Five towns to stop by on NSW's Monaro Highway

Getting in the car and heading off on a weekend away or a day trip to small and medium-sized towns down the highway can be a fulfilling experience with hidden gems and great local hospitality. Here are a few highlights down New South Wales' Monaro Highway.

From: South from Canberra in the ACT to Cann River, Victoria via NSW.
Named after: Comes from the local indigenous word ‘maneroo’ meaning 'high plain' or 'high plateau' (not the Holden coupe, that came later!). It’s also known as the Snowy Mountains Highway (through the NSW high country).
Route number: B63.
Length: 285km.
Best bit: From the NSW border down to Cann River the highway is relatively twisty and passes through scenic bush and farmland. But the high plains between Canberra and Cooma also have a stark magnificence.

If you’ve had a look around Canberra and are heading south into Victoria, the Monaro goes from a wide freeway to a typical two-lane Aussie road, passing through the kind of hilly sheep-farming country on which our nation’s capital was built. Stop at Bredbo, a small rural village with a historic inn and the extraordinary Christmas Barn which has all the decorative paraphernalia needed to complete your festive season.

Cooma is the biggest town along the way and the gateway to NSW’s ski fields. As well as cruising shops on the main street, check out the Snowy Hydro Discovery Centre for the story on Australia’s first big renewable energy project, or to delve into some local railway history the Cooma Monaro Railway is worth a stop.

Further down the road is Nimmitabel with its extraordinary 1860s flour mill and at an altitude of over 1000 metres, the town is prone to snow in winter. Nimmitabel has lots of historic buildings including a 19th century jail but if you’re into big things check out the life-size elephant statue beside the bakery (and maybe scoff a pie or vanilla slice).

Bombala is closer to the Victorian border and the pristine waters of its eponymous river make it the natural environment of the platypus. There’s a platypus reserve just out of town with a viewing platform and a river walk on which you might see one, but the best times are early morning or late evening, so think about staying the night.

Finally, Cann River is the end of the Monaro Highway where you can turn left on the Princes Highway towards Mallacoota or right towards the Gippsland Lakes and Melbourne. For the more adventurous, the 45km drive down to the coast through the Croajingolong National Park to the Point Hicks Lighthouse is the epitome of wild and scenic east Gippsland (check the websites for any closures due to bushfire damage).

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