2 weeks in Aus - Itin suggestions
 

Hi there,
I will be in Brisbane for a meeting in June and plan to take two weeks following that to discover some of Australia. Initial idea is to explore Queensland and NSW and Ayers Rock.

Any ideas suggestions how best to incorporate rainforests, Great Barrier Reef, Uluru, Sydney in a logical flow?

Also is there anything else we must do when down under - one does not get this opportunity too many times, traveling all the way from N.Am and would like to make the most of the trip.

Thanks.

Hi,

Fly: Brisbane - Cairns - Uluru - Sydney.

From Cairns you can explore rainforests, Atherton tablelands, go out to the GBR & more.

I would think 2 days (1 night) in Uluru is sufficient to see the immediate vicinity. Don't miss the Cultural Centre, it will give you some excellent insights into the area & its people.

From Sydney you can do 1 or 2 day "short trips" North, South or West.

Suggest you rent a car in Cairns & Sydney. Possibly just take a small group tour in Uluru. There are Aboriginal guides who do them & I believe they are exceptionally good.

Google "Aboriginal guides Uluru" & you'll have plenty of info.

Rakhi,
Like so many others you have not said what your interests are. If I came to your country for two weeks what should I see?
Bokhara's ideas are sound but if you want more detail, provide more detail!

Thanks for the replies. Here is the itinerary we have come up with it. Pls tell us if there is too much or too less at any of the stops. Also is there something we are missing – that is an absolute must do in any of these places or other places enroute? We are avid and frequent travelers and very used to hectic schedules!

Day 1: Arrive BNE – At leisure

Day 2: BNE – Cairns
(Is there a coach that drives along the coast?) (Is it advisable to rent a car and so this drive ourselves?)

Day3: Cairns – Great Barrier Reef (day trip)

Day 4: Cairns – Rainforests (day trip)

Day 5: Cairns – Darwin

Day 6: Darwin – Mataranka thermal springs

Day7: Darwin - Nitmiluk National Park (Katherine Gorge)

Day 8: Darwin – Uluru
Ayers Rock, Kata-Tjuta The Olgas, Atila / Mt Conner, Kata Tjuta

Day 9: Uluru – SYD

Day 10: SYD (City tour)

Day 11: SYD (Blue Mts)

Day 12: SYD-BNE

Day 13: BNE – Gold Coast etc

Day 14: BNE – At leisure

Day 15: Depart BNE

Rakhi, you can't drive from Brisbane to Cairns in one day unless you want to jeopardise your safety and sanity - it's 1700 km (1056 miles) and the road isn't comparable to an American interstate by any means. Even if you tried to do it you'd see nothing en route but the roadway, much of it inland and frankly quite dull. Fly.

Likewise I'm hoping you don't plan to drive from Darwin to Uluru - and of course driving Uluru to Sydney is out of the question, but I guess you know that. How about SYD-BNE?

1. When you get to Brisbane on the first day, don't stop there. Continue with a flight on to Cairns. There's no reason to stop in Brisbane for just a day if you are going up to Cairns the next day. Resting up in Cairns makes more sense.
2. On Day 6, you propose to go from Darwin to Mataranka and then on Day 7, you propose to go from Darwin to Katherine Gorge. These are not day trips from Darwin. If you want to go to Mataranka Springs and Katherine Gorge, you need to drive from Darwin to Katherine and stay there. In fact, I would suggest that you drive down to Katherine as soon as you de-plane in Darwin. Then spend 2 nights in Katherine so you can visit Mataranka and Katherine Gorge. Then drive back to Darwin on Day 7 after visiting Katherine Gorge and overnight there for your flight to Uluru the next day. You haven't left yourself any time to see Litchfield National Park near Darwin, which is a shame, but you don't have time to include that if you are going to Katherine.

Even if you took a coach which is on road all night it would still take about 24 hours Brisbane-Cairns. Flights Brisbane-Cairns are frequent and inexpensive these days, check Virgin Blue and Jetstar. Its about a 2 hour flight.

Rakhi,

This site may give you some idea of the distances and, more importantly, the driving times involved in some of the drives you're contemplating.
www.multimap.com

Australian distances & driving times can be a lot greater than you might imagine. With limited time, it's often necessary to sacrifice some of the driving pleasures in order to see something of the destination.

My 2 cents worth: Fly the "biggies" - just rent a car for local day trips from your various destinatins.

As others have said, you can usually get great specials, especially if you book a little in advance and use the Virginblue's "Happy Hour" (Noon - 1pm AEST). www.virginblue.com.au; www.qantas.com.au; www.jetstar.com.au

Thanks to all of you for giving your very helpful feedback. I have revised the itin acordingly.
Just a few questions:
CAIRNS
1) Suggestions where to stay in Cairns?
2) Should we make Cairns our base and then do day trips to the reef, rainforest etc or should we move accom?
3) Are there organised tours available from Cairns/Port Douglas to reef/rainforests etc? Or is renting car better?

DARWIN/KATHERINE
1) How do we get from Darwin to Katherine? IS there public transportation or do you recommend renting a car?
2) Where to stay in Katherine and Darwin?
3) Can we find organised tours to the thermal springs, Cutta Cutta caves and National park - or is it easy to drive around by ourselves?

SYDNEY
1) Where to stay
2) Is it worth spending one night at Blue Mts

BRISBANE
1) Where to stay

Ideally at some pts we'd like to stay in apt style accom to have access to laundries etc.

Thanks again for all the great advise.

For Sydney what's your budget for accommodation? In terms of areas I'd suggest the city, the Rocks area or Potts Point.

In Sydney at least, you don't need to stay in an apartment to do laundry, there are lots of laundronats. Most have cheap "bag washes" where you leave your laundry for them to wash and pick it up at the end of the day.

Darwin/Katherine
1. I don't know about public transportation as we have always driven between Darwin and Katherine. The road is mostly a flat, straight,2-lane highway and we found it to be easy to drive. You should watch out for road trains (long, long trucks) and, if you drive at night, watch for wildlife on the road.
2. We have stayed at two places in Darwin--the Parap Village Apartments and the Cullen Bay Apartments. Both had a washer and dryer in the room. I would recommend either one. In Katherine we have stayed at the St. Andrew Apartments as it is one of the few serviced apartments in town. They have a washer and dryer in the room and I would recommend them as well.
3. There's a company called Travel North which may do tours to the places you mention. We did not use them for tours, but did use them to book canoes at Katherine Gorge and to book the Crocodile Night Adventure (which I highly recommend and which should be booked in advance as it fills up quickly.) We drove ourselves to Mataranka, Cutti Cutti Cave and Katherine Gorge NP. None of the drives was difficult. It's pretty easy to drive around this part of the country.

Re Cairns - you can base yourself in Cairns itself, or Palm Cove or Port Douglas - each has had its proponents on this board and you can read their views by searching past threads (search box above). Wherever, there are heaps of tour companies that will pick you up from your hotel and I would recommend that option for the rainforest and reef. As you only have two full days in the area, and those major outings will take up most of your available time, I don't think a car makes much sense.