Australia
Short answer: Sydney to Cairns is about 2,600 km by the direct road, closer to 3,000 km with the usual stops. Two weeks is rushed, three to four weeks is the sweet spot, and five to six weeks is relaxed. A Greyhound East Coast pass is from $319 for transport only, and four weeks DIY with hostel dorms and the three big tours comes to roughly $2,960 to $3,640 before food. A semi-guided trip with the bus pass, every bed and the big tours booked is from $2,999 for 17 days and $4,329 for 28 days. A fully guided 28-day group tour is from $5,199, and a 5-week guided explorer from $5,209.
2 weeks
Rushed
Doable, but you lose stops or fly a leg. Two weeks fits Brisbane to Cairns properly: see the 2-week itinerary.
3 to 4 weeks
The sweet spot
Sydney, Byron, Noosa, K'gari, the Whitsundays, Magnetic Island and the reef, with no rushed days. Costed day by day in the 21-day and 4-week guides.
5 to 6 weeks
Relaxed
More nights at each stop, plus side trips like the Daintree and a dive course in Cairns. Time to pick up work on the way too.
Four ways to do the run, with live prices from our listings. Per person, AUD, flights and insurance not included.
| Style | Length | From | What's included | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DIY with a Greyhound bus pass Bus passes → | Any length (passes from 7 to 45 days) | $319 pass only, 7 Day Pass | Hop-on hop-off coach travel only. You book every bed and every tour. | Travellers who want to change plans on the road and do their own booking. |
| Semi-guided (our Travel Mates trips) See the trips → | 17 to 33 days | $2,999 | Bus pass, every bed, the K'gari 4WD trip, a Whitsundays sail and an outer reef day, booked in a set order. Guides on the big days only. | Solo travellers and pairs who want it all booked, a crew on the big days, and free time in each town. |
| Fully guided group tour See the tour → | 28 days | $5,199 | 27 nights of hostels, 24 meals, all East Coast transport and a group leader the whole way. | Travellers who want a leader and the same group start to finish, on set departure dates. |
| Multi-week guided explorer See the tours → | 36 to 43 days | $5,209 | Shared dorms the whole way plus overnight coach legs, all tour transport, a group leader and selected meals. | Travellers with five weeks or more who want every stop covered with a group leader. |
The bus pass covers the coach only. Here's the same month with the beds and the three big tours added. The bed figure is a rough estimate, not our price; the pass and tours are the current "from" prices on our site.
Not included: food (roughly $30 to $50 a day if you cook some of it), drinks, travel insurance, flights and any extra tours. Tour prices are the lowest current "from" price among comparable trips we sell, and boats and beds fill up in peak months.
More detail on each model: bus pass vs group tour vs semi-guided and what each pass length costs.
The classic run north, with how many nights to give each stop on a three- or four-week trip. Want it leg by leg with transport options? See the Sydney to Cairns route or the 21-day day-by-day itinerary.
Stop 1 3 weeks: 2 nights · 4 weeks: 3 nights
The Bondi to Coogee coastal walk, a ferry to Manly and a day in the Blue Mountains. Sort your SIM, bank card and tax file number before you head north.
Start here. Most long-haul flights land in Sydney.
Stop 2 3 weeks: overnight coach · 4 weeks: 1 night
The halfway break on the Sydney to Byron run: coastal walks, beaches and a learn-to-surf stop.
On the way north. On three weeks, ride the overnight coach straight past to Byron and skip a night's accommodation.
Stop 3 3 weeks: 3 nights · 4 weeks: 3 nights
Sunrise at the Cape Byron lighthouse, a surf lesson at The Pass, the markets and a hinterland day.
Sydney to Byron is about 770 km, 8 to 9 hours of driving.
Stop 4 3 weeks: 1 night · 4 weeks: 1 night
One night is enough for most: South Bank's free lagoon and the river in Brisbane, or Surfers Paradise for a big night.
Byron to Noosa is about 310 km, around 4 hours, straight through both.
Stop 5 3 weeks: 2 nights · 4 weeks: 3 nights
Canoe the Noosa Everglades, walk the national park headland and surf the main beach. Many K'gari tours leave from here.
Brisbane to Noosa is about 140 km, around 2 hours.
Stop 6 3 weeks: 2 nights · 4 weeks: 2 nights
A 3-day 4WD tag-along: Lake McKenzie, Eli Creek, the Maheno shipwreck and two nights camping on the beach. Rainbow Beach and Hervey Bay are the two jumping-off points.
