I would like to truly experience "down under" in July but don't know where to start and how to see the best sites including the Great Barrier Reef without exhausting myself as well as my wallet. Could anyone give my any kind of feedback including more info on these "hostels". thans

Hi Elizabeth, <BR>start by looking at a map. <BR>Australia is as large as the USA and would you expect anyone to 'truly experience' all of that in just 12 days? <BR><BR>You would be better off just concentrating on the GBR and that general area. Maybe squeeze in 2 - 3 days in Sydney. <BR>Enjoy and come back another time to experience another part of our great country. <BR>Cheers, <BR>Mike

Elizabeth:<BR><BR>I completely agree with Mike. I was there for 21 days, and spent a week each in Port Douglas, Melbourne, and Sydney. It was not enough.<BR><BR>Go to Australia with the understanding that someday you will make it back. I guarantee you will want to.<BR><BR>That being said, Port Douglas is a wonderful place to explore the reef. There are many locals on this board who have posted some great advice. Just do a search on Port Douglas and see what pops up. I stayed at the Hibiscus Gardens for about $65 USD a night. I don't know if that's in your budget, but I thought it was a steal.<BR><BR>As for really cheap lodging, I know there are some in PD, but I have no idea what they are. Maybe someone else can help?

Hi, Elizabeth!<BR><BR>For information on hostels, the site to visit is www.yha.org.au/index.cfm.<BR><BR>July is mid-winter in Australia so your plans to spend time in the northern part of the continent, around the Reef, seem wise... it's always pleasantly warm up there! If you want to sample the other extreme, July is a great time to ski in the Snowy Mountains in southern NSW. A good website to look at here might be www.southcoast.com.au/snowy/skifields.html.<BR><BR>Hope these give you some good ideas!

thanx for the feedback and websites, they will help me narrow down my options already knowing the size.

There is a hostel near the airstrip(open field) in the Daintree.<BR><BR>We gave a ride to a girl from Europe that said it was one of the best she had every stayed at.<BR><BR>Maybe someone in this forum has mor info about this hostel.

I believe that this is the hostel near Cape Trib that I was referring to<BR><BR>http://www.yha.org.au/hostel_search/...P&Hostel_ID=44

Hi there, There is a great hostel in Port Douglas called Dougies. It is great. <BR>The best reef trip for snorkelling is wavelength.<BR>www.wavelength-reef.com.au<BR>Have a ball