Oceania: vast skies, ancient coasts, and alpine fjords

Australia

Australia fills an entire continent, encompassing red desert interiors, tropical reefs, temperate rainforests, and modern coastal cities. Its enormous scale and sparse population leave much of the land untouched, with intensely clear air and dark skies overhead. Travelers move between extremes here, from the monolith of Uluru to the harbor of Sydney.

The interior, known as the Outback, is defined by red earth, isolated rock formations, and immense horizons, with Uluru and Kata Tjuta among the most recognizable landmarks. The coasts run from the tropical waters and coral of the Great Barrier Reef in the northeast to the rugged limestone stacks of the Twelve Apostles along the southern Great Ocean Road.

Australia's cities cluster around the coast, where Sydney's harbor, its Opera House, and the Harbour Bridge form the country's most recognizable urban scene. The clear, dry air of the interior and the absence of light pollution make the Outback one of the best places on earth to stand beneath the Milky Way and the southern stars.

Where to take photos

• Uluru, Northern Territory — a massive sandstone monolith that shifts through deep reds and oranges at sunrise and sunset against the desert plain
• Sydney Opera House, Sydney — the sail-shaped landmark on the harbor, seen at its best at dusk from Mrs Macquarie's Chair alongside the Harbour Bridge
• Twelve Apostles, Victoria — limestone stacks rising from the sea along the Great Ocean Road, towering and dramatic from the clifftop viewpoints at sunset
• Great Barrier Reef, Queensland — the world's largest coral reef system, where aerial patterns and underwater color unfold off the Queensland coast
• Blue Mountains, New South Wales — eucalyptus-covered ranges with the Three Sisters rock formation, often wreathed in blue-tinged haze and morning mist

New Zealand

Glaciers, fjords, volcanic plateaus and subtropical coasts all sit within a few hours' drive of each other in New Zealand. The South Island in particular gathers mountains, lakes, and waterfalls within short drives of one another. Clear air and dark skies, especially in the south, let travelers walk by day and stargaze by night.

The South Island is dominated by the Southern Alps, whose peaks feed turquoise glacial lakes such as Pukaki and Tekapo and plunge into the fjords of Fiordland, including Milford Sound and Doubtful Sound. The coast adds its own wild edges, from the boulders of Moeraki to the rainforests meeting the sea on the West Coast.

The North Island is more volcanic, centered on the geothermal fields of Rotorua and the active peaks of Tongariro National Park, alongside the lakes and vineyards of the interior. The Lake Tekapo area is recognized as an International Dark Sky Reserve, offering some of the clearest night skies accessible anywhere.

Where to take photos

• Milford Sound, Fiordland — a glacier-carved fjord where sheer cliffs and waterfalls drop into the sea, hushed and otherworldly in the mist that often follows rain
• Lake Tekapo, Canterbury — a turquoise glacial lake with the lakeside Church of the Good Shepherd, set within a Dark Sky Reserve where the stars come out in force
• Mount Cook (Aoraki), Southern Alps — the country's highest peak, mirrored in the glacial lakes along the Hooker Valley trail
• Tongariro National Park, North Island — a volcanic landscape of craters and emerald lakes traversed by the Tongariro Alpine Crossing
• Moeraki Boulders, Otago — large spherical boulders scattered along a beach, revealed at their fullest at low tide and dawn

More guides to explore

Melbourne, Australia

Melbourne Travel Guide: Laneways, Coffee & the Yarra River

New Zealand

New Zealand: The Southern Alps & Fiordland

Arthur's Pass, New Zealand

Arthur's Pass Travel Guide: Alpine Village in the Southern Alps