What we missed: Readers’ name Australia’s top overlooked destinations

When Traveller published its all-time greatest Australian destinations last month, readers were invited to alert us to those places we inadvertently overlooked.

Here, then, and as promised, are the letters chosen for publication, with each reader winning a copy of Lonely Planet’s Ultimate Australia Travel List: the Top 500 Travel Experiences... Ranked, valued at $39.99.

Thanks to all the readers who wrote to us. Unfortunately, space has precluded us from publishing all the letters received which also included nominations of destinations missing from our list such as Cradle Mountain, Tasmania and, from Western Australia, Greens Pool, Monkey Mia, the Bungle Bungle Ranges (Purnululu National Park) and Lancelin. When it comes to Australia’s greatest destinations 100, as one reader points out, below, is clearly not nearly enough.

Untouched and unmatched

Gippsland feels like Victoria before the crowds arrived: a vast, generous landscape where mountains soften into dairy-green valleys and the sea drums against empty beaches. Here, mornings begin with mist over Lakes Entrance, afternoons with winding bush roads through the Prom, and evenings with local wine beside a crackling fire near the Snowy River. Towns and their residents are modest, hospitality ingrained, produce immaculate. You drive, often stop and breathe deeper. Gippsland doesn’t perform for attention, it rewards curiosity.
Duncan Hind, Paterson, Vic

Waxing lyrical

Geraldton, Western Australia, has wonderful experiences: art, dining and history manifested in the monument to the loss of HMAS Sydney in World War II and material salvaged from the shipwrecked Dutch ship, Batavia. A stone gateway, much of the cargo carried by the Batavia and a replica of the longboat used to rescue survivors, which included a band of bloodthirsty mutineers, are displayed at the excellent Geraldton Museum. But the icing on the cake was a 30-minute flight to the Houtman Abrolhos Islands which lie off Geraldton. The view of the islands and reefs, as we approached, was breathtaking. On our return trip, we flew over the site of the wreck of the Batavia, which remains as a scar in the coral since its tragic demise in 1629.
Graham Bell, Austinmer, NSW

Cape crusade

The Three Capes Track in the Tasman National Park, Tasmania, is a 48-kilometre walk over four days, with small bunk-style accommodation. The capes are spectacular, there’s plenty of wildlife and the environment varies regularly as you move through the park. There are beaches, forest, clifftops and beautiful views. The track is mostly boardwalks and good paths, and although some of the uphill climbs are hard work, it is relatively accessible to anyone who has done a bit of bushwalking.
Tess Devine, Wentworth Falls, NSW

Bright ideas

Three hours’ drive from Melbourne with accommodation to suit everyone from campers to motel dwellers, Bright, Victoria, is a foodie paradise. There is a range of dining opportunities and Australian nature is at its best. The Ovens River is great for swimming, kayaking, or you can meander along the Canyon Walk. There’s also a wonderful brewery with live music every Sunday. Wineries are within walking or cycling distance (the rail trail has shared walking and cycling) and many places to relax and read a book. Who can resist a drive to Pizzini Wines along what’s locally dubbed “prosecco road”, where at least another dozen wineries welcome you with great wine and a smile. And it’s all only 50 minutes from the peak of Mount Hotham, summer or winter.
Janine Young, South Morang, Victoria

Ultimate escape

Cowra, NSW, is an interesting and historic country town with the distinction of being the site of the 1944’s Cowra breakout when 1104 Japanese prisoners staged a mass breakout from the POW camp located there. Some 200 or so were killed before the others were captured and returned to the camp. Cowra now has a museum and a beautiful Japanese Garden dedicated to the memory of this event. It’s part of our history that is not very well-known.
Kasia Quail, Mornington, Vic

Long to be there

At Jervis Bay, NSW you can access beauty spots such as Hyams Beach, Green Patch, Murrays Beach and go walking on the headland past Bowen Island and to the Ocean Cave Lookout. On the northern side of the Bay, near Currarong, is Long Beach. This is the place when a summer north-east wind blows. There are also lovely walks on the ocean side of Currarong on Beecroft Peninsula.
Glenn Larner, Freshwater, NSW

