20 for the observatory).

🚌InterCity coach ~£22

🛏Hostel dorm/BBH, Tekapo (£28-35)

• →Church of the Good Shepherd
• →Optional Tekapo Springs
• →Stargazing

Coach to Mt Cook Village (£18). Walk the Hooker Valley Track (3 hrs return, free) to the glacial lake — the self-guided version of the tour's Mt Cook hike. Visit the DOC Visitor Centre (free). Overnight at the YHA Mt Cook.

🚌Coach ~£18

🛏YHA Mt Cook dorm (£30-40)

• →Hooker Valley Track
• →DOC Visitor Centre
• →Optional Glacier Explorers boat

Coach Mt Cook–Queenstown (~4 hrs, £28) via the Lindis Pass. Check into a hostel in town. Evening: Queenstown Hill walk (free, 1.5 hrs) for sunset over the lake.

🚌Coach ~£28

🛏Hostel dorm, Queenstown (£30-40)

• →Queenstown Hill walk
• →Lakefront stroll

Coach Queenstown–Te Anau (£20) and book a Doubtful Sound or Milford Sound day cruise direct (RealNZ/Jucy, ~£90-120 incl. transport) — the self-booked match for the tour's Doubtful Sound day cruise. Stay in Te Anau for two nights.

🚌Coach £20 + cruise transport included

🛏Hostel dorm, Te Anau (£25-35)

• →Doubtful Sound wilderness cruise
• →Fiordland NP viewpoints

Free day: walk the first section of the Kepler Track (control gates to Brod Bay, 2 hrs return, free) or hire a kayak on Lake Te Anau (£30). Evening glow-worm tour at Te Anau caves (~£50) if budget allows.

🚌Walking/local shuttle £3

🛏Hostel dorm (£25-35)

• →Kepler Track day walk
• →Lake Te Anau kayak
• →Optional glow-worm caves

Coach Te Anau–Queenstown (£22) with a stop in Cromwell or Gibbston for a cellar-door tasting (~£15-20, direct booking) — the equivalent of the tour's included Central Otago winery visit. Return to a Queenstown hostel.

🚌Coach + local shuttle ~£28

🛏Hostel dorm, Queenstown (£30-40)

• →Gibbston wine tasting
• →Cromwell old town

Fly Queenstown–Auckland (~£90-120) or take the cheaper InterCity bus+flight combo; from Auckland, book the Waitomo Glowworm Caves tour (~£35 entry) and continue to Rotorua by InterCity coach (£20). Rotorua hostels are cheap and sociable.

🚌Flight ~£100 + coach £20

🛏Hostel dorm, Rotorua (£22-30)

• →Waitomo Glowworm Caves
• →Rotorua lakefront

Kuirau Park and the Government Gardens are free geothermal viewing; Whakarewarewa or Te Puia entry ~£30-40 for geysers and a carving school. Evening: a Mitai or Tamaki Maori village cultural experience with hangi dinner (~£65-85, book direct) — the match for the tour's Maori cultural experience and dinner.

🚌Local bus ~£4

🛏Hostel dorm (£22-30)

• →Te Puia geothermal park
• →Maori cultural evening & hangi

Optional morning Hobbiton tour (~£60, book direct) if you're flying out of Auckland instead. Otherwise coach to Auckland (3 hrs, £20) or a domestic flight Rotorua–Queenstown (~£90) to finish where the original tour ends. Trip concludes.

🚌Coach £20 or internal flight ~£90

🛏Not included — book onward hostel if staying

• →Optional Hobbiton tour
• →Farewell coffee