road trip sydney to melbourne
 

We will be in Sydney for 2 weeks, thought a weekend trip to Melbourne might work ,any ideas on the routes to take, also points of interest on the way.We leave 10/19 from sfo.Thanks in advance.

Probably a bit much for a weekend road trip. About 12 hour straight driving each way.

And the short way (the Hume Highway) isn't particularly scenic. There are points of interest en route, but you'd have no time to see them, and even if you're contemplating two nights away only one full day in Melbourne, which IMO isn't enough to justify the trek.

You could consider Canberra, which is only a 3-hour drive via the most direct route; a loop taking in Sydney-Batemans Bay-Braidwood-Canberra-Sydney would involve some nice places, a variety of landscapes and the national capital.

We are flexible with the time.
Points of interest could be a stop over night.
We could extend our trip to say 4 days.
Any suggestions?

Thanks, We are taking Your advice going to Canberra.One more question any thoughts on hotels in Katoomba,We thougt an over night would work there.

Hi Crewe, as much as I love Melbourne (its a wonderful city) its just too far to drive from Sydney for a weekend (nearly 1000 kilometers) and, as Neil_Oz said, the Hume Highway (M5) is not particularly interesting and the coastal route (which is gorgeous) would take 3 days to do it justice. As an option, may I recommend you spend a weekend down on the white-sanded beaches of Jervis Bay (which is about 2-1/2 hours drive from Sydney). If you drive down via the coastal road and take the Southern Cross drive en route, it is one of the most spectacular drives in the country (like a mini Great Ocean Road). The drive down the south coast is through verdant green pasture land hugging the coast - it is beautiful country! Stop at beautiful little Berry on the way down (an arty little place with great antique shops and cafes). Spend a one (or better, two) nights at the beachy little village of Huskisson and from there visit the nearby National Park which is filled with magnificent deserted white-sanded beaches on the shores of Jervis Bay - these beaches are bayside beaches suitable for children. Also, within the Park, visit Greenpatch, where there are roaming kangaroos, cockatoos and rosellas swarming over the picnic grounds. If you like surfing beaches, the famous Caves Beach is nearby. It is an absolute paradise around Jervis Bay; there are gorgeous parklands, quaint little villages and the mountainous hinterland drive up to Kangaroo Valley is breathtaking. My advice is not to waste time driving around in the car, but just hope down to Jervis Bay and soak up the gorgeous ambience! Have a great trip!

Crew, if you can extend your holiday to 4 days, then, by all means visit Canberra which is the rather bland Capital. It takes 3 hours via the M5 to get there but the good part is that you can cross over to the coast to see Jervis Bay (spend at least 2 days at Huskisson) and return via the hinterland road (through Kangaroo Valley) to Sydney.