We plan to visit Australia in December 2007 (London-Sydney-London). Our intension is to fly on to Cairns then hire a Campervan for 23 days and drive south to Sydney, arriving for the New Year celebrations.
If we spent about three days in Port Douglas relaxing after the flight and snorkeling on the GBR and then wanted about 3 days around Sydney (Blue Mountains and harbour tour)this would leave approx 16 to 17 days travelling.
I know a lot of people will have already done this trip, what were your highlights, recommendations, what side trips should we do? Our primary interest is in wildlife and scenery and we would probably skirt round Brisbane.

We indeed did the same route, except in reverse:

Sydney
Blue Mtns
Warrambungle Natnl Park
Nimbin/Nightcap Natnl Park
Bundaberg
Rockhampton/Great Keppel Isl.
Eungella Natnl Park/Finch Hatton Gorge
Airlie Beach/Whitsunday Islands
Townsville
Cairns

The Whitsunday Islands were a highlight - we dived and snorkeled from a boat we chartered, as well as staying on one of the islands (Daydream).

We also really enjoyed Eungella, seeing a platypus in the wild, hiking through dense forest, and exploring through Finch Hatton Gorge.

NImbin is an experience - sort of the hippie/alternative lifestyle capital of OZ. The nearby mountains are beautiful too.

We dived on the GBR off Townsville and the Whitsundays (in addition to Cairns), although we probably did so to excess.

Warrambungle and the nearby vicinity is somewhat out-of-the-way, but we liked it. There is a huge astronomical observatory that you can visit, as well as interesting rock formations. We stayed in a bush camp, way out in, well, the bush, and had great fun.

Couple of spots for the NSW coast road if you go that way instead of inland.

Myall Lakes NP (Tea Gardens/Hawks Nest). sand dunes beach on one side, lake on other. camp at mungo brush (larger) or dee's corner (my favourite).

Yuragir NP, near Wooli and Minniewater (Grafton/Coffs area). Bit off the beaten track, but both wooli and minnie are still relatively small beach towns in a lovely area. good fishing too.

You could go down coast from QLD to Coffs, go inland to Bellingen dorrigo, do New England NP, then come back to coast via Gloucester and the Barrington Tops, then down to myall lakes (in through buladelah and the ferry).

Then go to sydney via the hunter valley.

you might like to have a look at www.nrma.com.au (and equivalent in QLD is RACQ) which are the motorists associations and have lots of good driving ideas.

Thank you for the info.

Alf, when you went to Rockhampton did you go to the rodeo? We read about it somewhere but don't seem to find many details on the internet.

Miettemeg; many Queensland rural towns have rodeos in winter or spring -Rockhampton has Great Western usually held towards the end of the month, next one is 24th June, but you'd need to check with Capricornia tourism as December weather may be too hot. The annual rodeo, "Rocky Roundup" will be held early September.

I didn't even know there was a rodeo in Rockhampton. If I had, I might have checked it out, for my kids would have liked that. We spent a couple of days over by Roslyn and Great Keppel Island. There is an underwater observatory, and some nice snorkeling and swimming. Also, there's an interesting Dreamtime Cultural Centre that details what aboriginal life was like in the region.

We did this drive in two weeks, with 3 days in Sydney and 3 in the Whitsundays. It was fine but a tad rushed so it's great you have more time.

Highlights included:

Port Macquarie

Noosa Heads

Airlie Beach

Whitsunday cruise - note, if you go on a former America's Cup yacht, they can be very stripped down still - no deck cushions, nothing "cushy" but fun!

Frasier Island - especially if you like scenery and wildlife. Take the plane ride from the beach - awesome.

Didn't care for Byron Bay or for Cairns that much to be honest.

I have also heard Magnetic Island is great - I am sorry to have missed it.

It was early January. It was HOT HOT HOT, be prepared.

You've all forgotten the best, for nature lovers anyway, Hinchinbrook Island, between Cairns and Townsville. Mountains, rainforests, beaches galore, waterfalls - you can take a day cruise or trip over from small fishing town of Cardwell. Unlike Magnetic Island which is pleasant, but a dormitory suburb of Townsville with roads, houses, shops, etc, Hinchinbrook is unpopulated except for a small eco-resort which is not promoted outside Australia. No swimming from beaches at either in December, its stinger season in tropical Queensland. Fraser Island is too far south for stingers but swim in its incredibly clear lakes, not the sea.

Agree with the above poster about Byron Bay town, its a bit seedy these days, but its beaches and hinterland are stunning. View from Byron Bay lighthouse (most easterly point of Australia) on a sunny day is a knockout, surely one of the best on east coast. Brunswick Heads, a little north is lovely, these are great surfing beaches with no stingers.

Cairns is a small regional city with about 36 suburbs, and like all cities has its share of the ugly. But where its good its very good, Palm Cove, Trinity Beach, Lake Morris, Crystal Cascades, Edge Hill, Second Beach, are just a few good examples. The city itself is vibrant and cosmopolitan with a far greater range of restaurants and nightlife than anywhere else in northern Qld.

The Atherton Tablelands is cool (temerature) & "cool" (if you like animals) at night what ever the time of year. Is that the sort of wild life your were after?

I agree with Pat Woolford about HInchinbrook Island - this is by far and away the best island for lots of reasons, not least of which is that it is the most diverse of all the islands.
As for places to stop over further south, try and get in at Cape Hillsborough Caravan Park ( National park ) which is a most beautiful spot and you will have plenty of wallabies and bush turkeys to keep you company. It used to be one of my favourite spots for camping for a week when I used to camp a lot. Its between Mackay and Airlie Beach. Do also go to Nimbin and walk back 30 years as nothing seems to have changed since then. The area around there is beautiful. From Nimbin you can by pass the Gold Coast by taking the road up and over the ranges to Kyogle then on to Beaudesert via the Lyons Road which takes you though Bellbird country where the singing of the birds is fantastic. From Beaudesert you can skip Brisbane by going northwest a bit - check your maps. But even if you go via the highway you can go around Brisbane by going over the Gateway arterial road.