Denis

Arriving in Sydney begining March 1st. We would like to visit Sydney/Cairns/Canberra/Melbourne/Adelaide and back to Sydney. Which is the best way to visit that area. We will be there for 3 weeks. Our preference is by train. Can anyone give us some ideas.

deb

Hi, Denis. Firstly, you are going to have a blast !!! So... you can check the Aus site for Qantas, ie: qantas.com/au ( be sure to add the au )and they have some good prices. The train should be part of your trip, say, Countrylink, but Australia is a very large country, and three weeks is a very short time. If you go into Cairnes, which I plan on doing this April, since it is highly recommended we visit the Great Barrier Reef whilst there, to take a shuttle or car 45 min north up to Port Douglas, which apparently is right where the Rainforest and Beach meet. Supposed to be a very quaint, and wildly beautiful area. (can't wait !) Know nothing about Adelaide, only that you have tooooo many cities on your itinerary to comfortably see in only three weeks. But, that is only my opinion. Sydney is a wonderful and absolutely breath taking harbor city. A close second to our San Francisco ! !<BR>Melbourne is more modern, hip, trendy, I would say, and I love it as well. My sis lives in Victoria, and she enjoyed all the history of Canberra. So, that said, I'll let other experts ring in with more detailed help for you. Have a great trip and write us with your trip report on your return. DEB

Christina

The train is a great idea, but it takes quit awhile. Also, it isn't up to the standards of the European rail system &amp; is very pricey. Besides that.. there is a train that goes Sydney-Adelaide via Melbourne. The only hitch is that it only runs on certain days of the week. So you have to kinda plan your whole trip around the train schedule.<BR><BR>An alternative is to fly on Qantas or Virgin Blue. <BR><BR>Have Fun!

jj

Deb , I noticed you said your Sis was really interested in the history of Canberra. Can you tell us how far back that history might go actually.<BR>Thanks in advance. Justine

liz

The history in Canberra is very recent i.e. 1930s for Canberra itself, the histroy of Australia as we know it goes back to 1770, although there were visits by the Dutch, Portugese, French and Chinese prior to that. The history of Australia from an anthropologic, geographic and Aboriginal view goes back 60,000+ years as the evidence of life here is second only to the rift valley in Africa.