Everywhere you look in Fish Creek, there are...fish. On the roof of the old art deco pub, on the park benches, on shops, on cafes, even on the lovely old timber church. This quirky hamlet in Victoria's Gippsland has themed itself well, and is a great place to make a stop. This Piscean loved it!

Not just for backpackers, the brand new Yamba YHA is the latest, and greatest, in budget beach holidays. Brand new accommodation in the heart of one of NSW’s best beachside holiday destinations: tick. Less than three minutes walk to six glorious beaches: tick.  Family-friendly bar and cafe that’s open all day: tick. Rooftop bar and terrace: tick. Pool: tick. Kitchen where you can cook your own meals if you want to: tick. Games room, DVDs and pool table: tick. All this plus a family room that sleeps five, with your own private ensuite, for less than $115: priceless.

Ballarat's rich history is everywhere you look, but many of the city's best discoveries are hidden away from the casual eye. Step inside the refurbished Craig's Royal Hotel, take some quiet time in the Mechanic's Institute library, or discover the quirky gem that is Eclectic Tastes, a cafe with a difference.

You see some strange things beside the road in country Australia, but Western Australia’s Tin Horse Highway is about as weird, wacky and wonderful as it gets.  Here, on a 20km stretch of road near the tiny southern wheatfields town of Kulin, the local farmers have spent the past 15 years trying to outdo each other by decorating the roadside with tin horses. At last count, there were more than 50, each bigger, better and more outlandish than the last.

Christmas sprees can break the budget, but with a little bit of imagination you can enjoy the Harbour city on a shoe-string this summer. We've put together a top 10 list of Sydney's best family freebies that includes everything from Coney Island rides at Luna Park to the best of the city's free museums and galleries, and a few free attractions you probably never even knew existed.

On recent trips to China, we tried our luck with the fortune-tellers of Wuhan, took a cruise on the Yangtze River, including the amazing Three Gorges Dam, fell in love with the pandas of Chengdu, the limestone towers of Guilin and the never-ending buzz of Shanghai.

Want to know exactly where those magic 'falls of fertility' are that Nicole Kidman says helped conceive seven babies while filming Baz Luhrmann’s Australia? 

We follow in the famous footsteps of Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman and head off to WA’s stunning Kimberley region  to see the best of Australia through Baz Luhrmann’s eyes and show you how you can star in your own movie spectacular.

Despite its proximity to Australia, Papua New Guinea remains unspoiled by mass tourism. We take a trip to the most visited festival on the calendar, the colourful and exotic Mt Hagen Show, and take a longboat up the Sepik River for a smaller local festival, celebrating the role of the crocodile in village life. We also discover Rabaul, the town where life revolves around its temperamental volcano, the laid-back life at Madang and much more.

The World Heritage Way winds its way up the Great Dividing Range from Illuka near Grafton on the NSW north coast to Glen Innes on the north-eastern tablelands, passing through three World Heritage-listed national parks along the way. We get back to nature camping on the beach and in the rainforest and stepping out on a full-day hikes that take us deep into the heart of the Gondwana rainforests of NSW, all for less than $30 a night. Now that's a world-heritage bargain.

The sleepy Queensland outback town of Hughenden, four hours drive west of Townsville on the Dinosaur Trail, is the unlikely setting for Australia's richest camel race, funded by the government of the United Arab Emirates. It's also about to make a name for itself as a leader in sustainability, hosting Australia's first Arid Lands Festival.

So you’ve finally persuaded your grown-up kids to move out, you’ve got some time on your hands and you’re thinking about getting a caravan and heading off on the big trip around Australia.  You’re not alone. Caravan sales are booming. But it’s a big country out there, and there are plenty of places to go where you can avoid the maddening crowds.  We look at 10 great spots to park the van and stay a while.

You don't have to travel miles from home to get back to nature. Tucked away in Sydney's northern suburbs, Lane Cove National Park is one of the best places to camp in Sydney with more than 300 caravan, campervan and tent sets set in native bushland all just 10km from the city centre. And you don't need to rough it either; there are 28 fully serviced eco-cabins with ensuites, fully equipped kitchens and city views from the deck. We check in and check out one of Sydney's best kept secret bargains.

Glide into New Zealand's Marlborough Sounds on the Greenshell Mussel Cruise. The four Sounds - Queen Charlotte, Kenepuru, Pelorus and Mahau - offer 1600km of coastline, several secluded places to stay and the chance for some great walking along the 71km Queen Charlotte Track.

Although you can drive the 200-odd kilometres between Tasmania’s two main cities, Launceston and Hobart, in just a couple of hours, to do so would be to miss out on some of the islands most dramatic scenery and best food and wine.  Meander instead across the north-east corner of the state before heading south along the dramatic east coast.

Travelling by rail in Japan is not only fast and fun, but it’s also cheap as chips if you buy a Japan Rail Pass before you leave home. We criss-cross the island of Honshu by shinkashen, Japan’s famously fast and furious bullet train, taking in the sights of Tokyo, Kyoto and Hiroshima along the way, finding out the hard way that in Japan, the trains always run on time.