The Great Barrier Reef, running more than 1,200 miles along Australia's east coast, is the most famous dive destination in the world. In recent years, large sections have suffered from coral bleaching and boat traffic jams. On the west coast, the Ningaloo Reef, just 150 miles long, remains largely pristine. Its treasures are easily accessible from the shore and it is one of the few places on the planet where whale sharks can be seen - so 2010 will be the year Western Australia steps up its efforts to steal the underwater crown from Queensland.
Like the reef, small is beautiful for the west coast tourism industry, with chic boutique accommodation looking to bring in new visitors. Among the recent openings are Eco Beach Wilderness Retreat, about an hour's drive south of the town of Broome, which has won awards for its environmentally sensitive design (00 61 891 938 015, ecobeach.com.au, tents from £72, villas from £150, B&B). Pinctada Cable Beach, a short walk from Broome's famous Cable Beach, with a Li'tya spa that incorporates Aboriginal remedies into treatments (00 61 891 938 388, pinctadacablebeach.com.au, doubles from £175, room only).
For cool campers, down the coast at Exmouth lies the luxurious Sal Salis bush base, which brings the African safari concept to the antipodes (00 61 295 716 399, salsalis.com.au, doubles from £760 all-inclusive). Bridge & Wickers (020 7483 6555, bridgeandwickers.co.uk) has four nights' B&B accommodation at Pinctada from £420pp, four nights in an Eco Beach villa from £529pp, room only, and four nights at Sal Salis from £1,288pp, full-board, all excluding flights.