Europewithkids

My wife and I are planning on taking our 3 boys (ages 17, 14 and 10) to Australia in August. We have Sydney, Alice Springs, Ayers Rock, Port Douglas and Melbourne (visiting relatives, so no suggestions to eliminate please). My boys are sports nuts (we will time everything so that we can see Rugby League in Sydney and Aussie Rules Football in Melbourne) and like doing things, as opposed to just scenery. Any suggestions of other places I can add (maybe one more place)? We will spend 21 nights in Australia. I have kicked around Kangaroo Island and Darwin (not sure if they would have any interest in Kakadu, but perhaps Darwin/Litchfield?). Is Perth worth my looking at? Thanks for any help.

marg

Kangeroo Island in August could be awfully cold but if you do decide on this, Qantas have just started flying Melbourne to KI.
Personally I'd divide my time between the destinations you have chosen - perhaps longer in NT to allow time to visit Kings Canyon.

bhuty

email me at [email protected] for schedules on sporting events when it gets closer.


list all the sports they'd be keen to see

bhuty

oh, btw, there might be new parts of kakadu opening up to the publich depending on if the local tribes ok it or not. Not sure of the timetabling for that but you might get lucky.

also perth (w.a) is worth a trip for sure

fuzzylogic

I think I agree with Marg. You have to just like being there or have an interest in Aboriginal history to get the most out of Kakadu. Litchfield, though, is a treat if you like swimming holes, but it's a long way to go!

I think I would stay in the East.

There are options to travel Alice to Cairns overland, if that would appeal, but maybe not.

There's whale watching to be had at that time of year at various points along the east coast. You might consider a trip to Hervey Bay and Fraser Island which is a destination that offers a lot - check it out.

My other idea would be to spend some time between MLB and SYD in the Australian high country - skiing and winter sports. I don't think Aug is too late but someone who knows better will be able to say.

Check them out via google - Fraser Island; Thredbo, Jindabyne.

Happy travels.

longhorn55

It sounds like you have a lot already on your plate--are you sure you want another destination? Anyway, I lived in Australia for a few years with kids your age and they loved going to Darwin, especially to go to Litchfield National Park. We could hardly get them out of the water at Wangi Falls natural pool! If they like animals, the Territory Wildlife Park is great and Berry Springs is right next door for some more natural pool swimming (although not as spectacular as Wangi Falls.) My kids--even my 17-year-old--loved feeding the fish at Aquascene in Darwin. I'd also suggest a visit to the Northern Territory Musuem. There were several exhibits my kids liked (the Cyclone Tracy exhibit and the huge croc, Sweetheart). Since it's a free museum, you can easily spend as much or as little time as you want there. On one trip to Darwin, we did take out a couple of days to go to Kakadu, but none of us, including the kids much cared for it. (We always went to Darwin in August and the weather was fabulous--hot and dry!
Perth is also a great place. The kids loved touring the Fremantle prison and taking a day trip to Rottnest Island to bike and see the quokkas. However, we were there in April, not August, so I don't know what the weather would be like then.
If you want a closer destination than Perth or Darwin, I would suggest Canberra and the snowfields around there. (You never know about the snow-we often skied in August, but some years are bad for snow.) All of you will enjoy Questacon, the hands-on science museum. It's a lot of fun. Your kids might also enjoy visiting the Australian Institute of Sport where the top Australian athletes train. I can also suggest the Yankee Hat hike in Namadgi National Park just outside Canberra. It's about 6km RT and I can guarantee you will see hundreds of kangaroos in the wild. At the halfway point is a rock with Aboriginal drawings. If you are good skiers, definitely go to Threadbo. (There's also a branch of AIS there.) If you are new to skiing, I can suggest the smaller resort at Selwyn Snowfields.

lizF

August in Perth is too early for the wildflower season, too cold to swim and perhaps rainy too so I would give it a miss as its very expensive to get there when it would be about the worst month to be in Perth.
I would stay on the east coast if possible an if you want the boys to have something to do then there is always the Gold Coast where they can have a lot of fun at the theme parks. But you have enough for 3 weeks going to the places that you have already I think as there is a lot to do in PD and the Barrier Reef area. Also see if the white water rafting is good at that time or not up that way.

