Which Australian coast is most spectacular for cruising - east or west?

By Amy Cooper

Australia was made for cruising. In our home girt by sea, 90 per cent of the people, most major cities, the sexy, fabulous, famous bits - all cling to the coastline. Especially the east coast.

The Great Barrier Reef, the Whitsundays, Sydney Opera House, Bondi Beach ... these are a few of everyone's favourite Australia things. All blockbuster big tickets, all on the eastern seaboard.

The east has four state capitals, the country's most celebrated beaches, the island state Tasmania and a multitude of ports in between: Newcastle, a foodie heaven of shoreline eateries; Eden, on the far NSW South Coast, with its intriguing whaling history; Queensland's Moreton Bay island, where you can sand toboggan down huge dunes. A sail from north to south, starting at the northernmost reaches of the Barrier Reef, can take in Cooktown, Port Douglas, Cairns, Townsville, Shute Harbour, K'gari, Mooloolaba, Brisbane, Newcastle, Sydney, Eden and Melbourne. Other adventures include round trips to the Barrier Reef out of Sydney or Brisbane, or Tasmania from Sydney or Melbourne.

From idylls of turquoise ocean and snow-white sands (Whitehaven Beach, I'm looking at you through my sunglasses) to vacay vibes in party places like Cairns and Airlie Beach, there's plenty to float everyone's boat. When it comes to your vessel, there are ship-loads of options, with many cruise lines sailing exclusively on the eastern seaboard, including Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line and Carnival. The stellar ships sail east, too. Disney Wonder returns next month after a dazzling Aussie debut, bringing the Mickey magic back only to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Cutting-edge Celebrity Edge is back east for a second year with plenty of Barrier Reef and Tasmania trips.

While the east coast overflows with fun and sun, it's not all cocktail umbrellas and karaoke. Going wild can mean a deeper dive into the Barrier Reef's wonders with an eight-night expedition cruise from Cairns with marine conservationists aboard 36-guest ship True North. You can explore the remote northern reefs, Lizard Island and Osprey and Ribbon Reefs aboard Coral Discoverer, or venture out on a 130-person Discovery Expedition Tasmania cruise aboard Aurora Expeditions' newest small ship, Douglas Mawson, to investigate rare species and lesser trodden terrain.

And then there's Sydney, Australia's grand front entrance. Few arrivals anywhere on the planet can match that mesmerising glide through the majestic gateposts of the north and south heads, following the harbour's gleaming curves right into the tableau of Harbour Bridge and Opera House. Whether you park beside the bridge or sail under it, it's boldface bucket list and reason enough to cruise the coast with the most.

By Mal Chenu

You can't actually cruise much of the east coast. There is a sizable reef in the way - a barrier, if you will - as Lieutenant Cook found to his chagrin in 1770 at a place now called 1770. A lot of east coast cruising is conducted out to sea with no east coast in sight. West coast cruises, on the other hand, generally feature smaller "expeditionary" ships that can pick their way through islands, bays and reefs. And you can end each day admiring a blazing watery sunset over the rim of a glass containing a crisp vino from Margaret River.

Kimberley Quest is an eponymous boutique operator, while Coral Expeditions and True North offer a range of WA options. Top-end lines including Seabourn, Azamara, Silversea, Oceania, Ponant and Scenic all dip into the west, as does APT.

The Kimberley is the jewel in the west's cruising crown. There is nowhere like this rugged seaboard, not just in Australia, but anywhere. And exploring the picturesque, otherworldly wilderness by sea rather than by road is the way to go if you prefer eating oysters to dust, fancy a stateroom over a tent and would rather change lenses than tyres. Kimberley cruises typically visit King George Falls, Berkeley River, the Horizontal Falls at Talbot Bay, Montgomery Reef and King Cascade, to name but a few dynamic highlights. Excursions into the rivers will introduce you to beach ball-sized jellyfish, crocodiles floating past like driftwood and powerful long-drop waterfalls. Tenders and rubber duckies bring you even closer to the drop-dead gorgeous gorges. They find you a pristine waterhole for a dip, ferry you to see ancient rock art and take you fishing for barramundi.

Itineraries in the lower north feature Rowley Shoals, where three coral atolls offer matchless snorkelling in shallow lagoons, the Montebello Islands, where the poms tested atomic bombs in the 1950s and which is now a nature preserve, and Ningaloo Reef, home to countless fish, giant manta rays, sea turtles and, in autumn and winter, whale sharks. Also on the agenda in this part of WA is Shark Bay, home to 35 per cent of Australia's bird species, as well as the Abrolhos Islands, where the Dutch ship Batavia was wrecked in 1629, leading to a bloodthirsty mutiny.

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Another cruise of the best coast is the round trip from Fremantle, heading south. These tours typically take in Bunbury, Dunsborough, Augusta, Albany and Esperance. Along the way, you'll hike a section of the Cape to Cape trail, snorkel at Hamlin Bay, breathe in the wildflowers around Esperance and sup and sip at a Margaret River winery.

Cruising the west coast is a many splendoured thing, especially if you want to actually see a coastline. The ships and schedules are exceptional ... and bloodthirsty mutinies are now extremely rare.