Summer is the season for roadtrips – and Australia’s epic size and extensive road system make it the ideal country for chucking your backpack and an esky into the back of the Kombi or Camry and hitting the road. Megan Czisz explores the possibilities.

From capital cities to the outback, past scrubland, across the desolate Nullarbor, through desert, forest and the tropics, like America’s Route 66, Australia’s Highway 1 is iconic, and it’s as true blue as the truckies that drive it. It’s the ultimate road trip on the longest highway in the world. 

Highway 1, not to be confused with the National Highway, is Australia’s coastal highway, made up of more than 25,000 kilometres of road (that’s the distance from London to Bangkok – and back!), covering New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Tasmania. Stick to Highway 1’s network of freeways, expressways and unsealed tracks and you can circumnavigate the entire country. 

New South Wales

You can start your trip anywhere along the route, but where better to begin a road trip than Sydney? See the Bridge and the Opera House and Bondi Beach, before packing the car with provisions and hitting the road.

Head south along the Princes Highway, the part of Highway 1 that covers the route from Sydney all the way to Adelaide, and spend some time exploring laid-back Wollongong, before continuing down the south coast, through the beachside towns of Bateman’s Bay, Narooma and Merimbula.

Victoria

Ninety mile beach, Lakes Entrance

 Leaving the NSW south coast, cross the border into Victoria and head for Lakes Entrance and spend some lazy days on Ninety Mile Beach, before arriving in Melbourne.

From Melbourne, you can take a detour to Tasmania. Put your car on the ferry and explore the island state. Highway 1 runs  down to Hobart.

Back in Melbourne, continue along to Ballarat and try your luck at gold panning before getting back to nature in the Grampians. Then it’s time to cross another border, into South Australia and arriving in Adelaide.

South Australia

From here, head north towards Port Augusta, taking time to turn off the main highway and check out the Flinders Ranges. Then it’s time to tackle the Nullarbor Plain, part of which is the longest, straightest, sealed surface in the country (146.6km). Make sure you’ve got plenty of jerry cans full of water and fuel.

Western Australia

Cross into Western Australia sticking to Highway 1, and take a welcome break from the road in Esperance, before getting back on the highway, passing through the towns of Albany and Denmark. Stop off in Dolphin City, Bunbury, and make friends with Flipper before you reach Perth, the first major city in thousands of kilometres.  

Have a beer by the pool at Broome YHA

Head up the west coast, stopping off for a surf break in Lancelin, before hitting the road once more towards some of the remotest regions in the country. Taking a detour off the main highway will take you to the Kalbarri region, for pristine beaches and challenging surf. Back on the highway, it’s a long way north to Broome, but the white sands and never ending ocean views at Cable Beach are worth the sore eyes and leg cramps from sitting in the car for hours upon hours.  

On the road again, head for Kununurra in the Kimberley region, 1000 kilometres away near the Northern Territory border. Take a day to visit the Bungle Bungles and realise you are truly in the outback.

Northern Territory

From Kununurra, it’s just over 800 kilometres to Darwin. You’re now closer to Indonesia than your starting point of Sydney. Take a detour south and visit the outback town of Alice Springs, and make the pilgrimage to Uluru (Ayers Rock).

Queensland

Highway 1 now takes you south from Darwin to Daly Waters, and east to Borroloola. This is the beginning of the Savannah Way, that links the Northern Territory to Cairns in far north Queensland. The 700 kilometre track is unsealed – you’ll need a 4 wheel drive and careful planning for this bit. Always let someone know your plans, and when you expect to reach your final destination.  

Chill out at Mission Beach YHA

Emerging from the outback, you’re now on the famous east coast of Australia. Cairns has enough to keep you occupied for a while. Visit the reef or rainforest, and then when you’re finished turn south down Highway 1. The Great Barrier Reef, Mission Beach, Magnetic Island, Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays, Rockhampton, Hervey Bay, the Gold Coast and Brisbane await.

And back again

Back in New South Wales, continue south with a detour to Byron Bay and make the trek to the Cape Byron lighthouse, and Australia’s most easterly point. Back on the road, Coffs Harbour’s Big Banana will call you off the highway. From Coffs, there’s only 500 kilometres to go until you return to Sydney.

Cover the entire route in six months or a year, or pick a tiny section of the highway to explore in a weekend. Whatever you choose, Highway 1 is a microcosm of Australia – it's got a little bit of everything.