mkpiry

We are looking to visit the second & third weeks and want to split up the time fairly evenly. Are thinking to take all the SCUBA classes here in the states and then get certified while on vacation. Any thoughts, too much time wasted? Also are thinking of driving the great Ocean Road (worth the time?) Have heard a festival is being held in Adelaide during this time but have been unable to get any more info, can anyone help? We are looking forward to visiting wine country and are thinking of staying in a B&B in Barossa. We have lots of general OZ information, it's almost overwhelming. We want to see it all! Any advice on what to do/see around cities would be greatly appreciated. I have been reading the board and gotten lots of excellent advice. Thank you.

DawnF

I just posted my Honeymoon Itinerary with tours etc for Port Douglas and Sydney. Feel free to check them out and email me at [email protected] and I can give you some additional information I found helpful when planning. <BR><BR>Dawn

LynnP

Mkpiry<BR><BR>Congratulations on your upcoming wedding. I really like the great ocean road and think it is a good trip from Melbourne to Adelaide, especially if you break it up into two days. If you do drive from Melbourne you might want to consider staying in the Coonawarra region instead of the Barossa. The Coonawarra wine region is the South East wine region in South Australia, it is on the way to Adelaide from Melbourne and would cut around 2 hours or so from your drive. In just two weeks for all that you are doing I would think about skipping Adelaide and restricting your time to the Coonawarra and the Coorong, both in this general area. Beautiful scenery and really really really good wine! I am an Adelaide girl and think Adelaide is nice but if I had to choose between ADelaide and the South East on a holiday, the SE would win hands down. ABout festivals the following web site is a good one for seeing in general what is on. A downside for taking my SE suggstion instead of the Barossa would be missing the Barossa festival which is great. In any case, you can't go wrong with either the Barossa or the South EAst. Have fun!<BR><BR>http://www.southoz.com/events/ctober

lizF

I think that you are too ambitious in what you want to see and do and you will miss out on such a lot because you are going to spend far too much time travelling from place to place.<BR>I would suggest at least 5 - 7 days in the Whitsundays alone and again at least 4 in Sydney. Firstly you will be jet lagged if you are coming from the US and secondly there is a lot to see in and around Sydney. It will take up the best part of a day in getting to the Whitsundays and getting settled. If you were to do the GOR that would take at least 3 days because I am sure you would want some time to look around and then it would take certainly the whole day to get from Adelaide to the Whitsundays because I do not think there are direct flights. Also presumably you would be renting a car and having the cost of a one way drop off. In comparison to the coastal areas around the Whitsunday Islands and the mainland there the GOR does not rate diddly squat. It could be too that the weather would not be all that wonderful at that time of year along the GOR and cold and wind does not make for a wonderful drive. I think to make the most of the GOR you have to spend quite a bit of time stopping along the way and taking the time too to see the Grampions and the wine areas in S.A. together with the Flinders Ranges and Kangaroo Island - that would make it worthwhile but not instead of the Whitsundays.

nicole0727

I spent several months in Australia and while I enjoyed my visit to Melbourne and the GOR (I didn't go to Adelaide so can't comment on that), it doesn't stand out as something I would recommend with only 2 wks to see as much of Australia, especially at that time of year when it may be cold in that area of the country. I absolutely recommend seeing the Whitsundays, but I think 3-4 nights would be plenty in that area. If you are interested in scuba/snorkeling, I would try to get up to Cairns/Port Douglas for a couple of nights as well since the reef is quite different up there from the Whitsundays (more of the traditional GBR you see in photos, reef in the middle of open ocean rather than around a group of islands) and there are also a lot of other activities to do there (rainforest for example). It really depends on how much of a city/sightseeing person you are, but personally I would think 3-4 nights in Sydney would be enough for me only because there is so much more in the country to see. If you can fit it in your trip, I would really recommend doing 3-4 nights in Darwin (possibly instead of Melbourne/GOR). October is the dry season there, which is the perfect time to go. It is really a unique area, with an Aussie &quot;outback&quot; feel to it, and Kakadu National Park is one of the most amazing places I have ever seen. It was by far the highlight of my entire trip to Australia. These are just a few more ideas for your planning, hope they helped.

mkpiry

Thanks Dawn, your post will be helpful for the time we are in Sydney. I think we are looking to stay 3-4 days. LynnP, thank you for the advice on the Adelaide/SE area. We may very well change on mind about where we stay in wine country. The festival sounds fun too (thanks for the web site.) LizF, I didn't even take into consideration the weather down south. Should I expect wet, chilly spring-like conditions? I guess since it's my honeymoon, I was picturing perfect weather Although it’s probably the better option, I think 5-7 days is too long in any one place for us. We know we’re spreading ourselves thin but we also know it will be a LONG time before we’ll be back. Since you suggested Darwin, Nicole0727, I am also considering it. My only concern is the travel time. I tried to limit us to the same &quot;area&quot; but it seems that Melbourne isn't a must-see. I would love to see a different region and have heard great things about Kakadu. Getting a feel for the 'outback' would be a wonderful contrast with the other areas we hope to visit. Will have to look into it.<BR><BR>Thank you for all of the excellent advice. What does anyone think about staying 4 days in Sydney, heading down to the SE region to take in wine country for 3/4 days, moving up to the Whitsundays for a couple of days (maybe move on the Cairns) for 4 days total and finally Darwin for remainder of the time? It seems like a lot just typing it and I haven't taken into account travel time to each spot. Too much to see....

DawnF

If you want to experience the wine country you could also cut out the travel time down to Barossa and do the Hunter Valley area instead. . .its only two hours outside of Sydney. Check www.winecountry.com.au for more details or www.huntervalley.com. There are many B&amp;B like places that seem great! You can do a balloon ride over the vineyards, horse riding through wine country, organized intimate wine tasting trips etc. . . thats what we decided to do to experience wine country without having to lose days travelling to the southern Barosssa region. <BR><BR>Dawn

lizF

I agree with Nicole about further north than the Whitsundays and I also agree with the idea of Darwin and Kakadu because the latter is so different from anything that you have anywhere else in Australia and I would most strongly recommend a camping safari or some sort of safari with a small group if you do go to the NT. If you go further north than the Whitsundays i.e. the PD/Cairns area you will have a great diversity of things to see and do there. If you are at all interested in a short cruise there is a small boat that leaves Cairns and goes to the different Islands and Cays and takes you down to Townsville. I have not done that particular trip but I had some friends from the UK who did that and found it wonderful. <BR>You could also consider flying from Sydney to Gold Coast and doing a drive around the border ranges and down to Byron Bay etc - there you will find the most magnificent view from the lighthouse you could ever want and the countryside is lovely all around that area. There are lots of different things to do and see. The Gold Coast is Australia's top tourist destination ( domestic) and gets % per population of visitors only second to Las Vegas in the world. From there you get to Brisbane ( easy ) and fly from there to either Cairns or Whitsundays. You are then staying on the eastern seaboard and being economical with travel time. When you have decided on where you want to go we can then make some suggestions on what to do in each area. <BR>

mkpiry

Thank you both for the excellent suggestions. I will bring these ideas to the fianc&eacute; and don't see any reason not to shift our focus more towards the above mentioned spots. As soon as we come up with a new itinerary, I’ll see what the board has to say. Thanks again for the suggestions, we really appreciate it! (And congrats Dawn, have a great time!)