What to book before you travel to Australia?

Most visits can be booked on the spot. A few sell out days ahead. Here they are, stop by stop, with what you can do without booking underneath. Keep the rest of your time free.

Trip length

One week Ten days Two weeks

8 activities to book · about €955 per person

Sydney

Days 1-3

Days 1-3Sydney Opera House, guided tour2hInside the shells, with the story of a design that took sixteen years to build and ran fourteen times over budget.€35Book on GetYourGuide →

Days 1-3Harbour Bridge climbHalf dayUp the steel arch to 134 metres above the water, harnessed to the structure the whole way.€180Book on GetYourGuide →

No booking needed: Bondi Beach and the coastal walk · The Opera House and Circular Quay · The Rocks · Royal Botanic Garden

All activities in Sydney on GetYourGuide

The Great Barrier Reef, from Cairns

Days 4-5

Days 4-5Diving or snorkelling on the reefFull dayA day boat out to the outer reef, where the coral is in better condition than anything close to shore.€120Book on GetYourGuide →

Days 4-5Seaplane flight over the reef1hAn hour above the coral, and the only way to take in Heart Reef and the shape of the whole system.€250Book on GetYourGuide →

No booking needed: The Cairns Esplanade · Daintree rainforest · Tropical beaches

All activities in The Great Barrier Reef, from Cairns on GetYourGuide

Uluru and the red desert

Days 6-7

Days 6-7Uluru at sunrise, with Anangu cultureHalf dayThe rock as the first light hits it, then the stories and the rock art read by people who grew up with them.€60Book on GetYourGuide →

Days 6-7Field of Light dinnerEveningDinner in the open desert beside 50,000 solar stems, installed as a temporary work in 2016 and kept ever since.€190Book on GetYourGuide →

No booking needed: Uluru at sunset · Kata Tjuta · The desert night sky · The cultural centre

All activities in Uluru on GetYourGuide

Melbourne

Days 8-10

Days 8-10Great Ocean Road and the Twelve Apostles, guidedFull dayTwo hundred kilometres of coast road to the limestone stacks. Eight of the twelve are still standing.€90Book on GetYourGuide →

Days 8-10Laneways and coffee walkHalf dayThe alleys behind the main streets, their walls repainted every few weeks, and the cafés that built the city reputation.€30Book on GetYourGuide →

No booking needed: Laneway street art · Queen Victoria Market · St Kilda Beach · The Twelve Apostles

All activities in Melbourne on GetYourGuide

Indicative prices per person, checked when written. The button opens the GetYourGuide search for the activity and the town, on the days of the stop once your dates are known. Some links are affiliate links: we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.

Frequently asked questions

How much do the activities to book in Australia cost?

€955 per person if you do them all, across 8 bookings. The most expensive is "Seaplane flight over the reef" at €250, the cheapest "Laneways and coffee walk" at €30. Prices checked when written: confirm them when you book.

What can you do in Australia without booking anything?

15 visits on this itinerary need no ticket or time slot, starting with Bondi Beach and the coastal walk, The Opera House and Circular Quay, The Rocks, Royal Botanic Garden. They make up most of your days: booking ahead only concerns a handful of sites with limited places.

At which stop should you book earliest?

Sydney, with 2 activities to book, against 2 at the quietest stop. That is where slots go first.

How long do these activities take?

From 1h for the shortest to Full day for the longest. Fit them into your days before filling the rest: a guided visit often takes half a day.

The rest of the trip

📒 The free printable Australia guide: itinerary, map, where to sleep→ 🗓️ Best time to visit Australia, month by month→ 🎟️ What to book: all our destinations→