Freeze plug

The Tarn Shelf in the Mount Field National Park, Tasmania, is a spectacular area dotted with tarns, or small glacial lakes, that are often frozen in winter. Paths of varying distances include walks across boardwalks and boulder scrambles, all revealing a unique alpine landscape. Time your visit right in autumn when the area’s beech trees turn on a brilliant display of gold to fiery red.
Roxanne Le Blanc, Croydon, Vic

Sinking feelings

Mount Gambier, South Australia, feels like Australia showing off. Crater lakes glow electric blue, sinkholes bloom into secret gardens, and ancient volcanic landscapes invite you to slow down and look closer. Wander the rim of Blue Lake, descend into the lush oasis of Umpherston Sinkhole, or drift through the otherworldly limestone caves that lie beneath the city.
Michelle Stankiewicz, Pymble, NSW

Prom prominent

I love Victoria’s Wilsons Promontory for its wild, rugged beauty and the sense of freedom I feel there. It’s where I first spotted a whale, a moment that made the place unforgettable. The pristine, squeaky beaches, and the abundant wildlife along the trails make every visit memorable — it’s a place that always pulls me back. (Next time, could  Traveller please include Australia’s top 200 travel opportunities? We really are fortunate to be spoilt with so many dinki‑di destinations to choose from).
Amy Hiller, Kew, Vic

Mountain made

Cooma, NSW, is a small town in the middle of a magic triangle, just over 100 kilometres from the NSW South Coast, Canberra and the Snowy Mountains. Cooma has three galleries, four museums, three lookouts, a mountain bike track, several bush walks and an historic town walk that will keep a traveller in the town precinct for days before heading further afield to all the drawcards of the Snowy Mountains with its trout fishing lakes and rivers, summer walks and winter sports. All these treasures lie within this magic triangle. Cooma is also the home of the Snowy Mountains Scheme where you can go back in history and forward in time to see the progress of this amazing world-class achievement.
Suzanne Dunning, Cooma, NSW

Go for Stradbroke

North Stradbroke Island, Queensland is a short ferry trip from Brisbane to Dunwich and Point Lookout. Take a therapeutic swim in Brown Lake, named for the surrounding tea trees. Point Lookout is an ideal place for birdwatching, to see headland whales or to take the cliff walk to Cylinder Bay or Main Beach.
Mary Osborn, Lewisham, NSW

Where oceans meet

Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park, in the south-west region of Western Australia, is life affirming. I did a 132-kilometre walk between two lighthouses with Cape to Cape Tours which provided delicious local food, knowledgeable guides and story tellers, and transfers to comfortable lodging. In mid-October, the days were full of spectacular wild flowers and whales frolicking close by. The last challenging day, with the Cape Leeuwin lighthouse in sight all the way, is when you see the Indian Ocean meet the Southern Ocean. As we walked up to the lighthouse I had tears in my eyes, an uplifting physical and spiritual journey.
Hilary Johnson, Northcote, Vic

Cairns do attitude

While the city of Cairns itself is unremarkable, it does have the excellent Flecker Botanical Gardens, the hinterland, the wonderful train line to Kuranda, which passes by the Barron Falls, and the choice of a return trip by cable car. A number of resorts are close by. There’s easy access to the Daintree and it’s a convenient spot to visit the Great Barrier Reef, while to north is Port Douglas and to the south Airlie Beach, which must have the best lagoon pool on the coast. The town is pleasant, relaxed and friendly and a favourite with our family.
Nola Tucker, Kiama, NSW

Gorgeous gorge

Having visited some 70 of your 100 top “Australian century” destinations, I can fully understand your dilemma on which ones to leave out, however top of my list of natural attraction must-dos is Queensland’s Boodjamulla National Park, formerly known as Lawn Hill National Park. About two hundred kilometres south-west of Burketown, or roughly 600 kilometres from Mt Isa, this wonderful oasis is definitely “out there,” but well worth the time and effort. The ancient landscape of towering red sandstone gorge walls rising above the emerald-green pandanus and palm-fringed waters of Lawn Hill Creek boasts various experiences, including walking trails, camping, swimming and canoeing. The trail to Indarri Falls takes walkers to lookouts high above the beautiful waters of the gorge, allowing amazing bird’s-eye views over the falls and the upper gorge, while canoeing to the falls offers a calmer opportunity to appreciate the magnificence of the surrounds – and a refreshing swim at the end.
Sharon Taber, Wonthaggi, Vic