3 Romantic escape-the-city weekenders

1 Blue Mountains, near Sydney, NSW Ditch Sydney and head for Blackheath (about two hours west). Take a bushwalk on the Grand Canyon Track, drive to Govetts Leap and Evans lookouts for sweeping views over the Grose Valley, and fill your belly with breakfast at Anonymous and dinner at Vesta in Blackheath.

2 Atherton Tablelands, near Cairns, Qld Drive the Waterfall Circuit, about an hour inland and south of Cairns. Snap a selfie and take a dip at Millaa Millaa Falls (the most photographed falls in Australia), check out the giant curtain fig tree, and drink a brew where the bean is grown at Skybury coffee plantation.

3 Clare Valley, near Adelaide, SA Hit the Riesling Trail – a cycle path along a disused railway line that takes in some of the best cellar doors in this wine region north of Adelaide. Don’t miss the restaurant at Skillogalee winery, or the heritage towns of Burra and Mintaro.