Australia Coast to Coast: Ride the Indian Pacific Train from Sydney to Perth

Settle into the hotel and go out for an Australian "brekkie" and a long black coffee. Walk around The Rocks neighborhood and orient yourself to Sydney. This was the historic area where prisoners from England disembarked and were imprisoned until they could work their way out of servitude. Today it is a vital neighborhood that commands a view of Sydney Bay. Walk along the waterfront and have dinner at one of many restaurants in the area.

In the morning, take a tour of the Sydney Opera House that lifts like a sail against Sydney Harbour. It has some of the best acoustics of any concert hall in the world. After lunch on the waterfront, visit the Royal Botanical Gardens, St Mary's Cathedral, and the Museum of New South Wales. In the evening, see a show at the Sydney Opera House.

Ferry across to Watsons Bay. Have fish and chips at Doyle's on the Beach. After lunch, take a leisurely walk to Watsons Lighthouse for stunning views of the Tasman Sea. Return to Sydney on the ferry. In the evening, take a diner cruise that will take you under the Sydney Harbour Bridge, past the Opera House and tour around Sydney Harbour.

Enjoy lunch and a cocktail at Sydney's Central train station before boarding the Indian Pacific. Watch the Blue Mountains pass by outside the window before dinner onboard the train in the beautiful dining car.

Wake up early for one of several excursions to Broken Hill, the first town of the outback. Reboard the train for lunch and relax until Adelaide. Enjoy wine tasting in McLaren Vale or Barossa, and a delicious meal with a view of Victor Harbor.

Wake up to see the Outback rolling past you. Watch the Nullarbor Plain—one of the flattest parts of Australia completely absent of trees—roll by. Stop at the remote town of Cook to step off the train and feel the heat of the Western desert. Dinner is an authentic Australian "barbie" (BBQ) under the stars in Rawlina, the largest sheep ranch in the world.

Enjoy your last day on the train as you follow the stunning Avon valley before you disembark in Perth, Western Australia's only large city, in the late afternoon. Take a walk along the waterfront looking out into the mouth of the Swan River. Enjoy a superb meal at Petition.

There are many options for your full day in Perth. You could take a Swan River lunch cruise, take a boat to Rottenest Island, or stay in town and enjoy St Mary's Cathedral and the Art Gallery of Western Australia.

Pick up your rental car and take the easy drive to the Margaret River area, stopping at the Cape Naturaliste lighthouse. Take a walk along the beach before dinner at the Caves House Hotel in Yallingup.

In the morning, drive to the Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse, where the Indian and Southern Oceans meet, the most southwesterly tip of the Australian continent. Take a hike in the tall eucalyptus forest before lunch in the town of Margaret River. Enjoy the afternoon at the beach before your final dinner at the Margaret River Brewhouse.