With many Aussies gearing up to travel during the school holidays, a booking website has named the country’s best local spots.
Based on responses from more than 1000 Aussies, Wotif has named this year’s winners of its annual Uniquely Aussie Awards, aiming to put a spotlight on the country’s best local spots and inspire trips.
This comes after YouGov research commissioned by Wotif found 69 per cent of Aussies are planning a domestic getaway this year, with more than a quarter choosing to forgo international travel to keep costs down.
“With thousands of entries across the six categories, the awards show Aussies are eager to share their local travel favourites, however it is the classic sausage roll which caused the most debate, earning the title of the most voted category by Aussies,” Wotif travel expert Rebecca Hurley said.
Without further ado, here are this year’s national winners.
Best Finger Bun
Humble Bakery – Sydney, NSW
Photo: Wotif
Wotif said Humble Bakery has transformed the classic finger bun into a gourmet treat, featuring dried cranberries, golden raisins, currants and baby pink cream cheese frosting – and the most important ingredient, a generous slab of butter from the local CopperTree Farm.
Humble Bakery co-owner Ben Milgate said the win was “humbling”.
“Our pastry chefs and bakers are here every day doing long hours, so it’s a good pat on the back for them,” he said.
“We have a secret hack for enjoying the finger bun: We get the lid and flip it upside down and eat it just like that, so you’re not getting the cream cheese frosting in your face.”
Source: TND/Wotif
Best Hotel Bar
The Terrace Rooftop Bar at Emporium Hotel South Bank – Brisbane, Qld
Owned and operated by a Brisbane couple, Wotif said the Terrace Rooftop Bar was an “architectural wonder”.
Some key attractions include panoramic views of the city, framed by an “innovative” retractable ceiling and expansive doors that open into the South Bank Parklands.
Best Surf Club
Henley Surf Life Saving Club – Henley Beach, SA
Photo: Wotif
As the first surf lifesaving club in South Australia, Henley Surf Life Saving Club will celebrate its 100th birthday in 2025.
Wotif praised the club’s strong family-first and community values, and its Italian-inspired bistro Ocean Bar & Kitchen from celebrity chef Adam Swanson and his business partner, publican Josh Harkin.
Best Lookout Point
Wineglass Bay Lookout – Freycinet, Tasmania
Photo: Wotif/Tourism Australia/Hugh Stewart
Overlooking the clear waters and white beach of Wineglass Bay, this lookout also offers occasional glimpses of whales and dolphins.
The 1.3-kilometre track that leads to the lookout point winds through coastal woodland and past impressive granite boulders, Wotif said.
Best Sausage Roll
Kenilworth Bakery – Kenilworth, Qld
Photo: Wotif
Kenilworth Bakery is tucked away in a World Heritage-listed building in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland.
The bakery is perhaps best known for its one-kilogram sausage roll challenge, where customers can attempt to eat the whole thing in one sitting to get a refund and possibly make it on to the leaderboard.
Kenilworth Bakery owner Jenna Sanders said the secret behind the tastiness of the bakery’s sausage rolls was the use of beef mince instead of sausage meat, mixed with oats instead of breadcrumbs.
Across her three stores, Sanders said about 20 to 50 people per day order the one-kilogram sausage roll, but more so to share with others than to seriously take part in the challenge.
“The one-kilo sausage roll challenge actually piggy-backed off our kilo donut challenge … everyone was coming back saying, ‘We love your sausage rolls, we love your savoury, we want to do a big challenge,'” she said.
“It is so fantastic to win the Wotif Unique Aussie Award for 2024. It’s just a dream come true for the bakery.
“We’re going to get more exposure for our little country town, and get more people out here trying our food and seeing our local destinations and what Queensland has to offer.”
Best Regional Museum
National Wool Museum – Geelong, Victoria
Photo: Wotif
Geelong might be better known for its beaches, but is also home to the National Wool Museum.
Previously a wool store, the museum is home to everything you need to know about the production, processes and manufacturing of wool, and its shop sells high-quality woollen garments.
National Wool Museum director Padraic Fisher said the museum offered something for everyone, including hands-on activities for children and adults alike.
“We are a place where … the past and the future legacy come together into one spot,” he said.
“It’s a place where people can explore things that happened … here for 60,000 years, or cutting-edge technologies and agricultural practices, or contemporary artistic practices that are happening in Australia, right here, right now.”
Fisher said one of the museum’s top attractions was its 1910 Axminster Jacquard loom, one of only two looms of that vintage still operating and producing carpets in the world today.