56 places to discover
Adelong Falls Gold Mill Ruins is a heritage-listed gold mining site on Adelong Creek, about 1 km north of Adelong in the Snowy Valleys, New South Wales. Set in a bushland gorge with a waterfall, it preserves ruins of the Reefer quartz crushing battery and other 19th-century gold processing structures from the Adelong Goldfield, one of New South Wales' most productive early goldfields.
The Alice Springs Old Gaol is a former correctional facility located at 2 Willshire Street, The Gap, in Alice Springs, Northern Territory. Operating as Her Majesty's Gaol and Labour Prison from 1964 to 1996, it is now a heritage-listed museum managed as a historic site. Notable for its preserved cell blocks, watchtowers and prison memorabilia, it offers insight into Central Australia's penal and social history and the evolution of correctional practices in the Northern Territory.
Ayers House is a historic mansion on North Terrace in central Adelaide, South Australia. Built in stages between 1846 and 1876 as the residence of Sir Henry Ayers, five-time Premier of South Australia. The bluestone mansion showcases Victorian colonial architecture with period interiors, decorative paintwork and collection. Now operated as Ayers House Museum by the National Trust of South Australia, it offers guided tours and functions illustrating 19th-century Adelaide life.
Ballast Point Park is a 2.6-hectare harbourside public park at the tip of Ballast Point in Birchgrove, Inner West Sydney, New South Wales. Opened in 2009 on the former Caltex oil terminal site, it reuses industrial remnants and recycled materials. The park offers panoramic views of Sydney Harbour, Cockatoo Island and the Harbour Bridge, with landscaped gardens, walking trails, public art and heritage interpretation reflecting its quarrying and industrial past.
The Berrima Courthouse Museum is a heritage museum housed in the 1838 sandstone courthouse in Berrima, Southern Highlands, New South Wales. Designed by Colonial Architect Mortimer Lewis in Georgian style, it is one of the oldest surviving courthouses in Australia. The museum displays colonial courtroom settings, local history collections and Southern Highlands artefacts, illustrating early justice, convict history and village development within the well-preserved Berrima historic precinct.
Bishop's Lodge Historic House and Heritage Garden is a heritage-listed former Anglican bishop's residence in Hay South, Hay, New South Wales. Built in 1888-1889 for Bishop Sydney Linton, the first Bishop of Riverina, and designed by architect John Sulman, it features a distinctive corrugated iron and timber homestead surrounded by a recreated heritage rose garden. Managed as a house museum, it displays period furnishings and local history on the Murrumbidgee River plain.
The Blackall Woolscour is a heritage-listed, steam-operated wool washing plant located 4 km northeast of Blackall in the Blackall-Tambo Region, Queensland. Built in 1908, it is the last remaining steam-powered woolscour in Australia. Preserved with original machinery, boilers and drying facilities, it operated until 1978 and now operates as a living industrial museum offering guided tours that demonstrate the historic wool scouring process central to Queensland's pastoral history.
Blundells Cottage is a heritage-listed stone cottage on the northern shore of Lake Burley Griffin in Parkes, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. Built around 1860 for shepherd William Ginn and later home to the Blundell family until 1933, it preserves 19th-century rural life before Canberra was established. Managed by the National Capital Authority as a small museum, it displays period furnishings, outbuildings and interpretive exhibits illustrating early settlement history.
Brennan and Geraghty's Store Museum is a heritage-listed former general store at 64-66 Bazaar Street in Maryborough, Fraser Coast, Queensland. Established in 1871 by Patrick Brennan and later operated by the Geraghty family until 1971, it was preserved with its original stock and fittings. Now managed by the National Trust of Queensland, it offers a rare intact example of a 19th to mid-20th century provincial store.
The Caloundra Lighthouses at Kings Beach, Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, comprise two lighthouses standing side by side. The heritage-listed 1896 lighthouse and the 1968 lighthouse guided vessels through the North West Channel into Moreton Bay. Located on Canberra Terrace, the site is managed by volunteers and preserves maritime signalling equipment, offering insight into Queensland's coastal navigation history.
Calthorpes' House is a heritage-listed historic house museum at 5 Mugga Way, Red Hill in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. Built in 1927 for Harry and Dell Calthorpe and their family, it is preserved as an intact example of 1920s domestic life in early Canberra. Managed by ACT Historic Places, the house retains original furnishings, household items and garden, offering insight into middle-class family life during the city's formative years.
