Travel guide to the best Australian holiday towns

What makes the perfect Australian town for a holiday? Here are our picks of the best.

• by Sue Williams

Guide at a glance: Tenterfield

Caroline Gladstone discovers a town rich in characters - and big rocks.

• by Caroline Gladstone

Follow the music

Bruce Elder explores historic Tenterfield, the town made famous by singer Peter Allen.

A granite titan to conquer

It's huge. It's beautiful. It's humbling. And Lee Atkinson feels no compunction in climbing to the top.

Bald Rock Bush Retreat, Tenterfield review: South of the border

Bruce Elder finds a bold Mexican-Spanish statement deep in the bush on the northern tablelands.

Theatre in the wild

Nature puts on daily, and nightly, shows in this private forest, writes Craig Tansley.

Tenterfield

<b>Tenterfield (including Wallangarra)</b> <br> <b>Historic and interesting town on the Northern Tablelands</b> <br> Tenterfield, 715 km north-east of Sydney and 275 km south of Brisbane, is a town of deciduous trees which are seen to best effect in autumn. It is situated in a shallow valley 882 metres above sea-level at the northern end of the New England Tablelands in an area of rugged mountains and rural vistas. It proclaims itself 'The Birthplace of the Nation' as Henry Parkes chose this spot to deliver his crucial Federation speech of 1889, which led to the establishment of Australia as a unified nation in 1901.

Tenterfield - Fast Facts

<b>Tenterfield (including Wallangarra)</b> <br> <b>Historic and interesting town on the Northern Tablelands</b> <br> Tenterfield, 715 km north-east of Sydney and 275 km south of Brisbane, is a town of deciduous trees which are seen to best effect in autumn. It is situated in a shallow valley 882 metres above sea-level at the northern end of the New England Tablelands in an area of rugged mountains and rural vistas. It proclaims itself 'The Birthplace of the Nation' as Henry Parkes chose this spot to deliver his crucial Federation speech of 1889, which led to the establishment of Australia as a unified nation in 1901.

Tenterfield - Places to See

<b>Tenterfield (including Wallangarra)</b> <br> <b>Historic and interesting town on the Northern Tablelands</b> <br> Tenterfield, 715 km north-east of Sydney and 275 km south of Brisbane, is a town of deciduous trees which are seen to best effect in autumn. It is situated in a shallow valley 882 metres above sea-level at the northern end of the New England Tablelands in an area of rugged mountains and rural vistas. It proclaims itself 'The Birthplace of the Nation' as Henry Parkes chose this spot to deliver his crucial Federation speech of 1889, which led to the establishment of Australia as a unified nation in 1901.

Tenterfield - Culture and History

<b>Tenterfield (including Wallangarra)</b> <br> <b>Historic and interesting town on the Northern Tablelands</b> <br> Tenterfield, 715 km north-east of Sydney and 275 km south of Brisbane, is a town of deciduous trees which are seen to best effect in autumn. It is situated in a shallow valley 882 metres above sea-level at the northern end of the New England Tablelands in an area of rugged mountains and rural vistas. It proclaims itself 'The Birthplace of the Nation' as Henry Parkes chose this spot to deliver his crucial Federation speech of 1889, which led to the establishment of Australia as a unified nation in 1901.