My husband and I are heading to Australia (3 weeks)and New Zealand(2weeks) in early March. We need help planning the trip. At this point we are going to Sydney, Melbourne, Cairns and Brisbane(?). We then are flying to Wellington. No plans have been made for NZ.We need help on hotels -$100 per night - average, the best way to go from city to city, tours and restaurants. How much time is recommended for the cities? Are we missing any really good stops? We plan to stay only on the east coast of AU to maximize our time and we will try to do the North and South Islands in NZ. We thought possibly of doing a driving tour of NZ.

So far the chat room has been very helpful. thank you all.

First off, is that US dollars or Aust/NZ dollars?!

You could easily spend a couple of days in Wellington. Are you also leaving from there?

Lee Ann

Cairns - hire a car and go up to the Dainteree or Cape Tribulation and then back down through Port Douglas - 3 days perhaps - Cairns is just a big town. Reef trip also should not be missed. Lot of travelling for only 3 weeks - you are only going to scratch the surface - shame you can't spend sometime out in rural or along some of the coasts

One other thing - try Wotif.com. great accom specials 3 weeks out of travel

We are talking US dollars. We want to budget so we can try some more expensive hotels in resort areas.

OK, we're talking about AU$135, NZ$149 at current exchange rates. Obviously rates will be published in local currencies.

I second Karen's suggestion of www.wotif.com (there are one or two other such sites but the names escape me). The site provides a good description and location of each property and by taking advantage of good deals there you should find a reasonable choice at that price most of the time, including 1-BR apartments.

In NZ. You will get really nice accommodation for that money. Except maybe in Auck and Queenstown.

In all the smaller centres NZ has a lot of motels (good if you are driving). They are usually self contained with a fridge and stove, park the car outside your unit and not that expensive. Personally I wouldn't waste too much time in the cities - no more than 2 days each because that it not what NZ is about. You can see cities everywhere. Spend your time on the things that you cannot see everywhere.

Focus on the south island. In the North maybe just Rotorua (touristy but fun mud, volcanos and smelly stuff). Wellington is my home town (and I miss it sniff!) - go see Te Papa the museum. Have a night on the town. Cable car up to the botanical gardens.

Driving is the best way. Maybe take a tour to the Milford Sound expecially if you are not a confident driver in a long dark one way tunnel in the middle of a national park.

If you like wine - you can take little wine tours in Hawkes Bay, Blenheim and Marlborough.

These are just some random thoughts - hope it helps.

Another accom site to try apart from Wotif is www.quickbeds.com.au

Have you already booked your flights?
The reason i ask is because a great place to go is Byron Bay which is just south of the Gold Coast. Though you will need a car for that one-you could do this instead of Brisbane.

Don't get me wrong, I love Brisbane and have been living here for 6 years now but in terms of things to see and do, considering you have limited time, i would be more inclined to spend it somewhere far more breathtaking.

Another nice spot is the Sunshine Coast (2-3 hours from Brisbane).

I also agree with karen re:the daintree & cape tribulation.

Another suggestion is to go the the Whitsundays or the Great Barrier Reef. IMHO I would definately spend my time here above Cairns or Brisbane.

flighty, you may not know this, but advertising is not allowed here. If you keep it up it's a safe bet that you'll be deregistered PDQ.