The Queen Victoria Building, or QVB, is an opulent Romanesque Revival shopping centre that fills the city block bordered by Druitt, George, Market and York Streets. It was built in 1898 and although threatened with demolition in the late 1950s, it reopened as an upmarket shopping centre in 1986.
Although not quite in the same league as Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan, or the Victoria Quarter in Leeds, the Queen Victoria Building is one of the world’s most beautiful shopping centres. Although it is hardly a place where most backpackers come to shop, it’s a nice building to saunter through.
Free tour with the iVenture Sydney card
Free tour of the Queen Victoria Building with the iVenture Card Sydney sightseeing pass
With more than 1100 stalls, the Victoria Market is the largest open-air market in the Southern Hemisphere. It is a great place to stock up on fresh food at bargain prices, and there is a huge flea market on weekends. The hot jam doughnut van is also worth a visit.
On Wednesday nights Nov–Feb there is a night market with an emphasis on gourmet street food stalls.
The Royal Park branch of the Queen Victoria Museum & Art Gallery is home to a Chinese temple, decorative arts and an exhibit of metals in Tasmania. There are plans to develop the museum into a world-class gallery of decorative and fine arts.
The Inveresk branch of the Queen Victoria Museum & Art Galley has an art gallery plus exhibits on migration and railways. There are plans to give the Inveresk museum more of a focus on science.
Peninsula Searoad Transport run ferries every hour (7am–6pm) between Queenscliff and Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsula. The journey takes around half an hour and one-way fares are $11 for a foot passenger or $62 for a car with two passengers.
This aviation museum at Caloundra Aerodrome has around 40 historic aircraft.
The Queensland Art Gallery is Brisbane’s major art gallery and it has a large collection with a focus on Australian art.
The Queensland Maritime Museum is an excellent museum featuring a large range of nautical exhibits. The museum’s collection includes several vessels including steam tug SS Forceful and frigate HMAS Diamantina as well as several smaller boats.
Brisbane’s Queensland Museum is an important museum that features a diverse collection of artefacts ranging from dinosaur skeletons to exhibits on local history.
This excellent hands-on science museum has a lot of exhibits geared towards kids.
Quicksilver operate cruises from Port Douglas to the outer Great Barrier Reef that allow you to go snorkelling or scuba diving on the reef.
Cairns is a good base for rafting on nearby rivers.
Raging Thunder run half-day white water rafting trips on the Barron River (grade 2–3 rapids) and full day trips on the Tully River (grade 3–4 rapids). All Raging Thunder rafting trips include transfers from Cairns.
Greyhound and Premier Motor Service stop outside Dingo’s Backpackers on Spectrum Street in Rainbow Beach.
Neighbours fans may want to visit the street where the TV show is filmed. Ramsay Street is actually Pin Oak Court in Vermont South, about a one-hour tram ride into the eastern suburbs.
If you don’t have a car you may want to take one of the tours run by the Official Neighbours Tour that include gossip about the show. The tours are highly recommended and you often get to meet stars from the show. On weekends there is a back lot tour that takes you into Global Television studios to see the exterior sets from the TV show including the Lassiters complex. Tours cost $55–70
The Official Neighbours Tour also organises Neighbours trivia nights where you get to meet the stars of the show. The trivia nights take place most Monday nights at the Elephant and Wheelbarrow pub in St Kilda and feature stars from the show and usually include Alan Fletcher’s (Dr Karl Kennedy) band Waiting Room. Tickets are $40
Both Tassielink and Redline coaches run between Devonport and most destinations in Tasmania. Redline coaches stop at 9 Edward Street, Devonport and Tassielink stop outside the tourist information centre on Formby Road.
Coach travel is the main form of public transport in Tasmania, and Hobart is well connected to other destinations within the state. Redline coaches stop at the Transit Centre at 230 Liverpool Street.
Greyhound coaches depart the Reef Fleet Terminal going south to Sydney and Melbourne and Greyhound Australia also have coaches to the Northern Territory. Coral Reef Coaches have buses to Port Douglas, Cape Tribulation and Cooktown.
ReefHQ includes a huge aquarium that also features a theatre and informative displays about the Reef.
