What are the best scenic flights in Australia?

The best scenic flights in Australia include ballooning in Canberra, helicopter flights over Kings Canyon, riding seaplanes in Sydney and visiting Heart Reef in the Whitsundays.

There’s more than one way to see Australia. Boat trips, kayaking tours, urban walking trails, multi-day hikes, bike tours, road trips and island cruises can all be thrown into the mix. But if you’re after the top drawer views, it’s tough to top a scenic flight.

There are hundreds of opportunities for scenic flights in Australia. Some are fairly mundane, others awe-inspiring. Some are in helicopters, others in seaplanes. Australia Travel Questions has picked out some of the best joy flight options from around the country.

Best scenic flights in Australia: NSW and ACT

Sydney seaplane flights: There are several scenic flight options in Sydney, but by far the most romantic takes place in a seaplane. The Sydney Seaplanes terminal is next to the Catalina restaurant at Rose Bay. The flights soar above Sydney Harbour, taking in the harbour islands and CBD skyline. They also head down the coast towards surfing hotspot Bondi Beach, and the clifftops of the Sydney to Coogee coastal walk.

Scenic flight over Sydney. Bondi Beach from seaplane — The east coast clifftops and Bondi Beach from the window of a Sydney Seaplane. Photo by David Whitley/ Australia Travel Questions.

Western Sydney jetpack flying: Flying with a jetpack is hardly a traditional scenic flight. And no-one is coming to do jetpack flying at the Penrith Lakes for the views. But it’s tremendous fun.

Illawarra scenic flights: Departing from Shellharbour Airport in Albion Park, NSW Air Flight Training offers scenic flights along the Illawarra coastline. These take in Stanwell Park Beach, Towradgi Beach, Wollongong, Lake Illawarra, Windang Beach and Kiama.

Oxley Wild Rivers National Park helicopter tours: Departing from Armidale in New England, helicopter tours take in the gorges and waterfalls of the massively underrated Oxley Wild Rivers National Park.

Hot air ballooning in Canberra: Hot air ballooning is available in several sites across the country, including the Hunter Valley. But what makes an early morning hot air balloon ride in Canberra so appealing is the planned nature of the city. You can see how carefully it has been laid out from above, as you float over the Australian Capital Territory, Lake Burley-Griffin and the National Carillon.

Best scenic flights in Victoria

Tiger moth flights in Torquay: At the start of the Great Ocean Road, aerobatic Tiger Moth flights are more about the adrenalin experience than the scenery. The high thrill rides are offered by Tiger Moth World.

12 Apostles from helicopter — The 12 Apostles from a helicopter flight along the Great Ocean Road, Victoria. Photo by David Whitley/ Australia Travel Questions

Twelve Apostles helicopter tours: The small Victorian town of Port Campbell is the gateway to the Great Ocean Road’s most rugged coastline. 12 Apostles Helicopters runs flights of varying lengths past the most impressive rock formations. It’s a great way to take the coastline in as a whole, rather than a selection of snippets.

Best scenic flights in Australia: Queensland and Northern Territory

Gold Coast hot air ballooning: Hot Air runs hot air balloon flights over the Gold Coast hinterland, taking in bounding kangaroos and horse-breeding farms. They finish with breakfast at the O’Reilly’s Vineyard.

Heart Island flights: The Great Barrier Reef looks incredible from above. So it’s no surprise to learn that scenic flights can be taken from key tourist hubs up and down the Reef. The prize photo, though, is of Heart Island – a tiny heart-shaped reef in the Whitsundays. Flights run from both Hamilton Island and Whitsunday Coast Airport in crocodile-heavy Proserpine.

Heart Island aka Heart Reef on the Great Barrier Reef in the Whitsundays — Heart Island (or Heart Reef) on the Great Barrier Reef in the Whitsundays. Photo courtesy of Tourism and Events Queensland.

Outback Floatplanes flights from Darwin: The Outback Floatplanes trip is designed as a quick taste of the Top End. Taking off from Darwin, the floatplane lands on Sweets Lagoon, for a crocodile-spotting cruise in an airboat.

Kings Canyon helicopter tours: Kings Canyon is of the highlights of the Northern Territory’s Red Centre. But the wider rumpled landscape of the George Gill Range and Watarrka National Park is best seen from a chopper.

Scenic flights in South Australia and Western Australia

Ningaloo Reef microlight flights: Help spot the whale sharks before going on a whale shark snorkelling tour. Flying above the Ningaloo Reef from Exmouth in a tiny microlight is exhilarating and beautiful at the same time.

Ningaloo Reef scenic flight in a microlight, Western Australia — Scenic microlight flights over the Ningaloo Reef are an unusual way to spot whale sharks in Western Australia.

Batavia shipwreck flights: The Western Australian town of Geraldton is the gateway to the Houtman-Abrolhos Islands. Day tours with Geraldton Air Charter land on East Wallabi Island, but they also fly over Beacon Island – site of the notoriously gruesome Batavia shipwreck. Even if you’re not into the history, the archipelago looks stunning from above.

Rottnest Island skydives: The bonus of doing a skydive is that you get a free scenic flight as part of the package. Admittedly, you may be more concerned about leaping out of the plane from 15,000ft than admiring the Indian Ocean scenery around Rottnest Island. But that’s your choice…

Barossa Valley balloon tours: Get up early in the morning, and you can take a hot air balloon flight over the Barossa Valley vineyards.

Lake Eyre scenic flights: Some of the giant salt lakes in the South Australian outback are more accessible than others. Lake Hart, you can pretty much drive up to from the Stuart Highway. But Lake Eyre, the biggest of the salt lakes, is better seen from the air. Wrightsair offers scenic flights from the tiny South Australian town of William Creek.