Australia (Down Under) - alone - for a month +

Australia is a very large country and many of its cities are far apart. However, the east coast has most of the population.

You will be there in the Winter, so dress accordingly.

I suggest spending a week in Sydney, 5-6 days in Melbourne and do the Great Barrier Reef from the NE corner of the country.
Perth is a five hour flight from Sydney and worth a few days. Darwin is in the north of the country in the middle, but probably not worth visiting.

Haven't been to Tasmania, but lots of Aussies vacation there.

Sydney, visit some of their great museum, go to an opera at the famous opera house, visit the harbor bridge that you can climb (or for far less money walk up to the top of the tower at the end of the bridge. Also, do a harbor cruise that takes you to Bondi Beach.

If you like wine, visit the wine country north of the city for a day. Also, a must is to visit the Blue Mountains west of the city.

Don't miss the zoo or some of the animal parks.

Melbourne, site of the Olympics some years ago is a nice city and good for a few days, but also take a tour that goes to its nearby wine country. Most important, take a tour that goes to The Great Ocean Highway and Philip Island to see the small penguins come it at nightfall. That tour includes an overnight.

We did a cruise from Perth around the top of the country that included Bali, Indonesia and ended in Sydney, but not sure cruises operate in the Winter.

You might consider also visiting New Zealand, but we did an 8 day tour that only did the North Island, so you need two weeks just for that.

Thank you - I'm starting a list of things suggested and start research them.

OH about New Zealand -- I've spent some time there, so it's not on my list for this trip.

OOOOps --- I placed this topic in "General Europe" I thought I selected "Beyond Europe". I'm hoping an admin can place it in correct section.

It was 30 years ago that I was there, but at the time Quantas had an airline pass thing (like an Eurail pass) that let me fly around to several places. It's just too big to try and drive anywhere. I think they still have such a deal.

Cairns for the Barrier Reef. Uluru for the iconic rock. Alice Springs for the outback experience. I missed the jungly north (Kakadu) for the Crocodile Dundee experience.

But as noted, it will be winter, so make your expectations accordingly.

Be careful sleeping in your car in NT or QLD https://lawpath.com.au/blog/is-it-legal-to-sleep-in-your-car

We're planning to be there next Feb. geovagriffith mentioned the zoo-has anyone been to the aquarium, and if so which of the two would you see if you only had time for one?

Two friends who have been there recommended these sights in Melbourne-the coastal drive and the penguin parade.

We spent almost two weeks in parts of Australia in February 2020 when it was nice and warm. We did go to Tasmania with limited time and took a day tour of a national park and animal sanctuary since we didn’t have a car. We spent 8 days in Melbourne and got around with their excellent public transportation and one tour to wine country and an animal sanctuary. In Melbourne we enjoyed the waterfront, botanic garden, passageways, etc. We also saw the little blue penguins locally by public transportation off of a pier*** at Luna Park at dusk. Not sure what they are doing in their winter though as in February they were swimming in at dusk (9pm) to feed the little chicks left in the rocks. You’d need to read up on their patterns in the colder months.

Our time on the trip in 2020 was focused on NZ with only 2 weeks spent in AU places but we did enjoy Melbourne and our limited Tasmania experiences.

*** Keep your eye on this website as the pier at St Kilda/Luna Park is undergoing some repair work.
https://www.parks.vic.gov.au/places-to-see/parks/st-kilda-pier-and-breakwater/attractions/little-penguins

Cairns is a good place to base yourself to visit the northern tropical region and the Great Barrier Reef. Look for backpacker hostels for modestly priced accommodation. Great beaches along the Gold Coast between Brisbane and Cairns and the Whitsunday islands off the coast area are also worth a visit and are good for Barrier Reef trips, whale watching, sailing etc. Accommodations in that area range from hostels to luxury resorts. Had to laugh at your dislike of spending time with deadly animals - as I am sure you know, Australia is supposed to have the widest range of deadly creatures on land and sea! I did come across some salt water crocs in Queensland, but only in a zoo…..close enough for me.

Tasmania gets very very cold in winter so sleeping in your car is not a good idea. Sub-zero temperatures and snow are common in some areas.

