[TOPDOG_999]

Hi, im travel to Melbourne from Sydney and I was wondering where the best places to stop were. I have an KM pass for greyhound so i can jump on and off where I want. But im not sure where to do that, its just sort of to break up the long journey but I would like it to be somewhere nice and interesting?

Please help.

[gregausti]

Greyhound use the Hume Fwy/Hwy shortest quickest but most boring route between Sydney and Melbourne and only two cities of any size, one Goulburn not having anything of any real note to stop for and then you have Albury on the border at the River Murray, and there's not a hell of a lot more to make it worth a stop.

Generally speaking, you need to get off the beaten track to find interesting places, a trek out to Bathurst for Mt. Panorama 1000Km race on this weekend would be one highlight, and drive around the circuit (a public road) when no race on of course is a great drive in itself, and then backtrack for getting across through Jenolan Caves to the Hume and then off to Canberra is another option before either continuing down through Alpine territory into northeast Victoria or back towards the coast and taking the coastal route.
If you're a driver, doing a campervan relocation - Rental Relocations Australia New Zealand United States Canada - Hire Now at StandByCars is what I would recommend to see best of country between Sydney and Melbourne, going via the coast or at least to as far as Batemans Bay before heading inland to Canberra and then Cooma and the Apline Way into North East Vic. - have a look at www.travelmate.com.au re guiding with detailed directions, and if driving yourself (even a few days car hire would be of value), and if heading south out of Sydney on the coastal route take a turn into the Royal National Park at Heathcote and do the Lawrence Hargreaves drive - spectacular.

If you're stuck with public transport, I'd look at your future travel and save the greyhound pass for that and get a ticket/pass with www.premierms.com.au as they go via the coastal route and there are quite a few picturesque sea side villages worth stopping at, and some from where there are island and inland/national park tours available - Batemans Bay, Narooma, Merimbula, Eden, Lakes Entrance being main stops to consider and if driving, Mallacoota Inlet, Wilsons Promontary and Phillip Island could be added to the list, taking a cheap tent if not doing a relocation will pay for itself with free overnighting possibilities.

[Tim Uden]

There is nowhere to stop on the direct Sydney-Melbourne route that Greyhound takes unless you get a bus that goes via Canberra.

If you take the Premier Motor Service bus (and save your KM pass for later) then you can stop in Merimbula (the nicest town on the NSW south coast).

Another place that is well worth seeing is Pebbly Beach in Murramarang National Park near Batemans Bay. This is an almost guarranteed spot to see kangaroos in the wild. If you take the Premier Motor Service bus, stop in Batemans Bay and rent a car from there; if you take the Greyhound bus, get off in Goulburn (or Canberra if you get a bus going via Canberra) and rent a car for a couple of days to drive to Pebbly Beach. Pebbly Beach is only four hours south of Sydney so you can always rent a car from there and visit on a separate trip.