My husband & I are planning a trip to Australia in May 2006 & have lined up the following itinerary. Can anyone please provide suggestions/comments? Also, we have left a few days open to either "do as we like" or take a half day tour, etc. Any suggestions of how to best enjoy those days are very welcome!

Day 1) Arrive AM after overnight from Japan. PM catch 7-night cruise w Captain Cook's.
Days 2-7) Cruise visits Green, Lizard, a few other stops on GBR, half day in Cairns & then back on for 3 nights going south... basically a chance to see/snorkel a bunch of different areas without paying to transfer from island to island & dealing w luggage, etc.
Day 8) Disembark at Cairns early AM, free day! Stay the night, possibly Breakfree Royal Harbour. Should we make this 2 nights? How is Breakfree, other suggestions?

Day 9) Early flight to Uluru, check into Sails of the Desert for 3 nights (off-season rate package)
Days 10 & 11) Hang out in Uluru area, catch the sites & relax. Definitely Sounds of Silence dinner, not sure which other tours we might take, though I've been looking at other posts & will update once we have an idea. I want to learn more about the aborigine culture & maybe take a camel ride, but need to look at the options/costs.

Day 12) Catch early flight to Sydney, check into hotel. Maybe the Holiday Inn Darling (good rate), but would welcome suggestions here. I prefer boutiquey, smaller hotels in big cities, but the rate is pretty good at HI.
Days 13-15) Check out Sydney, including Sydney Opera House, Rocks, day trip to Hunter Valley. Except for Hunter, we'll probably decide these days once we're there. Oh, & fyi - Day 13 is my b-day!

Fly out of Sydney the night of 15th. My only regret is that Qantas doesn't see fit to offer any hop around discounts for flights originating from Japan.

Appreciate any and all comments, preferably of the constructive kind. Where should we add/subtract? How do these hotels sound? Tour recommendations, etc... thank you in advance!

Stephanie

I think one night at Ayers Rock is long enough. The only thing there is a rock and flies. When I was there, the flies would go in my mouth, my eyes, my nose. But it's your trip. When my mom went to Australia they planned to stay three nights there. I told her to make it one night. She changed it to two. When they arrived, they changed it to one.

It's worth seeing, but one night was enough for me.

Wow, sorry to hear that. I had heard that it was really neat to see. Was hoping the flies might not be as bad in May as they are in the summer.

I disagree with the previous post. I think there is much more to see than "just" the rock. You can visit the Olgas and Kings Canyon. Most people miss out on Kings Canyon because it is off the main road from Alice and around 400km (I think) from Uluru. But it is well worth the trip. There are tours you can take from the Ayers Rock Resort.
I did a camping tour with Sahara Outback Tours and it was fantastic.
Yes, the flies are a pain in the behind, but that's just the way it is (Get a fly net and it is not that bad).

If you need more info, feel free to visit www.wonderfulaustralia.com

Thanks for the site... I want to check out the Valley of the Winds, too. I think we're going to stick with day or half-day tours - did you hear of any good ones?

Re the Central Australia componene - why not fly into Alice & take a tour via Palm Valley, the Merinee loop (4WD) to Kings Canyon, Uluru & the Olgas (Kata Juta). This would be a compact and fun filled 3 days.
The month of May will be a great time to come over. Make sure you pack a broad brimmed hat, sunscreen & take water with you when you go walking. central oz is a great part of the world.

Flies - Bah..Humbug.. lets get real, they are all over the world and a part of the outback experience. If they do come & visit just take a small gauge fly net to fit over your hat. If necessary get some roll on repellant 'Rid' is good.

Really, 'The Centre' is fantastic, just come and enjoy the 'Bloody' experience.
Have yous seen this add?
http://wherethebloodyhellareyou.com/
Cheers - Mario

Oh, also, I was wondering if anyone has taken the Captain Cook's 7-night cruise. I remember seeing a posting about it here, but couldn't find it again. We love the idea of seeing so much of the Reef & snorkeling different places, but is 8 days too much?