Noosa to Rainbow Beach is about 130 km, around 2 hours.
K'gari tag-along tours →Tours from Rainbow Beach →Tours from Hervey Bay →Hervey Bay vs Rainbow Beach →
Stop 7 3 weeks: overnight coach · 4 weeks: 1 night
On three weeks, ride the overnight coach straight to Airlie. With four, break the run here: the most northerly surf beach in Queensland and a quiet night.
Rainbow Beach to Airlie is about 1,000 km, 11 to 12 hours: the longest leg on the coast.
Stop 8 3 weeks: 4 nights · 4 weeks: 5 nights
A 2-night sail: Whitehaven Beach, the Hill Inlet lookout and snorkelling the fringing reef. The Airlie lagoon and bars either side of it.
Includes 2 nights on board your Whitsundays boat.
Stop 9 3 weeks: 2 nights · 4 weeks: 3 nights
Loop the island's bays, snorkel Geoffrey Bay and take the Forts Walk, where you can spot wild koalas in the gums.
About 4 hours to Townsville, then a 20-minute ferry.
Stop 10 3 weeks: pass through · 4 weeks: 2 nights
Rainforest running onto the beach, and a tandem skydive over the reef if you're game.
About 3 hours north of Townsville.
Stop 11 3 weeks: 2 nights · 4 weeks: 3 nights
A full day snorkelling or diving the outer reef, then the Daintree and Cape Tribulation or the Atherton Tablelands waterfalls.
About 2 hours from Mission Beach. The end of the line.
Night counts add up to 20 nights (21 days) and 27 nights (28 days), including the overnight coaches. Distances are rounded road figures.
One booking covers the bus pass, every bed and the big tours, sequenced so nothing clashes. The itinerary is fixed; you pick the start date (open-dated, valid 12 months, from Sydney or Cairns). Guides run the big days, each with a group.
From $4,329 per person, 28 days.
Price by travel month
You see the exact price for your dates before you pay.
Not included: flights, travel insurance, most meals off the guided days and optional add-ons.
See the 28-day trip
Sydney to Cairns
Some meals included
$4329 AUD
≈ $155/day
Sydney to Cairns
Some meals included
$2999 AUD
≈ $176/day
Sydney to Cairns
Some meals included
$3099 AUD
≈ $148/day
Sydney to Cairns
Some meals included
$4909 AUD
≈ $149/day
Three to four weeks is the sweet spot: enough for Sydney, Byron Bay, Noosa, K'gari, the Whitsundays, Magnetic Island and the reef without a rushed day. Two weeks is possible but rushed, so you'd skip stops or fly a leg. Five to six weeks is relaxed: more nights at each stop plus side trips like the Daintree or a dive course in Cairns.
About 2,600 km by the direct road, and closer to 3,000 km on the usual backpacker route with its detours (Sydney to Byron about 770 km, Byron to Noosa about 310, Noosa to Rainbow Beach about 130, Rainbow Beach to Airlie about 1,000, Airlie to Cairns about 620). That's over 30 hours of driving, which is why most backpackers ride the overnight coach on the two longest legs.
A Greyhound East Coast pass is from $319 for transport only. Add hostel dorms and the three big tours (K'gari, a 2-night Whitsundays sail and an outer reef day) and four weeks DIY comes to roughly $2,960 to $3,640 before food and drinks. Our semi-guided Sydney to Cairns trips, with the bus pass, beds and big tours booked, are from $2,999 for 17 days and $4,329 for 28 days. A fully guided 28-day group tour is from $5,199. A 5-week guided explorer is from $5,209. Prices are per person in AUD and exclude flights and travel insurance.
A bus pass is transport only: you choose every stop and book every bed and tour yourself. A group tour books everything and puts a leader with you the whole way, on set departure dates. Semi-guided sits between: the bus pass, beds and big tours are booked in a set order, guides run the big days, and you're free in each town between them.
The itinerary is fixed: the route, the nights at each stop and the activities are set and pre-booked. Only the start date is flexible: the trips are open-dated and valid for 12 months. Guides run the big days, like the K'gari 4WD trip, the Whitsundays sail and the reef, each with a group. The days between are unguided and yours to spend in each town.
Yes. Our semi-guided Sydney to Cairns trips start from either Sydney or Cairns, and a bus pass works in either direction. Heading north means it gets warmer as you go and you finish on the reef.
No. Flights to your start city and home from your finish city are extra on every option on this page, and so is travel insurance.
Pick a semi-guided trip and choose your start date, or send us your dates and we'll plan it with live prices.
