Highlights

• All inclusive
• Luxury coach travel
• 3 – 4 star accommodations
• Hotel porterage (we’ll handle your luggage for you!)
• Welcome Reception

Inclusions

• Accommodation – Canberra – Crowne Plaza Canberra (1 Night), Wangaratta – Quality Hotel Wangaratta (1), Melbourne – Crone Plaza Hotel Melbourne (2)
• Meals – 4 Full breakfasts, 1 ‘Be My Guest’ Lunch, 1 Dinner with wine
• US Domestic Flights – (Not included, but can be added to your quote)
• International Flights – Los Angeles to Sydney, Melbourne to Los Angeles (Not included, but can be added to your quote)
• Day Tours – Southern Highlands Journey; Canberra: City Sights tour, Parliament House tour; Mt. Ainslie; Beechworth: Orientation tour; Glenorowan Historic Town; Melbourne: City tour, Laneways tour
• Transfers – Airport to Hotel and Hotel to Airport
• All Taxes and Fuel Levies (Except where noted)

Tour Itinerary

Day 1: Sydney – Canberra

It’s hard to believe that just 1.5 hours from Sydney lies a patch of countryside that could have been transplanted straight from the English Cotswolds. This is Berrima, the oldest Georgian village in Australia. Think atmospheric villages amid rolling hills of grape vines – the Southern Highlands is the closest wine region to Australia’s largest city, after all. And then there are the grand gardens and emerald farms, one of which you’ll visit to meet Craig Starr and his family. Their 400-hectare Gold Creek Station farm is your backdrop for a Be My Guest BBQ lunch and tales about life on the land. This is your start of your Sydney to Melbourne trip, and the entrée to the country’s cool little capital of Canberra, home to Parliament House, where you’ll go behind the political scenes, as well as the Australian War Memorial. Hearing the Last Post is a moving experience, and this Canberra guided tour will linger long after you leave the capital.

Hotel Crowne Plaza Canberra

Be My Guest lunch & Dinner with wine included

Day 2: Canberra – Wangaratta

Thanks to architect Walter Burley Griffin, Canberra is an urban planner’s delight – the city is that well laid out, as you’ll discover when you head to the summit of Mt. Ainslie for panoramic views on a Canberra guided tour. You won’t yet be able to see the mighty Murray River, but you’ll soon cross it en route to Beechworth. From Australia’s longest river to Victoria’s best-preserved gold rush town, Beechworth saw an influx of fortune-seekers from all over the world during the 1850s. Your Travel Director will give you the Beechworth lowdown, then set you on your way to further explore character-filled antiques stores, galleries, leafy parks and gardens, and museums at your leisure. There are plenty of charming cafés and restaurants to refuel in as well, before Wangaratta’s cathedrals beckon.

Hotel Quality Hotel Wangaratta

Breakfast included

Day 3: Beechworth – Melbourne

Meandering south toward historic Glenrowan, you’re well and truly in Ned Kelly country – this is where the infamous bushranger and his gang were finally captured in 1880. The story is remembered on pretty much every city corner, whether in enormous statues or at the town’s well-curated museum. We’ll tell you all the tales – some of them true, many of them hearsay. All of them entertaining. Then we’ll tell you a bit more about Melbourne, like how it’s the home of Aussie rules football, covets some of the country’s best arts institutions, and has a swag of stellar restaurants, cafés and bars. Small wonder it’s known as Australia’s cultural, culinary and sporting capital. Once you have your bearings after a city and Melbourne laneway tour, head off to explore. Forget your map – one of the joys of being in Melbourne is getting lost. Discovering a hidden jazz bar. Stumbling upon a hole-in-the-wall restaurant. Finding a gallery that catches your eye. Spending too much in that independent boutique. Enjoy!

Hotel Crown Plaza Hotel Melbourne (2 nights)

Breakfast included

Day 4: Melbourne

It’s long been felt that Melbourne’s inner city is the most European of any in Australia; the leafy eastern section of Collins Street was dubbed the ‘Paris end’ in the 1950s. There’s a bit of New York in the mix as well, thanks to the city’s well-ordered grid and scattering of grand art-deco buildings. Today Melbourne is yours to explore, so why not consider one of the following optional experiences. You could explore Eureka Skydeck – the southern hemisphere’s highest viewing platform – for stunning 360-degree views of the city. Away from the hustle and bustle, Melbourne’s justly famed 230 laneways penetrate into the heart of the city. It’s here that the inner city’s true nature resides, crammed into narrow lanes with world-beating restaurants, bars and street art. Or if you would like to see something famous then why not take a tour to Summerland Beach on Phillip Island to witness the Penguin Parade, the nightly ritual where the little penguins emerge from the sea and waddle up the beach to their dune burrows.

Breakfast included

Day 5: Farewell Melbourne

Say farewell to your fellow travelers when your holiday comes to an end this morning after breakfast.

Breakfast included