corderoy

I recently registered with Fodors and was very successful in planning an August 2006 trip to Curacao with everyone's suggestions. I am currently in the preliminary stages of planning my very first trip to Autralia. Let me provide a bit of information about the trip. I will be attending the World Police & Fire Games in Adelaide from March 16-25, 2007 & the host hotel is the Hyatt Regency. My thought is: since I will be traveling from Los Angeles to Australia on a very long flight I might as well tour the country and other neighboring countries. I will have about 2 weeks after the games. Any suggestions as to an itinerary would be appreciated. Can you include hotels,the mode of transportation from one point to another and if there are any tours or activities that are a must do. I must be truthful. I just started my research today and do not know much about Australia.

SnRSeattle

Welcome, corderoy, and please use the search function at the top of the page, but be prepared because there is a TON of information! When you are thinking of visiting Australia, think in size--the US (continental) so don't think you can even scratch the surface in 2 weeks! People here really are helpful if you tell them your interests, budget and whether or not you like cities or want an outback experience (of course you want it all, but you can't!) If you like tours, there are quite a few that hit the high spots of Oz, but are pricey. If you want to travel with a small group with a budget, check out www.waywardbus.com On your own? DON'T plan to go to too many places, you'll spend too much time on your bottom in an airplane or bus and not enough time doing fun stuff. From Adelaide you can do the "Great Ocean Road" which is a road with fantastic scenery (I've only seen pictures but it looks great and it is very popular) to Melbourne, then fly to Sydney. March is fall in Australia so I think the south of the country should be nice weather. You could go to Tasmania from Sydney or to Cairns to see the Great Barrier Reef. I wouldn't even consider going to any other countries, too far. Like thousands of miles and lots of dollars, too. Or if you like snorkeling/scuba a lot, skip Melbourne and Sydney and just go to Queensland (one main jumping off point--Cairns.) It's great! Others here will give you first hand advice if you narrow down your search a bit and post your preferences for what kind of trip you have in mind.
Cheers,
Sally in Seattle

DownUnder

Adelaide is my "home town" and although I live in Melbourne I know that time of the year in Adelaide very well. It can still be extremely hot in March with temps. over 30C and up to 38C but the weather is usually fine and that is why many big sporting events are held then. There are several great places to see from Adelaide including Barossa Valley and Kangaroo Island and I am sure they will be mentioned during your stay. From Adelaide you can head North by train to Ayres Rock or East by bus, car, plane or train to Melbourne and on to Sydney and even further to Brisbane.
The drive from Adelaide via Pt. Fairy and the Great Ocean Road to Melbourne is a good suggestion. March is a great time to do this trip requiring a rental car although I am sure there are some packaged tours that also cover that area. If you are flying out with Qantas they should have a heap of info. A couple of days in and around Melbourne would be enjoyable and then go by car, train, bus or plane via Canberra (perhaps) to Sydney, Australias most spectacular city. Seeing you have come this far you might as well fly up to Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef.It is one of the wonders of the world and very much worth a visit. This sort of itinerary would certainly cover two weeks and you could arrange to fly home from Cairns, Brisbane or Sydney.
An alternate itinerary could be Adelaide, Ayres Rock, Darwin and Kakadu, Cairns and then Sydney but it involves a great deal of flying at a very warm time of the year.

din071

I was in Adelaide last month and did everything through Aussie Assist Tourism Services [email protected] - she is an Adelaide based Inbound Tour Operator and offers an excellent service covering everything you need. Have a great visit, Adelaide and in particular the SA coast and winery regions were one of the highlights of my Australia trip.

Lizzy101

I live in Adelaide and March can tend to be very hot and dry - so be prepared! In and around Adelaide there are nice places to visit by 'day trip' - wineries, beaches and many of our visitors like to do a trip to Kangaroo Island to see the local wildlife. If you are considering going to K.I.(do a search for some more information and reviews of operators) then I suggest you reserve your transport (by air or sea) soon - I think it will be a busy time with all you uniformed sports people around!
If you are a city person Melbourne and Sydney have their differing flavours and charms.

I second the suggestions of either flying to Uluru, then to Cairns to sample to outback and the reef. Also worth considering, flights to the Whitsundays are available direct from Adelaide to Hamilton Island. The Whitsundays are a group of continental islands off Queensland and are a great destinition to sail, snorkel and dive around.Flights are available there back to all the major cities.

corderoy

Wow, I can't believe the amount of information I received in just a couple of days. Let me print the replies, review them while I am looking at a map and get familiar with my geography. I will respond back in a couple of days with many questions. Thank you all for responding. I now have something to work with.