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The Atlas Obscura Guide To Australia

539 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in Australia

Updated April 17, 2023

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Cities

Top Cities
All Cities
  1. Acton
  2. Adelaide
  3. Bass
  4. Beechworth
  5. Bicheno
  6. Blinman
  7. Box Hill
  8. Brisbane
  9. Broken Hill
  10. Bundoora
  11. Callanna
  12. Canberra
  13. Cervantes
  14. Coffs Harbour
  15. Coober Pedy
  16. Darwin
  17. Davenport
  18. Eaglehawk Neck
  19. Fairfield
  20. Fraser Island
  21. Geelong
  22. Ghan
  23. Gumeracha
  24. Hobart
  25. Katoomba
  26. Kiama
  27. Melbourne
  28. Newcastle
  29. North Coogee
  30. Parkes
  31. Parkville
  32. Perth
  33. Port Pirie
  34. Queenscliff
  35. Raymond Island
  36. Sydney
  37. Taroona
  38. Williamstown
  39. Yallabatharra
  40. Young

Unusual Attractions in Australia

See All 539 Things To Do in Australia

Cool Places to Eat & Drink in Australia

See all 10 Places to Eat in Australia
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Explore Australia

Statues 60
History & Culture 59
Animals 56
Nature 51
Monuments 48
Art 42
Geology 38
Natural Wonders 33

Australia Leaderboard

Recent Australia Activity

Stories About Australia

Over the years, dendroglyphs—motifs and images carved into tree bark—have been documented on 22 boab trees in the Tanami Desert of western Australia.

Saving the Mystery Symbols Carved into Australia's Boab Trees

Researchers are rushing to document the Indigenous art before it is lost to time and climate change.
by Shoshi Parks

Podcast: Cactoblastis Memorial Cairn

A moth once saved Australia from a cactus crisis.
by The Podcast Team
Australia's northern quolls "readily bite" anything within reach, requiring careful, firm handling for the safety of both quoll and human.

Studying Australia's Feisty Northern Quolls Requires Beef Chum and Backpacks

Scientists fitted the famously bitey marsupials with tiny accelerometers to learn their secrets.
by Gemma Tarlach
Some years, the water is so choppy, Santa arrives on Mooloolaba beach in a soaking wet red suit.

The Town Where Santa's Sleigh Is a Surf Boat

In Mooloolaba, Australia, Saint Nick wears sunglasses.
by Tiare Tuuhia

Podcast: Buckley’s Cave

Where an escaped prisoner is said to have spent years in hiding.
by The Podcast Team
"Mamu (Spooky Spirits)," a 2006 painting by Nura Rupert.

Mapping the Many Monsters of Aboriginal Australian Lore

A "terrifying pantheon" of ogres, sorcerers, and malevolent mermaids reflects a diversity in geography and environment.
by Christine Judith Nicholls
Despite looking like it has borrowed parts from hedgehogs, anteaters, and porcupines, the echidna has followed its own fascinating evolutionary path.

Why the Echidna is Australia's Most Delightfully Different Mammal

The evolutionary marvel mates in love trains, can swim in the ocean, and even uses jazz hands as a defensive tactic.
by Jack Ashby
Pearl meat is the ear-shaped adductor muscle in a pearl oyster.

How Pearl Meat Became Australia's Newest Luxury Ingredient

Once humble divers' fare, the meat of the pearl oyster now commands up to $200 per kilo.
by Lizzie Pook

Lists Featuring Australia

Red Seabeach
Padar Island and its crystal-clear turquoise water.
Black Sand Beach

10 Unique Beaches From Around the World

From bright red grass to stranded shipwrecks, these beaches are anything but ordinary.

10

Including Driftwood Beach, Red Beach , and Padar Island

They were built in 1979.
The Howe Street stair corridor is the longest in Seattle.
Seward Street Slides

When Stairs and Slides Are Hiding in Plain Sight

Play real-life Chutes and Ladders at these obscure thruways.

9

Including Secret Tiled Staircase, Esmeralda Slide Park, and Howe Street Stairs

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