Sorry Mario, we were posting at the same time. I did see Pat's posting & checked out the ad. Very funny, I thought!

Flies don't worry me so much - I've lived in Mexico & seen some pretty big flying insects.

When you say tour, do you mean a guided tour, or just do it ourselves? What is best for accomodations?

I had thought that sticking near Uluru & visiting Olgas & Kings Canyon (plus maybe a little bit of downtime at the pool) would fill up 3 days.

My thought was to take and adventure tour. Something like this.. Leave Alice, travel to Hermansberg Mission then a siteseeing visit to Palm Valley, which is nearby but you drive down the dry river bed for about 20km (12m) to get there. Then on to Kings Canyon, then to Uluru & stay in that area do the usual things then back to Alice.

Here are a couple of sites to get some info from. I only did a quick google search of key words.

http://www.discoveraustralia.com.au/
USA: Free Fax 1-866-553-3343 Tel 011-618-9486-7880

Here's one I reckon is what I was thinking of.
http://www.aussieadventure.com.au/ua4.html ($790pp- is that OK?)

Your plan is good too. If you have time, consider including a day trip to Kings Canyon! Lazing around the pool can be done anywhere, take it from me, get out there and experience the outback - it is accessable and comfortable on a tour.

Here is the Northern Territory Gov. web site for a bit more info. http://www.nt.gov.au/.

BYW, I have no affiliation with any tour group/company. I have though, been into these areas on private trips with my family & friends quite a few times over the years and I think this would be a great Aussie experience for a visitor.
And, if it rains the experience will become really interesting (but still safe).

Cheers for now - mario

Mario,
I'll take a look. I'm game for trying the adventure tour, but do have my hubby to think of. Regardless of where we stay, I will definitely take your suggestion & check out Kings Canyon. We shouldn't be short on time for it, & though I've heard it's smaller than Grand Canyon, I've never seen GC, so it will be more than big enough for me!!


Can anyone comment on the cruise? There were a bunch of experts hanging around here the other day... perhaps I need to open a separate thread?

Thanks for the suggestions so far,
Stephanie

Hi, Stephe, Your trip sounds great! We stayed 3 nights at Sails in the Desert (we got upgraded, though, so it was a real treat.) We only went to the rock and the Olgas and didn't find it boring at all. We took the Aborigine led tour in the AM (only a short hike, but interesting information) and the ranger-led tour in the afternoon. They also have a tour to the place where they have telescopes and describe the star formations (unfortunately the ranger that did that had a death in the family and wasn't available.) We rented a car and were so glad we did. We could go to the sunset place on our own time (a huge parking lot with about 200 other people, but that didn't matter when the sunset lit up Uluru.) We went there twice. Also to Kata Tjuta for a sunset walk where we were the only people there--awesome. The cultural center is worth time to visit. Some people walk around Uluru, we just drove and then took a short hike into a waterfall/pool area at dusk. Very beautiful and atmospheric. Kings Canyon is a loooong way away, not a half day trip. It sounds very lovely, but we wanted to get the most out of where we were. Re the Captain Cook cruise, I also read the post raving about the tour. It sounded like the person really enjoyed the whole experience--some snorkeling, the boat, the views, etc. It's not a dedicated snorkel/dive boat, but sounds like a fun experience. While in Cairns, go to Reef Teach, part show, part education, pretty unique. Also the Cairns zoo, if you get a chance. More up close and personal than Sydney (although the Sydney zoo is worth it for the views and ferry ride alone. The animals are a bonus!) Re Sydney--I have read that the Hunter Valley is less a destination than the Blue Mountains (depending on what you want to see, of course.) If I had to choose, I'd choose the Blue Mountains. Do not miss the aquarium under any circumstances (go later in the day to avoid lines--they're open late, so check closing times.) What a great birthday present--a trip to Australia!! Lucky you!
Sally in Seattle

