Table of contents for February - April 2026 in Australian Traveller

I WOULD LIKE TO STRESS, before anyone imagines otherwise, that fear is an entirely rational response to straddling an aluminium contraption while careening down a craggy slope at a swift, some may say alarming, speed. Sweat beads. Dignity wobbles. Quads ache. Hearts race. It’s a humid morning on Hamilton Island, and we’ve decided to take on the destination’s most exhilarating new adventure – a nine-kilometre e-mountain biking loop tracing the island’s eastern arm. The self-guided experience, which launched at the newly minted HI Trails HQ in October, is already gaining traction among visitors with an appetite for adrenaline. Hamilton Island’s content production manager Dean Marchini, who has called the island home for 10 years, says the activity has been a major highlight. I’ve come to sniff out the appeal. I’m…

WHILE CREMORNE IS MODEST in size (barely a square-kilometre), stroll its narrow streets and you’ll stumble upon edgy cafes, wine bars, upscale restaurants and designer outlets – all squeezed between offices and rows of terrace houses. Cremorne, on Wurundjeri Country, took shape in the 1840s. Between 1853 and 1863, it was home to the Cremorne Gardens, an amusement park featuring a maze and menagerie, later adapted into a private asylum. Its industrial roots took hold in the late 19th and 20th centuries, with companies such as match manufacturer Bryant & May and the Rosella Preserving Company playing a key role in the suburb’s development. These days it’s a commercial hub, with industrial buildings converted into offices and tech giants such as employment platform Seek and software developers MYOB headquartered here.…

OUTBACK CALENDAR A YEAR in the LIFE of Australia’s INTERIOR. IF YOU WERE to capture shots taken over the course of a year in the Australian outback, you’d be left reeling from the barrage of images. It spans multiple climates, cultures and traditional seasonal calendars, encompassing a mesmerising expanse of landscapes – from arid deserts to tropical savannahs. Understanding when to go is as important as knowing where to go. In many regions, what’s labelled ‘high’ or ‘low’ season has little to do with what’s on offer, and everything to do with comfort, access and your appetite for adventure. The high season draws travellers with cooler temperatures and heightened wildlife activity, while the low season brings sweltering heat, dramatic weather and a quieter, more introspective mood. In northern sub-tropical and…

What I loved most was how the landscape shaped the days without demanding anything from us. Long, quiet bends. Birds skimming low. Riverbanks that shifted from deep green to red. THE FIRST THING you notice on the Murray is the quiet. Not silence, exactly, but a softness that settles over everything. On our first afternoon onboard Iconic, the houseboat moved so slowly it felt like the river was carrying us rather than the other way around. From the top deck, the water glimmered dull gold. A few of us slipped straight in, the cold hitting that perfect spot between refreshing and shocking. From above, it must have looked like we were drifting in the middle of nowhere – tiny shapes in a wide, green ribbon of water. So much of…

The theme for the 25th Biennale of Sydney in 2026 is Rememory, which aims to bring fragmented, forgotten and repressed stories to the surface and amplify the historically marginalised voices behind them. It’s a concept that resonates deeply with Yindjibarndi Elder Wendy Hubert, an artist, teacher and linguist from WA’s Pilbara region devoted to sharing knowledge and stories of Ngurra (Country) through her paintings, such as Palm on the Country (pictured). Turn to page 110 for more inspiring events around the country.…

Fashion Baarlu Linen Slip DRESS, $349 + Jaanymili Silk Slip DRESS, $399, miimiandjiinda.com; Helen Kaminski x Bábbarra Sea VISOR in nutshell/amber, $395 + Helen Kaminski x Gapuwiyak Culture & Arts String BAG, $795, helenkaminski.com.au. Living Ngaarlu Yuwaarriyay Moving Water + Giilayjun Biliiyaming Nyanuumba High Tide Through Wetlands SOFT TAPESTRIES, $1200 each, ngaarlu.com; Gather Forage WALLPAPER artwork by Colleen Ngwarraye Morton, $110 per lineal metre + Garrigarrang Narang Sunlight velvet FABRIC (on stool) artwork by Kate Constantine, $195 per lineal metre, willieweston.com. Beauty Native Silky Lemongrass & Lime Deep Hydration + Berrigan | Deep Hydration & Vanilla Caramel Scent BODY BUTTERS, $50 each + Berrigan | Gentle Exfoliation & Native Bush Medicine Glow BODY SCRUB, $50, yaye.com.au; Thirsty Turtl Minis SET, $49 + Desert Glow Brightening GEL-CRÈME, $65 + Forest Therapy Balancing Cream…

THE PUBLIC TOILETS in Queensland’s Maryborough are anything but ordinary. Two ‘flusher ushers’ greet me at the entrance. That’s a new one for me. I’ve never had a welcoming committee when I’ve needed to go. The unique toilets are the brainchild of Nancy Bates, community leader and former editor of local newspaper Fraser Coast Chronicle. In late 2019, Bates went to use the toilets and was decidedly unimpressed. She had the idea “to do up the toilets to pull people off the highway so they could see what [Maryborough] had to offer.” After Bates got the council onside, the communal buzz was palpable. “We had a marvellous committee of leading citizens and community pride kicked in – we raised the money quickly,” she recalls. Fraser Coast artists Akos Juhasz and…

