Home › East coast tours › Itineraries

East coast Australia itinerary — 7, 10, 14 and 21 days

Q: East coast Australia itinerary — 7, 10, 14 and 21 days

Ten days is the most commonly booked east coast trip and fourteen is the one people wish they had taken. A week covers K'gari, the Whitsundays and the Great Barrier Reef. Ten adds Noosa and a night on the boat. Fourteen adds time in each town. From $1,449.

Ten days is what most people book and fourteen is what most wish they had. A week covers the three big ones — K'gari, the Whitsundays and the reef. Ten adds Noosa and a night on the sailing boat. Fourteen adds real time in each town. From $1,449.

Checked on 6 October 2026.

The east coast is a string of towns between Brisbane and Cairns with three things that are worth days rather than hours: K'gari, the Whitsundays and the Great Barrier Reef. Every itinerary below is built around fitting those in, and the only real question is how much time you leave around them.

7 days — the three big ones

Day by day

Day 1Brisbane up to Rainbow Beach.
Day 2Rainbow Beach, and the Carlo Sand Blow at sunset.
Days 3 to 5K'gari by 4WD: 75 Mile Beach, Eli Creek, Lake McKenzie, camping two nights.
Days 6 and 7north to Airlie Beach, with a night on the overnight bus that saves you a day and a bed.

Seven days moves fast and still gets you the headline experiences. It is the right length if your dates are fixed.

10 days — the one most people book

What the extra days buy

Noosaa proper beach town rather than a stop, and the national park walk around the headland.
A night on the sailing boatin the Whitsundays instead of a day trip out and back.
A free day in Airlie Beachwhich sounds like a waste until you have done six days of travelling.
The reef from Cairnsat the end, on a full day on the water.

14 days — the full run

Day by day

Days 1 and 2Brisbane and Rainbow Beach.
Days 3 to 5K'gari, three days, two nights camping.
Days 6 and 7north to Airlie Beach.
Days 8 to 10the Whitsundays, three days sailing, Whitehaven Beach and two snorkelling stops, sleeping on the boat.
Day 11a free day in Airlie.
Day 12on to Cairns.
Day 13the Great Barrier Reef, a full day out.
Day 14Cairns.

21 days — time in the towns

Three weeks adds Magnetic Island and the ferry across to it, and turns each town from a night into a stay. If you are coming from Sydney it also takes in Byron Bay on the way up.

Every length, with prices

Trip	Length	Route	From
7 Day Brisbane to Cairns Highlights	7 days, 6 nights	Brisbane / Cairns	$1449
7 Day Cairns to Brisbane Highlights	7 days, 6 nights	Cairns / Brisbane	$1449
10 Day Brisbane to Cairns Highlights	10 days, 9 nights	Brisbane / Cairns	$1999
10 Day Cairns to Brisbane Highlights	10 days, 9 nights	Cairns / Brisbane	$1999
14 Days Brisbane to Cairns Highlights	14 days, 13 nights	Brisbane / Cairns	$2339
14 Days Cairns to Brisbane Highlights	14 days, 13 nights	Cairns / Brisbane	$2339
14 Days Sydney to Cairns Budget	14 days, 13 nights	Sydney / Cairns	$1999
15 Days Brisbane to Cairns Explorer	15 days, 15 nights	Brisbane / Cairns	$2699
21 Days Brisbane to Cairns Explorer	21 days, 20 nights	Brisbane / Cairns	$2949
21 Days Cairns to Brisbane Explorer	21 days, 20 nights	Cairns / Brisbane	$2949
21 Days Melbourne to Cairns	21 days, 20 nights	Melbourne / Cairns	$2749

Every one runs in both directions. Prices update on their own.

Picking a length

Seven daysif the dates are fixed — you still get all three big ones.
Ten daysis the sweet spot and the one we sell most of.
Fourteen daysis what people say afterwards they wish they had booked.
Starting in Sydney?Add about four days for Byron Bay and the run up through northern New South Wales.
Bus passes between towns are booked before you travelwhich is the awkward part done for you.