Canning Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Canning River in Roleystone, within the City of Armadale, about 35 kilometres southeast of Perth, Western Australia. Completed in 1940, it was Perth's major water supply dam and remains part of the Integrated Water Supply Scheme. Set in jarrah forest within the Darling Range, the dam features a reservoir, wall lookout, picnic area and heritage-listed infrastructure, offering views of the water and surrounding bushland.
Cantonment Hill is a limestone hill and bushland reserve in Fremantle, Western Australia, overlooking Fremantle Harbour and the Indian Ocean. Managed by the City of Fremantle, it contains the historic Fremantle Signal Station, former naval and military installations, and remnant coastal bushland. The hill offers panoramic views, walking trails and heritage interpretation, and is significant for its Whadjuk Noongar heritage as Dwerda Weeardinup and its continuous use as a signalling and defence site since the 19th century.
Cape Bruny Lighthouse is a historic coastal lighthouse at the southern tip of Bruny Island in South Bruny National Park, Tasmania. Built between 1836 and 1838 using convict labour, it is the second-oldest extant lighthouse in Australia and the longest continuously staffed lighthouse in the country until automation in 1996. The white tower, keeper's cottages and surrounding dolerite cliffs overlook the D'Entrecasteaux Channel and Southern Ocean, offering significant maritime heritage and scenic coastal views.
Cape Willoughby Lighthouse is a historic coastal lighthouse at the eastern tip of Kangaroo Island in South Australia, within Cape Willoughby Conservation Park. Built in 1852, it was the first lighthouse erected in South Australia to guide vessels through Backstairs Passage. The whitewashed tower, keeper's cottages and surrounding coastal cliffs offer heritage interpretation and panoramic views over the Backstairs Passage and Dudley Peninsula.
The Cascades Female Factory Historic Site is a former female convict prison located in South Hobart, Tasmania, at the foot of kunanyi/Mount Wellington. Operating from 1828 to 1856, it housed more than 5,000 female convicts and is one of 11 sites comprising the Australian Convict Sites World Heritage property. Today the conserved yards, interpretation centre and exhibitions present the history and lived experiences of convict women and children in colonial Australia.
Central Station is a former forestry camp and now a popular day-use and camping area in the heart of K'gari (Fraser Island) within Great Sandy National Park, Queensland. Located amid subtropical rainforest beside Wanggoolba Creek, it served as the headquarters for logging operations from the 1920s until the 1950s. Today it is notable for its rainforest setting, historic displays, clear creek and walking tracks, offering insight into the island's forestry heritage and natural environment.
Christ Church Cathedral Newcastle is an Anglican cathedral located on The Hill overlooking Newcastle Harbour in New South Wales. Built in Gothic Revival style between 1883 and 1979 to designs by John Horbury Hunt, it is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Newcastle. Notable for its sandstone architecture, stained glass, Warriors' Chapel and hilltop position, it serves as a place of worship, heritage landmark and visitor attraction in central Newcastle.
Clarendon Estate is a Georgian colonial estate located at Nile in the Northern Midlands of Tasmania, Australia, on the banks of the South Esk River. Built in 1838 for pastoralist James Cox using convict labour, it is regarded as one of Australia's finest colonial houses. Managed by the National Trust of Tasmania, the property includes the main mansion, extensive outbuildings, walled garden and parkland, and is listed on the National Heritage List for its architectural and pastoral history significance.
The Coal Mines Historic Site is a World Heritage-listed convict heritage site on the Tasman Peninsula near Saltwater River, Tasmania. Operated from 1833 to 1848 as Tasmania's first operational coal mine, it housed convicts who extracted coal under harsh conditions. The remote bushland and coastal setting preserves extensive ruins including barracks, solitary cells, and mine shafts, illustrating Australia's convict industrial labour system and colonial punishment history.
Combo Waterhole is a natural waterhole and conservation park on the Diamantina River near Kynuna in McKinlay Shire, Queensland. It is widely associated with the origins of Banjo Paterson's song Waltzing Matilda, inspired by events at nearby Dagworth Station in 1894-1895. The seasonal billabong, fringed by coolibah trees and Mitchell grass plains, is protected as Combo Waterhole Conservation Park and offers visitors a quiet outback landscape with birdlife and cultural heritage interpretation.
Connor's Mill Museum is a restored 1870s steam-driven flour mill located on Stirling Terrace in Toodyay, Western Australia, about 85 kilometres northeast of Perth. Built for businessman Daniel Connor and operated as a flour mill until the early 20th century, the three-storey brick building now houses a local history museum. It is notable for its intact milling machinery, heritage listing, and displays on Toodyay's agricultural and town history.