“We have a really flourishing food tribe here in The Tweed and it’s growing every month.” ACROSS THE LANDS of NSW’s Tweed region, food feels less like an industry and more like a conversation – between growers and chefs, producers and neighbours. Here, sustainability is practised rather than preached, community is central and women are increasingly setting the pace, weaving connection into their daily work in unmistakably delicious ways. It’s into this verdant Northern Rivers landscape that acclaimed chef and author Christine Manfield settled several years ago. Beyond the relaxed beach life and rich soils, she found a food community whose values aligned with her own. Manfield has long championed Indigenous knowledge and collaboration, and here she found a place where engagement with First Nations people was strong – opening…

Pearler of a pav Even though it’s just an hour from Sydney/Warrane, The Pav (as it’s been dubbed) feels worlds away. The multi-level venue on NSW’s Central Coast includes Terrigal Pavilion, The Tropic restaurant and The General Store kiosk. And, once you nab a spot on the deck, you will want to stay put. Strut up the boardwalk for a sunrise smoothie, long lunch or boozy beachside dinner. The Pav is the latest venture from Ben May and Rob Domjen (Burleigh Pavilion, Mrs Sippy, The Joey) who have followed their ‘good times by the ocean’ template to a tee. terrigalpavilion.com.au SPANISH REVIVAL Those looking for post-surf sustenance will find it at Alzado, the new Spanish-leaning restaurant at Hotel Ravesis in Bondi. By day, the terracotta and timber-toned space looks out…

BENDIGO IS A CITY many people think they know – gold-rush buildings, grand boulevards, colonial history. But on foot, with the right guide, another story begins to surface: a city with an ancient living culture woven through the urban landscape. The Ulumbarra CBD Walking Tour reveals Djaara (Dja Dja Wurrung) storytelling in trees, gardens and buildings – a culture embedded in the city, sometimes quietly, sometimes boldly. Our guide, Djaara and Pangerang woman Rebecca (Bec) Phillips, opens with a Welcome to Country and a simple wish for our 90-minute walk: “May we walk together today in good spirits.” The tour begins at Ulumbarra Theatre, Bendigo’s former colonial jail, which housed only men in its later years, now repurposed as a contemporary performance space where the opening production was staged by…

THE ONLY SOUND I hear is the whisper of the wind and water gently lapping the shore. The silence is interrupted by a slap. Then another as something launches itself out of the water and dives back again faster than I can see with my naked eye. I’m searching Australia’s deepest lake for signs of platypus as the sun sets at Pumphouse Point – the award-winning wilderness escape in Tasmania/Lutruwita’s Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park. Originally built as a hydro station in the 1940s and reimagined into accommodation in 2015, the Pumphouse is situated 240 metres out over the lake and features 12 guestrooms across three floors. Back on dry land, six more guestrooms, a dining room and lounge can be found at the Shorehouse, the site of the…

“OK, PHONE’S GOING OFF. Gosh that feels good.” This is my introduction to Andy Burgess, one of eight hikers – mostly strangers to one another – who have come together for an ‘open group experience’ through Western Australia’s coastal wilderness. We’ve been striding over granite rock and robust tree roots for maybe a quarter of an hour when Andy sets the tone for our multi-day wander: digital disconnection. I like him immediately. It feels unusual to set off on the wending Bibbulmun Track not with a bunch of friends or family members, but with a group of unknowns: three blokes and five women. We have 60 kilometres to get to know one another without the usual inconveniences of foot travel: our tents will be pitched for us, inflatable mattresses pumped,…

IT’S REMOTE OUT HERE in the Indian Ocean. Blazing sunsets are shared by only a skyful of terns, a handful of crayfishermen and a few passengers like me braving the buffeting wind on the deck of Le Soléal, cameras clicking. Yet it’s the most fashionable place on Earth, if you’re a whale. HUMPBACK HIGHWAY “Western Australia is at the forefront of humpback whale territory in Australia,” says Madison Lacy, our expedition’s resident whale expert. Like the rest of PONANT EXPLORATIONS’ 15-strong team of naturalists onboard, Madi has guided far and wide. But for a self-confessed whale nerd, this brand-new itinerary is as good as it gets. It’s here off the west coast that southern hemisphere whale song is believed to originate – a phenomenon that fascinates marine mammal researchers. These…

THE WARMTH of an Aussie town hits differently. Life moves at an unhurried pace, with effortless choices for how to spend your days. Baristas learn your order, and business owners happily share tips and stories from their communities. But which towns offer that holiday feeling best? Broome/Rubibi has crowned our top towns list before. Where the ocean meets the outback, this multicultural hub harbours incredible natural beauty, including Cable Beach (pictured). Will it top our list of 100 Best Aussie Towns too? Find out in May.…