zinfanatic

My husband and I (in our 60's) are planning a trip in March 2012. Our initial thoughts are to go to Tasmania for about one week then to Melbourne and some of NSW. We have friends that live about one hour north of Sydney who we will visit. It does seem from my little bit of reading that the weather will not be good to go to a part of the Great Barrier reef later in March. It seems impossible to visit these diverse destinations of Tasmania and GBR and some places north of Brisbane in the same trip because of the weather. We are day hikers and nature lovers who enjoy visiting National Parks. We also like some city life and good wine and food. Is there a better time of year or other thoughts as to how to do this trip? We would prefer to go in March.....

RalphR

I can't see why late March would be a bad time for the Barrier Reef - it will be toward the end of the Wet Season. It will be a great time for southeast Queensland.

Knowing more about how much time you have would help in planning.

Susan7

I agree with Ralph, late March is a good time to be in Queensland.

There are lots of great bushwalks in Tasmania. My favourite is to the top of Cradle Mountain, that's about 6-7 hours with a very steep scramble over rocks for the last 1 hour. I would give Tasmania more than a week, and cut back on the time in Sydney and Melbourne (4 days in each of those cities is enough time to see the main tourist attractions).

This guide to half day walks in Tasmania might help you plan. http://www.tasmaniatopten.com/lists/halfday_walks.php

wlzmatilida

Hi,

I agree with both Susan and Ralph. There are TONS of great walks in Tasmania, and actually, if you know where to go, Queensland as well, just a different sort of topography. Cradle Mountain, that Susan mentioned, actually has about 30 different walks, ranging from 30 minutes upwards.

Hope this is helpful!

Regards,

Melodie
Certified Aussie Specialist

RalphR

zinfantastic: I've visited a number of national parks and done quite a lot of hiking in Australia over the years. Here are some recommendations for hikes among the places I've been in Qld and NSW:

Easy/moderate
1) Lamington NP (SE Qld). Extensive system of trails through mountain rainforest. Waterfalls and colorful birds.
2) Fraser Island (SE Qld). Beautiful freshwater lakes, forests and beaches
3) Undara NP (N Qld). Interesting walks through savannah and lava flows to rock outcrop lookouts. Lots of wildlife easily seen.
4) Carnarvon Gorge (central Qld). A lovely stroll up the base of the gorge with side trails to waterfalls and rock formations. Good for wildlife too.

Moderate
1) The Pyramid and Castle Rock, Giraween NP (SE Qld). Awesome granite formations, good views and wildlife
2) Bald Rock NP (NE NSW) ditto
3) Mt Warning (NE NSW). Fantastic views of the Scenic Rim and coast
4) Pigeon House (south coast NSW), great views
5) Mt Ngungun, Glasshouse Mts (SE Qld). Easiest of the Glasshouse Mts to climb. Nice views of the others, which are all volcanic remnants
6) Warrumbungle Ranges (central NSW). Great views, wildlife galore.

Hard
1) Mt Barney (SE Qld). Awesome view from one of Qld's highest mountains. Need a full day.
2) Mt Beerwah, Glasshouse Mts (SE Qld). Short but very steep at the beginning. A bit scary at the top.
3) Mt Gudgenby (ACT). Serious bushwacking needed. Steep. Great views, wildlife encounters, beautiful granite formations

tt7

I was going to respond to your post earlier but was somewhat non-plussed about your comments about the weather so decided to wait (and not be the first respondent) and see how others responded. My reaction was March would be a fine time to come and visit and weather would generally not be an issue - assuming you're from the northern hemisphere, it's the functional equivalent of September and generally a good time to visit almost any area of Australia. As an ex-northern hemisphere person (and assuming you're from the northern hemisphere), I still can't intuitively figure out what the weather should be like here without 'translating' it into northern hemisphere terms. ["OK, it's July, so that's really like January so that's why it's a bit cold in Melbourne at the moment and we're a bit colder because we're further south (not north) than most of the country ...] In addition to the comments already posted, perhaps others can comment but I just don't see the weather as being much of an issue for you.

You don't say how long you're planning on visiting but it sounds as if you want to go to 4 (or possibly 5?) places - Tasmania, Melbourne, Sydney, the GBR and possibly Brisbane.

As has been suggested, 4 days each in Melbourne and Sydney would be good but I would add on an extra day or two if you want to go down the Great Ocean Road (from Melbourne - http://www.greatoceanrd.org.au/ ) or visit the Blue Mountains (from Sydney). If you want to walk, try the Great Ocean Walk (http://www.visitvictoria.com/display...C88F3C040AFAD/ ).