There are also only limited places that you can legally sleep in a car. This guide to free camping spots might be useful: free camping in Australia. National and state parks are also low cost options.

Australia has youth hostels which are low cost accommodation and also lots of caravan parks that have onsite cabins for a reasonable cost. Airbnb is also widely available.

The best option might be to rent a van that has been set up for camping but even that is unlikely to keep you warm enough in Tasmania in winter.

You haven't specified your gender, but if you're a woman I would be reticent about sleeping in a car on your own in any of the more remote free camping spots. Unfortunately, during COVID Australia has had a rise in nomadic "sovereign citizens" who have taken over some of the nicer free camping spots.

As you will be travelling during Australian winter most of the deadly snakes should be hibernating, but there will still be plenty of things that go bump in the night and can get your heart racing. If you do free camp then you should not leave any food stuffs or rubbish outside as animals like wombats, wallabies, possums and kangaroos will get into it and make a big mess (and a lot of noise).

It gets cold in Victoria , Tasmania that time of year. On the other hand its peak season and best weather in the north - northern WA, Darwin, northern Queensland. A month is not very long (the distances are huge. But I'd buy a swag https://nz.adventurekings.com/1m-height-big-70mm-mattress-400gsm-canvas-daddy-deluxe-double-swag.html an esky (ice box) and butane camping stove and several large water containers. Fly to Cairns hire a car and start driving west - see if you can get all the way to Broome (probably not) - but its a beautiful part of the country.

You won't see tarmac until you get to Darwin, and don't expect too much mobile coverage, but its the best of Australian outback - and the place the 98% of Australians and foreigners are not.

Tasmania is lovely - but not in July/Aug - we got snow in Hobart in late April!

thank you everyone.

I just booked my flights and I'm starting to dig deep into the MUST see places.

My trip length of time has been altered (shorter) but I'm committed to seeing as much as possible without overkill.

Thanks again.

Australia & Tasmania --- here I come.

@ IMA

https://www.discovertasmania.com.au/

https://www.getyourguide.com/-l209/?cmp=bing&cmp=bing&campaign_id=434042491&adgroup_id=1252344354564761&target_id=kwd-78271893001256%3Aloc-9&match_type=e&ad_id=78271676426002&msclkid=c99e36d5924a194f68f0528b976953b6&loc_physical_ms=123412&feed_item_id=&keyword=tourism%20tasmania&partner_id=CD951&utm_medium=paid_search&utm_source=bing&utm_campaign=dc%3D6%3Aau%7Clc%3D209%3Atasmania%7Cct%3Dcore%7Cln%3D29%3Aen%7Ctc%3Dau&utm_term=tourism%20tasmania&gclsrc=3p.ds

https://www.redballoon.com.au/tas/?msclkid=2f19480f51b11fb9b7ac2c515492bbed&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Things%20To%20Do%7CLOC%7C%5BE%5D&utm_term=visit%20TAS&utm_content=Things%20To%20Do%7CTAS%7CTAS%7C%5BE%5D%20(things%20to%20do)

https://www.intrepidtravel.com/au/australia/tasmania?PPC=Y&gclid=690c7962ca7117a0e1d41d3ccf52d3f0&gclsrc=3p.ds&msclkid=690c7962ca7117a0e1d41d3ccf52d3f0&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Adapt%20-%20AU%20-%20Search%20-%20Domestic%20-%20Oceania%20-%20MOFU%20-%20DSA&utm_term=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.intrepidtravel.com%2Fau%2Faustralia%2Ftasmania&utm_content=Australia

https://www.viator.com/Tasmania-tours/Multi-day-Tours/d124-g20-c85?m=33953&supag=1239149766791469&supsc=dat-2329246664037350&supai=77446946368802&supdv=c&supnt=nt%3Ao&suplp=123412&supli=4052&supti=dat-2329246664037350&tsem=true&supci=dat-2329246664037350&supkw=tourism+tasmania&msclkid=a6d404878c8b1693117660d989a858c5

Maybe help you or confuse you.

Sorry, no women’s soccer matches in Tasmania.

Regards
Ron

No matches in Tasmania --- Very sad about that.