Elizabeth Bay House is a heritage-listed Regency mansion in Elizabeth Bay, inner-eastern Sydney, New South Wales. Built between 1835 and 1839 for Colonial Secretary Alexander Macleay and designed by architect John Verge, it is regarded as one of Australia's finest examples of colonial architecture. Set above Sydney Harbour with restored interiors and period furnishings, the house now operates as a museum managed by Museums of History NSW, interpreting colonial elite life in the 19th century.
Ellensbrook Homestead is a heritage-listed pioneer homestead at Ellensbrook within Leeuwin-Naturaliste National Park, south of Margaret River, Western Australia. Built in 1857 by Alfred and Ellen Bussell, it is notable as the family home linked to Grace Bussell's 1876 rescue of SS Georgette survivors and as a rare intact example of vernacular colonial architecture. Set beside Ellen Brook and a seasonal waterfall, it is conserved and operated as a museum by the National Trust of Western Australia.
The Elsey Homestead Replica is a heritage attraction in Mataranka, Roper Gulf region, Northern Territory, located within the grounds of Mataranka Homestead. It is a faithful reconstruction of the original Elsey Station homestead made famous by Jeannie Gunn's 1908 book We of the Never Never. Built to commemorate the pioneering pastoral history of the region, the replica displays period furnishings, photographs and memorabilia interpreting early 20th-century station life.
Eskbank House Museum is a heritage-listed former residence at 70 Inch Street, Lithgow in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales. Built in 1841-1842 by Scottish immigrant Thomas Brown, it was the first substantial house in the Lithgow Valley. Associated with the Eskbank Colliery and later the Eskbank Ironworks, it is linked to the origins of Australia's iron and steel industry. Now operated as a museum, it displays period interiors, industrial artefacts and local history collections.
The Farm Shed Museum is a heritage museum and Copper Coast Visitor Information Centre located at 50 Mines Road, Kadina on South Australia's Yorke Peninsula. Housed in a purpose-built farm shed complex, it interprets the region's dryland farming, Cornish copper mining and Narungga Aboriginal heritage. Notable for its large collection of vintage agricultural machinery, interactive displays and the adjacent historic Matta House, it serves as the gateway to the National Heritage-listed Cornish mining sites of Moonta, Kadina and Wallaroo.
Fort Bourke Hill Lookout is a hilltop viewpoint on Fort Bourke Hill immediately south of Cobar in western New South Wales. It overlooks the town and the large open-cut void of the historic Great Cobar Copper Mine. Notable for its panoramic 360-degree views, interpretive signage and preserved mining relics, the lookout marks the site of the 1870 copper discovery that established Cobar as a major mining centre and remains a key heritage and sightseeing stop.
Fortuna Villa is a heritage-listed 19th-century mansion in Golden Square, Bendigo, Victoria, within the City of Greater Bendigo. Built between 1871 and 1875 and later expanded for gold-mining entrepreneur George Lansell, it is noted for its Victorian architecture, ornate interiors, stained glass, and landscaped gardens and lake. Formerly home to the Australian Army's Survey Regiment, it now operates as a guided-tour heritage attraction showcasing Bendigo's gold-rush history.
The Golden Quest Discovery Trail is a 965-kilometre self-drive heritage trail in Western Australia's Goldfields region, running from Coolgardie north to Laverton via Menzies, Leonora and Gwalia. Established to interpret the 1890s Eastern Goldfields gold rush, it links 25 interpretive sites including ghost towns, abandoned mines, museums and natural features. The trail follows historic prospecting routes and highlights gold rush history, pioneering settlements and arid landscapes.
Government House Darwin is the official residence of the Administrator of the Northern Territory, located on The Esplanade in Darwin City. Constructed between 1870 and 1871, it is the oldest European building in the Northern Territory and is heritage-listed. Set within tropical gardens overlooking Darwin Harbour, the white colonial building has survived cyclones and wartime bombing and continues to serve ceremonial functions while opening periodically for public tours and open days.
Greenmount Homestead is a heritage-listed homestead on Greenmount Road at Walkerston, about 14 km west of Mackay, Queensland. Built in 1915-1916 for pastoralist Albert Cook, it retains original furnishings, outbuildings and rural grounds reflecting the Pioneer Valley's sugar and grazing history. Operated as a house museum by Mackay Regional Council, it is listed on the Queensland Heritage Register and offers guided tours illustrating early 20th-century domestic life.
Gregory's Tree is a large heritage-listed boab tree (Adansonia gregorii) on the banks of the Victoria River, about 10 kilometres west of Timber Creek in the Victoria Daly Region, Northern Territory. It is notable for inscriptions carved by explorer Augustus Charles Gregory during his 1855-1856 North Australian Expedition, marking his camp on 2 July 1856. The site lies within Judbarra / Gregory National Park and is a well-known roadside historic landmark on the Victoria Highway.
