All Bridge & Wickers holidays are tailor-made and no two are the same. We have made some accommodation suggestions, however we will tailor your quote to your preferred standard and style of accommodation.

Whether you simply want to kick back and bask on the superb sands of the east coast or have a more active time surfing, sailing or sea kayaking, read on. Here’s our guide to two perfect weeks of beach living, Oz style.

Days 1, 2 and 3: NOOSA

There’s no better place in the world to convalesce after your flight than an Australian beach. Which is why, on landing in Brisbane, we suggest you pick up your rental car - yours all the way to Sydney - and point north. In a little over two hours you’ll be in Noosa. Check into the Netanya, an aparthotel right on the beach, with your own kitchenette and living area. Throw off those creased and crumpled travelling clothes, on with the cossie and, twenty paces later, you’ll be leaping into the gently frothing Pacific. You’ll be born again. The town is small but fun, with boutiques - surfwear a speciality - and a relaxed café culture both along Hastings Street and along the front. If you fancy a change of scenery, take a bush walk along one of the trails in the nearby Noosa National Park. And if you’re travelling with children, take them to the Australia Zoo.

 Click here for alternative accommodation options in Noosa.

Days 4 and 5 SPICERS HIDDEN VALE

Rather than stay on the rather overdeveloped Gold Coast we suggest spending two nights in the golden Outback. An hour’s drive southwest of Brisbane, tucked behind the coast on a 10,000 acre working cattle station with a historic Outback homestead at its core, Spicers Hidden Vale offers a range of activities, from bushwalks to beauty treatments, archery to abseiling.

Alternatively you could stay at O’Reilly’s, located in the rainforest in Brisbane’s hinterland.

 Days 6, 7 and 8 BYRON BAY

Compared with the Gold Coast resorts, Byron Bay is a totally different, low rise, laid back and wonderful other matter. As a work of nature, it’s stunning. It sits at one end of a twenty five mile long, wrap-around beach backed by a horseshoe of purple-hazed mountain ridges, all part of a massive volcanic caldera that blew its top 20 million years ago. The sands are so fine they squeak underfoot and the sea is a flotsam of surfers, swimmers and sea-kayakers. Byron Bay is an ideal spot to learn to surf. Revive your senses at the five star Byron at Byron, built within a stunning forty five acre swathe of lush rainforest yet moments from Tallow Beach and the Byron Bay Golf Club. There’s also a tennis court, an infinity pool, fully equipped gym, poolside sauna and luxurious day spa.

 Click here for alternative accommodation options in Byron Bay.

Day 9 - COFFS HARBOUR

Follow the Pacific Coast Highway 1, which cuts through miles of swampy bayou country and crosses a series of ‘Meccano’ bridges spanning wide sleepy rivers. It’s a land of lost horizons, acres of whispering sugar cane and thick forests of gum trees, with a series of side roads that line up like teeth on a comb and lead to deserted beaches. Stop for lunch at Yamba at the mouth of the Clarence River, known for its prawns and its ocean swells. We suggest the Pacific Hotel Bistro, which reigns on a bluff of rock looking way down at the beach and the surfers. Spend the night at the Santa Fe B&B, 9km north of Coffs Harbour.

Day 10 - PORT STEPHENS

Continue south to Port Stephens, a deep bite of sheltered water that has become a popular beachy boaty playground for Sydneysiders. Try to fit in a dolphin spotting boat trip (99% success rate) and a koala spotting walk through the Tilligerry Peninsula National Park, bordered by surf pounded wild beaches. There may well be time for a detour to take a 4WD wild ride on the colossal Stockton sand dunes. You’ll be booked into Peppers Anchorage overlooking the marina. Alternatively, stay further south at Bells of Killcare, a charming boutique property famous for its restaurant, or Pretty Beach House, a luxury retreat, both located on the Bouddi Peninsula, an unspoilt region of extensive waterways, peninsulas and natural vegetation.

 Click here for alternative accommodation options in Port Stephens.

Days 11, 12 and 13 - SYDNEY

You’ll be staying at the contemporary Amora Jamison which enjoys a prime location, minutes from Sydney’s shoreline attractions, including the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge and Circular Quay where ferries sail to Manly, Darling Harbour, Balmain and other waterfront suburbs. It’s also an easy bus ride to the most famous of all Australian beaches, Bondi. If the surf’s well mannered you can swim - pay heed to the flags or speak to one of the world famous lifeguards. And you can certainly surf, with boards available to hire for those who know how, or lessons for those who can’t. We can book either.

Click here for alternative accommodation options in Sydney.