Europewithkids

Thanks for all the feedback. Here is where it stands as of now:

Sydney -- 6 nights (includes visiting relatives and perhaps a day out to the Blue Mountains)
Alice Springs -- 3 nights
Uluru -- 2 nights
Port Douglas -- 5 nights
Melbourne -- 5 nights (includes visiting relatives and perhaps day trips to Phillip Island and Ballarat/Sovereign Hill.

Given this, would you take nights away from any of these places to divert to someplace else? For example, a night or two to go to Canberra?

longhorn55

Since you asked...I would eliminate the days spent in Alice Springs, flying directly into Uluru for my visit there. I would then plan on spending at least a couple of those days in Canberra and the environs. If you are driving from Sydney to Melbourne, this would especially make good sense. BTW, if you are there on the weekend, you might catch the Canberra Raiders playing rugby.
The reason I suggest eliminating Alice Springs is that we just did not find much to do there. I especially think that your older teens might find it boring. We had hoped to do some hiking in the MacDonnell Ranges, but incessent rain kept us from doing that.
Oh, and by all means do plan a trip out to Ballarat to visit Sovereign Hill and, if you have the time, the Eureka Stockade Museum.

Europewithkids

Longhorn 55, thanks so much for the advice. I would, however, prefer not to cut out Alice Springs. I was there in 1991 and there are several things that are well worth doing, such as an aboriginal tour and a 4WD trip down to Palm Valley. I could take a day off Alice and perhaps a day off of Melbourne or Sydney and use those 2 nights for something else. I see from other posts that you are definitely a big fan of Canberra, as are some others. If you were using two nights in August and were already going to the Red Centre, GBR, Sydney and Melbourne, would you do Canberra or Darwin with 3 boys (2 teenagers and one 10 year-old)? Or would you forget about both and just stick to what I already have? P.S. I am not driving betweem Sydney and Melbourne and we will catch rugby in Sydney (at least, that is the plan).

prue

Just so there is no confusion the Canberra Raiders will be playing Rugby League - the Wallabies will be playing Rugby!!

Neil_Oz

Well, I'm a big fan of Canberra too, but if you're not driving MEL-SYD that does change things. You're looking at a 6-7 hour round trip by road from Sydney, and you're already covering a lot of ground.

Europewithkids

I could drive to Canberra and fly out of there up north, as opposed to flying straight from Sydney. It depends if it is worth it or if time would be better spent in a place like Darwin or if I should just stick to what I have.

JSCChan

forget about canberra as nothing particularly interesting for kids. agree taking 1 day from alice springs and suggest you fit in a hike at kings canyon and the olgas (near uluru). make sure do the harbour bridge walk but pricey for 5 people.

Europewithkids

What would the kids do at Kings Canyon?

lancefan

Europe with kids, thought this might be of interest to you - http://www.mynrma.com.au/Sydney_familyfreebies.asp

it's family freebies in sydney.

i also had another idea that your kids might like in sydney (i'm surprised it hasn't come up before now) and that's the Roar and Snore at Taronga Zoo - you stay overnight (camp in tents provided) in the zoo. Apparently it's quite an experience! quick google - apparently can do in melbourne as well.

http://www.zoo.nsw.gov.au/content/view.asp?id=158

another couple of sites i thought of for ideas, both are local tv shows:
www.getaway.ninemsn.com.au
http://weekender.visitnsw.com.au/

you could also do the segway tour at Olympic Park and while there they have a flying trapeze school too. check out the Sydney Olympic Park site - you can also hire bikes, go to the aquatic centre, there's lots to do out there (also getting there, get the ferry from the city up the parramatta river for a different view of the harbour.)

http://www.sydneyolympicpark.com.au/...nal_activities