The road to Oz

Meerkat pups at Taronga Zoo in Sydney. Photo / Getty Images

With the cost of travel to Australia so competitive now, special deals are rolling out almost daily. A trip across the ditch with the family can be quite inexpensive. Here is a list of 10 great things to do with kids, both off the beaten track and in the big cities:

1. Aussie rules

The kids will love the party atmosphere of an Aussie rules game. "Footy", as AFL is known, is much bigger than rugby in some states of Australia. So plan on a night of excitement on the oval field where 18 players on each team run, kick and bounce the ball towards the four goalposts at each end. The game was first played in Melbourne in 1858, and the city's cricket ground will host 45 AFL games this season as it is home to four of the 16 teams in the league: Collingwood, Hawthorn, Melbourne and Richmond.

2. Whale watching

From late July until November you can see humpback whales frolicking in Hervey Bay, just south of Queensland, as they migrate north from Antarctica to the tropics for calving. There are about 20 whale-watching companies who can take you out to see these amazingly graceful and acrobatic creatures playing in the warm waters. Some operators have sound systems on their boats so you can hear the whales sing. Humpbacks grow up to 15m in length and have been seen breaching in these waters up to 30 times in five minutes.

Hervey Bay is a 3 1/2 hour drive north of Brisbane or a 45-minute flight. www.hervey.com.au

3. Tasmanian devils

They may have a scary name but Tasmanian devils are really just misunderstood marsupials - albeit with a chilling screech and a penchant for attacking each other and scavenging roadkill. Sadly, they are now endangered because of a fatal disease that is spread on contact with one another.

Several conservation parks have been opened in Tasmania to ensure they are kept disease-free and separate from those in the wild in an effort to save the species. They're quite cute really, and the kids will love them.

You'll find conservation parks listed on www.tassiedevil.com.au.

4. Watch baby turtles hatch

Mon Repos is the breeding ground for loggerhead turtles. Located in the Bundaberg region, just south of the Sunshine Coast, the nesting season runs between November and March. From January until the end of March between 7pm and midnight you will almost certainly get to see baby loggerhead turtles struggle out of their ping-pong ball-like shells and wiggle out to sea.

Bookings are essential.

Access to the breeding ground is through the Mon Repos Visitor Centre. Phone +61 7 4153 8888. Adults A$9.35, Children (5-17 years) A$4.95

5. Kangaroo Island

Join a fair dinkum Aussie bushman for an Outback adventure on Kangaroo Island, just off the coast of Adelaide, to see kangaroos, wallabies and koalas in their natural environment. This is all about stealth; walking quietly with cameras poised to snap Skippy and his family lying in the sun.

There are several tour operators offering small or large group tours and some include a barbecue lunch in the bush of fresh fish, salads and a glass of wine for the adults. www.exceptional kangarooisland.com

6. Darling Harbour

Sydney's not a place you automatically think of as a kids' destination, yet there's plenty here to keep the nippers occupied. Head to Darling Harbour by foot, on the monorail for a bird's-eye view of the city, or take a water taxi from Circular Quay. Watch buskers, grab an icecream, shop at Harbourside Mall, and take in an Imax movie on the eight-storey high screen.

Sydney Aquarium is home to more than 11,000 fish including 3m sharks and a seal colony.

Sydney Wildlife World is also in Darling Harbour where you can see Australia's unique habitats from the rainforest to the desert and more than 6000 of its furry, scaly, hairy and spiky inhabitants.

7. Taronga Zoo

But if it's kangaroos and wallabies you want to see then take a ferry from Circular Quay to Sydney's Taronga Zoo. Right now you can see the new baby gorilla, Mahale, and two meerkat pups, Zanzibar and Nairobi. Open every day from 9am to 5pm. Adults A$41, children (4-15 years) A$20, children under 4, free.

8. Sydney Harbour Bridge

If you're afraid of heights and have no intention of climbing over the Sydney Harbour Bridge, you can still walk across it.

It's free and you'll get spectacular views of the harbour as you wander at your own pace. Take the pedestrian walkway from The Rocks and walk to Milsons Point (and vice versa).

9. Werribee Zoo

Werribee Open Range Zoo just out of Melbourne, is the closest thing you'll find to an African safari park in this part of the world. It's about 30 minutes from Melbourne and sprawls over 225ha of open savannah. You can take the walking trail where you'll come face-to-face with lions, cheetahs, monkeys and the new baby hippo, or head out on safari in an open-sided truck across the grassy plains to get up close and personal with giraffes, rhinos, zebras and antelopes all grazing together.

Open every day from 9am to 5pm, at K Rd, Werribee, Victoria. Adults A$23.60, Children (4-15 years) A$11.80, Children under 4 free

10. Scienceworks museum

Part of Melbourne Museum, Scienceworks is a fascinating and educational centre, and coming in June is a new exhibition entitled Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination. This interactive exhibition runs until November and will showcase a large authentic collection of Star Wars costumes and pose scientific conundrums such as, "Could cars that hover above the ground become the mass transit of the future?" The Scienceworks and Melbourne Planetarium is at 2 Booker St, Spotswood, Victoria and is open daily 10am to 4.30pm.