3 Best Sights in Darwin, The Outback

Collections at this excellent—and free—museum and art gallery encompass Aboriginal art and culture, maritime archaeology, Northern Territory history, and natural sciences. One gallery is devoted to Cyclone Tracy, where you can listen to a terrifying recording of the howling winds. You can also see "Sweetheart," a 16-foot, 10-inch stuffed saltwater crocodile that was known for attacking fishing boats on the Finniss River in the 1970s.

Due to its isolation and sparse population, the Northern Territory played an important role in the expansion of aviation in Australia, and this impressive museum traces the history of flight Down Under. Planes on display include a massive B-52 bomber on permanent loan from the United States and a recently retired RAAF F-111 fighter jet, as well as a Japanese Zero shot down on the first day of bombing raids in 1942. There's also a great exhibition on female aviators, including Amy Johnson, the first to fly solo from the U.K. to Australia in 1930.

WWII came to Australia when 188 Japanese planes bombed Darwin on February 19, 1942, killing 235 people and injuring an additional 400. This high-tech, newer section of the museum at East Point—opened in 2012 to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the attack—tells the story of the people who were there that day, the events that led up to and followed it, and Darwin's role in the war. The Defence of Darwin Experience is the highlight—when you hear the air raid siren, head to the back of the museum and enter the theater to view an intense, multisensory telling of what happened that day, complete with loud explosive sounds, strobe lights, and flash effects. It's part of the Darwin Military Museum, which has lots of guns and other military equipment on display, as well as some original buildings that were there during World War II.