20ten Big

1. PINEAPPLE, QLD
There is so much more to the Big Pineapple than, well a pineapple that is big. There is an animal nursery and wildlife garden and tours of the plantation and macadamia forest. Visitors can even rife the Nutmobile (train) into the macadamia forest.

Of course there is a gift shop for all your pineapple related souvenirs, licensed dining and all the preserves, jams and homemade baked goods visitors could poke a stick at.

Web
www.bigpineapple.com.au
Cost
Entry Free
Plantation tour $16/$13/$11
Animal nursery $11.50/$9/$7.50
Nutmobile $9.50/$8/$7
Location
Nambour Connection Road Woonmbye, 1hr north of Brisbane on the Sunshine Coast

2. BANANA, NSW
Now 46 years old this banana is anything but rotten. Originally an attraction to encourage travellers to stop at a local roadside banana stall the Big Banana not sits at the entrance of a theme park, because Queensland needs another theme park.

Potentially lost amongst the waterslides, ice skating and toboggans is the banana theatre. Billed as a state of the art presentation of projections and. holographic like (not holographic – holographic like) images, the World of Bananas details the history and value of bananas. The value of bananas of course fluctuates from season to season and dramatically increases following a cyclone.

A new and slightly obscure addition to the Big Banana is the opening of Puppet People, which is a shop specialising in puppets. No real connection to bananas but who can resist a puppet?

Web
www.bigbanana.com.au
Costs
Big bunch $33/$27 Ice skating, waterslide, toboggan, banana theatre and tour
Blockbuster $16/$14 Toboggan, banana theatre and tour
Chill out $16/$14 Ice skating, banana theatre and tour
Cool runnings $16/$14 Toboggan and ice skating
Slip ‘n’ slide $22/$18 Waterslide and toboggan
Location
351 Pacific Highway, Coffs Harbour, 450km south of Brisbane

3. MERINO, NSW
Australia may joke about Tasmanians attraction to sheep, in a similar way that the English do about the Welsh, and yet it is Australia that so in love with the woolly beast that it has built the world’s biggest. Standing at 15.2m high it weighs 97tonnes and is in celebration of Australia’s history of economically riding on the sheep’s back (Making Australia settlers sound like some sort of perverted ovis pimp).

The Big Merino moved location in 2007 to place it closer to the expressway following road changes. Visitors to the Big Merino are invited inside (not as awkward as it sounds) to peruse the gift shop and on the second floor view the exhibit depicting the stages of wool production. The gift shop sells more than the tacky souvenir, it also stocks a wide range of wool products and clothing

Web
www.bigmerino.com.au
Cost
Free
Location
Cnr Hume Highway and Sowerby St, Goulburn

4. LOBSTER, SA
Marking the entrance to the visitor centre the lobster stands 17m high. Kingston SE, “Larry” the Lobster’s home is a coastal fishing town and also is the location of one of the best fish and chip shops in Australia. Visitors can pose for photos next to the big lobster and then eat its relatives for lunch at “Mac’s Takeaway”.

A café and hotel are also located in the precinct

Cost
Free
Location
Princess Highway, Kingston South East

5. ORANGE, SA
Located in the heart of Australia’s citrus region, visitors can climb inside this thick-skinned attraction (a pith poor joke, relax I was just taking the pip). At 15 meters in height this is the biggest of all of Australia’s big fruit.

Amongst its attractions is a panoramic viewing platform, a 360 degree mural, the compulsory gift/souvenir shop and\ café. Despite all of this “appeal” the Big Orange has had ongoing financial problems and regularly alternates from being open to the public to being closed. But that does not prevent the taking of a great Facebook photo. Berri is also where visitors can buy some of the best citrus fruit and products in the world.
Cost
Free
Location
Sturt Highway, Berri

6. CIGAR, VIC
What makes this novelty item such a novelty is that it is not memorialising an Australian icon. This politically incorrect erection is in honour of Sir Winston Churchill after whom the sculptures hometown is named.

If it could not get any weirder the original plan was to build five big cigars and locate them around the edge of the town centre. Alongside the base of the cigar is a plaque listing the names of the first families of the township. How long will it be until the Cancer Council erects a plaque showing a smoker with mouth cancer?

Cost
Free
Location
Tramway Road, Churchill, 160km north of Melbourne

7. ROCKING HORSE, SA
Like the lobster and banana, the rocking horse marks the entry to a commercial enterprise, in this case a wooden toy factory. Despite a fall in 1999 the public can still climb the horse to its viewing platforms some 18m up.

It is the world’s biggest rocking horse, though technically it does not rock, and has been voted as Australia’s best big thing. There is a wildlife park on site as well as a café and the toy factory where visitors can participate in a tour and of course buy all manner of hand and machine crafted wooden toys

Web
www.thetoyfactory.com.au
Entry
Free, including the wildlife park
Location
Adelaide Mannum Road, Gumeracha

8. GUITAR, NSW
Unlike other oversized string instruments around the country, this guitar actually works. It is the largest playable guitar in the world. It is in the visitors centre and ironically the main reason people visit this town. One may start to question that if there is not already enough points of interest in the region to attract visitors why build a visitors centre. At 6m in length visitors wanting to strum a tune or two are advised to bring a friend, to help with the cord changes.

Cost
Free
Location
Cnr Newell Highway and Cadell Street, Narrandera

9. CROCODILE, NT
I case crocodiles were not scary enough as one of the Australia’s deadliest animals the townsfolk of Humpty Doo have built a big one and given it boxing gloves! Keeping up tradition it marks the entrance to a shop, this time a Bush Shop and reptile park.

The retile park houses a good collection of Australian snakes and lizards including “Hoges” and “Strop” the pythons that starred in the Crocodile Dundee movies.

Costs
Reptile park entry $10/$5
Location
Arnhem Highway, Humpty Doo

10. STUBBY, NT
There can be nothing more Aussie than an oversized beer bottle. The town is not going to offer much more than drinking a couple of cold ones while viewing the big structure. It is a town with a population less than 20 and offers petrol and supplies (beer) to passers by. Inexplicably sitting next to the big stubby is a big pink panther, something that can only confuse people leaving the pub after a drinking session at the Larrimah Wayside Inn.

Cost
Free
Beer by the glass/can/bottle
Location
Stuart Highway, Larrimah