Kangaroo Bluff Historic Site is a preserved 1880s coastal defence battery at Bellerive in the City of Clarence, on the eastern shore of the River Derwent opposite Hobart. Built in 1884-1885 to protect Hobart from naval attack, it features gun pits, underground passages and magazines. Managed by Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service, it is heritage-listed and notable for its intact Victorian military architecture and panoramic river views.
Miners Heritage Walk-In Mine is a heritage tourism attraction in Rubyvale in the Central Highlands Region of Queensland, within the Sapphire Gemfields. It is an original underground sapphire mine converted for guided walk-in tours. The site is notable for preserving authentic mine tunnels, historic mining equipment and displays that interpret more than 100 years of sapphire mining history in the Anakie Gemfields.
Miners Park is an open-air heritage park in the centre of Pine Creek, about 90 kilometres north of Katherine in the Northern Territory. Established to preserve relics from the Pine Creek goldfield, it displays historic mining machinery, steam engines and equipment from the 1870s gold rush. Located on Main Terrace, the park offers a free, accessible introduction to the town's mining history and serves as a rest stop for travellers on the Stuart Highway.
Mount Nelson Signal Station is a heritage-listed former semaphore station located on Nelson Road at Mount Nelson, about 8 km south of central Hobart, Tasmania. Established in 1811, it was Tasmania's first signal station to relay shipping messages between the Derwent Estuary and Hobart Town. The restored station, gardens and lookout offer panoramic views over the Derwent River, Hobart, Bruny Island and Storm Bay.
The Newcastle Gaol Museum is a heritage museum housed in the former Newcastle Gaol on Clinton Street in Toodyay, Western Australia, about 85 km northeast of Perth. Built in 1864-65 by convict labour, the stone gaol and adjacent 1890s police stables now display local history collections. Notable for its association with bushranger Moondyne Joe, the State Heritage-listed site preserves original cells, artefacts and photographs illustrating Toodyay's colonial and convict past.
Old Wilpena Station is a preserved 19th-century pastoral station within Ikara-Flinders Ranges National Park in South Australia, about 45 km north of Hawker. Established in 1851, it was one of the earliest and most successful sheep stations in the Flinders Ranges. The site retains the original homestead, woolshed, outbuildings and pastoral artefacts, offering insight into early colonial pastoral life and frontier settlement in arid Australia.
Patrick Taylor Cottage is a heritage-listed wattle-and-daub cottage at 37 Duke Street in central Albany, Western Australia. Built in 1832, it is recognised as the oldest surviving dwelling in Western Australia. Originally built by John Lawrence Morley and later owned by Patrick Taylor, it now operates as a museum managed by the Albany Historical Society, displaying period furnishings, artefacts and exhibits illustrating early colonial life in Albany, the state's first European settlement.
The Pinjarra Massacre Site is a heritage-listed memorial site on the Murray River foreshore in Pinjarra, Western Australia, within the Shire of Murray. It marks the location of an 1834 historical event and is commemorated by a memorial and interpretive signage. Set in a quiet riverside parkland, the site is recognized for its historical and cultural heritage value and serves as a place of reflection for visitors exploring the region's early history.
Pipemakers Park is a heritage riverfront park on the Maribyrnong River in Maribyrnong, Victoria, about 7 km northwest of central Melbourne. Established on the former Hume Pipe Company industrial site, it preserves pipemaking heritage and hosts the Living Museum of the West. The park features open lawns, river trails, wetlands, playgrounds and picnic areas, offering recreational space and interpretation of the area's industrial and natural history.
The Ross Female Factory is a former female convict station located on Portugal Street in Ross, Tasmania, within the Southern Midlands. Operating from 1848 to 1854, it housed female convicts and their children. Now an archaeological site with low stone ruins and interpretive displays, it is part of the Australian Convict Sites World Heritage property. The open-air site illustrates colonial convict administration and the experiences of women in Tasmania's convict era.
The Round House is the oldest remaining public building in Western Australia, located on Arthur Head in Fremantle. Built in 1830-1831 to a design by Henry Willey Reveley, this twelve-sided limestone prison is the first permanent structure of the Swan River Colony. Perched above Bathers Beach with views to the Indian Ocean, it later served as a police lock-up and quarters, and is now a heritage attraction managed by volunteers.