As for food and wine, Sydney has the glitz and the glamour but Melbourne has everything else - it's the sporting / dining / coffee / shopping / culture capital of Australia (http://www.visitmelbourne.com/ ). If you want to visit wineries, then either the Yarra Valley (an hour from Melbourne - http://www.visityarravalley.com.au/ ) or the Hunter Valley (Sydney) would be the obvious places.

For the GBR, generally people fly into Cairns and go out to the reef from there although many would choose to stay in Palm Cove (about 25 minutes north - http://www.palmcove.net/about-palm-cove.php ) or Port Douglas (50+ minutes north). Although you will find other views around here, I personally don't think Cairns itself has much to recommend it as a place to stay. Palm Cove has a variety of resorts to choose from, from modest to fairly high-end. All of them can arrange reef trips, including pick-up/drop off from the resort to get you to the jetty in Cairns (obviating the need to stay in Cairns itself). Many people also do a day trip to Kuranda (http://www.kuranda.org/ ) - take the train up (http://www.kuranda.org/?p=73 ) and the skyrail back (http://www.kuranda.org/?p=74 ). Again, your hotel/resort can arrange tickets, including pickup/dropoff.

I'm not qualified to talk about Tasmania but you could undoubtedly spend a week there without any effort. I don't think you can fly to Tasmania (Hobart) from Cairns, so you may want to think about what sequence you visit places. There are several flights a day to/from Hobart from Melbourne and Sydney and 1 flight a day to Brisbane (and 1 to Coolangatta on the Gold Coast, south of Brisbane). Alternatively, you can take the (probably overnight) ferry from Melbourne to Devonport (although the Bass Strait can get rough at times, so perhaps not to be recommended if you're prone to seasickness).

I'm not sure if you want to go to Brisbane - no particular reason to go if you're planning on coming to Melbourne and visiting Sydney. However, if you do go, RalphR's suggestion of Lamington NP is excellent and you would probably enjoy staying at Binna Burra (http://www.binnaburralodge.com.au/ ) or O'Reilly's (http://oreillys.com.au/ ).

So many places, so little time .... whatever you decide to do - enjoy!

tt7

... and, of course, now that I've responded, I see the header of your message says "a month long trip" - duh! Perhaps -

Tasmania - 7-10 days
Melbourne (including the GOR) - 6-8 days
Sydney - 4-6 days
Cairns - GBR - 3-5 days

AlanJG

In March it would be wise to have some flexibility to your reef trip day so I'd plan on a few more days in the Cairns area. Daintree and the Atherton tablelands provide plenty to keep one occupied while waiting for good sailing weather.

zinfanatic

Thank you all. The weather and creatures in the GBR were brought up in guide books. So toward the end of March it sounds like all will be ok near the GBR and northern Queensland. Right now, after doing more reading we are leaning toward this:

Tasmania 8-9 days
Melbourne and Yarra Valley- 6 days
Cairns (only fly into head north) and Northern Queensland 7 days
Sydney we have been before so probably wont go back- sorry did not mention that

We will still decide what to do with the rest of the time!- Maybe Barossa Valley or GOR

You are all so through and especially Ralph with the details on hikes! Just got back from Peru so did some hiking there! Yes we are Northern Hemisphere- SF people!

RalphR

zinfanatic: You might consider driving one way Melbourne to Adelaide via the Great Ocean Rd over a few days. Would suggest a detour inland to the Grampian Ranges en route. Haven't been but I hear it's a great area for nature and hiking. Planning a trip there myself next year. Once in Adelaide you're close to the famous wine districts, Barossa, McLaren, etc.

tt7

If you're looking for zin, you won't find a lot here (and certainly not white zin) but if you are interested, RalphR's suggestions of the areas around Adelaide are probably best, particularly the Barossa, Adelaide Hills (Nepenthe) and McClaren Vale.

zinfanatic

Not looking for Zin. We have moved on to Syrah and Pinot... and especially not white Zin! So of course when in Aussie land we will find some great wines, I am sure.

Susan7

Just a minor correction, all of the capital cities in Australia have great food, interesting museums and shopping. In fact, Brisbane and Hobart are now probably two of the most interesting cities for modern art with Museum of Old and New Art in Hobart (MONA) and Gallery of Modern Art (GOMA) in Brisbane.