Runnymede is a National Trust-listed colonial villa located at 61 Bay Road in New Town, Hobart, Tasmania. Built between 1836 and 1840 for lawyer Robert Pitcairn and later home to Bishop Francis Nixon, it is a well-preserved example of a colonial maritime family residence. The property is notable for its Regency architecture, whaling-era associations, period interiors and garden setting close to central Hobart.
The Sphinx Memorial is a heritage-listed sandstone sculpture located in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park at North Turramurra, New South Wales. Carved in the 1920s as a memorial to Australian soldiers of World War I, it replicates the Great Sphinx of Giza. Set in bushland along a walking track near Bobbin Head, it is notable for its historical craftsmanship, bushland setting, and status as a distinctive war memorial within Australia's second-oldest national park.
Station Pier is a historic 600-metre pier on Port Phillip Bay at Port Melbourne in the City of Port Phillip, Victoria. Opened in 1854 as Railway Pier and progressively extended, it served as Victoria's principal passenger shipping terminal and major post-World War II migrant arrival point. Heritage-listed, it now operates as Melbourne's cruise shipping terminal and public promenade, noted for its long pier structure, memorials and panoramic bay and city skyline views.
Strawberry Hill Farm, also known as Old Farm, Strawberry Hill, is a National Trust of Western Australia property at Mira Mar in Albany, Western Australia. Established as a government farm in 1827 and developed from 1831 by Sir Richard Spencer, it is recognised as the oldest farm in Western Australia. The site includes the 1831 cottage, later extensions, heritage gardens and farm outbuildings set on a hill with views over Princess Royal Harbour.
Tennant Creek Telegraph Station Historical Reserve is a heritage-listed repeater station on the Australian Overland Telegraph Line, located about 12 km north of Tennant Creek in the Barkly region of the Northern Territory. Built in 1872 from local stone, it was one of 12 stations linking Adelaide and Darwin. The reserve preserves the original stone buildings, telegraph equipment and waterhole in an arid landscape.
The Old Mill in South Perth is a restored 1835 windmill located at Mill Point on the Swan River foreshore near the Narrows Bridge. Built for William Kernot Shenton, it is the oldest surviving industrial building in Western Australia. The whitewashed tower with sails stands in parkland with interpretive displays and river views. State Heritage listed and managed by the City of South Perth, it represents early colonial flour milling in the Swan River Colony.
The Tree of Knowledge Memorial in Barcaldine, Queensland, preserves the remains of a heritage-listed ghost gum (Corymbia aparrerinja) on Oak Street beside the Barcaldine Railway Station. The tree is notable as the meeting place for shearers during the 1891 shearers' strike, an event associated with the formation of the Australian Labor Party. After the tree was poisoned in 2006, a timber memorial structure was built to conserve its trunk.
The Wave Hill Walk-off Track is a heritage walking trail near Kalkarindji in the Victoria Daly region of the Northern Territory. It follows the route taken in 1966 by Gurindji people led by Vincent Lingiari from Wave Hill Station to Wattie Creek (Daguragu). The 7-kilometre return track is National Heritage listed and features interpretive signage explaining its historical and cultural importance in Australian history.
Werribee Park Mansion is a 19th-century Italianate mansion located in Werribee Park, Werribee, about 32 km southwest of Melbourne, Victoria. Built between 1874 and 1877 for pastoralists Thomas and Andrew Chirnside, it was once Victoria's largest private residence. Set within formal gardens beside the Werribee River, the heritage-listed mansion features ornate interiors, period furnishings and surrounding parklands managed by Parks Victoria.
The Willunga Courthouse Museum is a heritage museum housed in the former Willunga Courthouse and Police Station on High Street, Willunga, about 47 km south of Adelaide in the City of Onkaparinga. Built in 1855 from local slate, it served as the local courthouse, police station and cells until the 1920s. Operated by the National Trust of South Australia (Willunga Branch), it displays local history including slate quarrying, almond growing and early settlement.
Woodford Academy is a heritage-listed Georgian building at Woodford in the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, located on the Great Western Highway. Built in stages from the 1830s as an inn and later a private residence and academy for boys, it is the oldest surviving building in the Blue Mountains. Now a National Trust (NSW) museum, it displays colonial-era rooms, artefacts and exhibitions interpreting early road, inn and education history of the mountains.
The York Residency Museum is a local history museum housed in the 1852 former Government Residency in York, Western Australia's oldest inland town. Located on Brook Street near the Avon River, it displays colonial-era artefacts, photographs, and social history collections illustrating early settlement of the Avon Valley. The heritage-listed building itself is a key exhibit, notable for its colonial architecture and former use as residence, hospital and administrative centre.