Thanks for the Reef Teach reminder Sally, have forgotten to mention it lately. A must for those who want maximum enjoyment and information on a reef trip, be it a daytrip, liveaboard or cruise. The better dive schools also include it as part of their diving curriculum. In Cairns city, open every evening except Sundays, 6pm-8pm

We have not been on the Cairns cruise but did the 7 day Fiji with the same company. Spoke to quite a few ausies on this cruise that have done the 7 day Cairns trip and they all spoke highly of it, so much so we plan to do this cruise. Over all verdict, the nth. trip is better than the sth. but you should do the 7 days. Great itinery

Ah, Pat, there you are. Seems like you are becoming a celebrity on this board. Sorry we won't be staying with you - maybe next time?

Sally, thanks for the additional advice. Have looked at our itinerary again, and now it looks like we will have just 1 night & 2 days in Uluru before we are off to Sydney. Is Kings Canyon still worth it, or with the reduced time, should we focus on seeing the Rock & Olgas a bit more? Can you tell me how much the car rental cost?

I read in one of the travel books that if I am visiting the GBR, the aquarium might not be worth it?

Finally, Cairns - we'll have half a day between the 4-day & 3-day part of the cruise, plus most of a day after the cruise is over. What are the one or two "must-do" things that make Cairns & area so great? I think that Captain Cook's offers a few free options for the time between tours - am going to ask on the other post what Pleiades thought of those.

Thanks for all the ideas so far!
Stephanie

Where are you staying at Ayers Rock? The prices are quite expensive there.

My trip this November will be almost identical to Stephanie, but with a different cruise. I'm looking at the 3day/2 night reef Encounter. It's less than half as much as a Captain Cook's cruise with all of the time spent on the water.

We will be in Oz for 14 days total. We plan to spend the first 6 days in the Cairns area with a short cruise, maybe 2-3 days in Uluru area or 2-3 days Melbourne, and the last 5-6 days in Sydney. I can't decide whether to skip the center and go to Melbourne or even try to do them both with less time in each of Uluru-Melbourne-Sydney. I'm concerned about the heat in the center in late November limiting our outside activities. Although we spent 2 weeks in Vietnam 2 years ago and that was the hottest place I've ever been.
What do you all think? Has anyone done 3days/2 nights on Reef Encounter?

Susie

Susie - Reef Encounter is a nice liveaboard boat but the main drawback is the feeder vessel, Compass. It really is an old tub - a cheap day trip for backpackers, and takes much longer to get out to reef (to join up with Reef Encounter) than any other boat I know of.

For a 2night, 3day liveaboard have a look at Pro-Dive out of Cairns and don't forget to go to Reef Teach in Cairns before you take the trip. 6-8pm, every evening except Sundays.

By late November it will be getting hot at Uluru - but its a much drier heat than Vietnam, I was there two years ago too and it was both hot and humid, particularly in the south.

Thanks Pat. I looked at Prodive-the ship is smaller and has bunk beds in the cabin. It seems more geared for divers than snorkellers, which we are. Actually the 2 hours out to the Reef Endeavour on Compass doesn't bother me.

I'm beginning to lean towards the remaing 7 of our 13 1/2 days in Oz divided between Melbourne and Sydney, doing the Great Ocean Road and Blue Mountains as day trips to get out of the cities for a spell. Both of us really like cities and think we can get our nature/outdoors fix in the Cairns area and skip Uluru. We're not all that hot on looking at rocks.

When I get a more firm itinerary lined up I'd like to run it by the experts here.

Pat: how do I PM you?

Susie

Susie,

Did you look at Captain Cook's or Princess Coral's 3-night cruises? That's a day longer than you planned for Reef Endeavor, but those did look nice, and they seem geared more to snorklers or general interest then the scuba divers (though I hear they usually have a few people doing scuba as well).

We started planning to do just a 3- or 4-night trip, then my husband got caught up in it & now we're doing 7 nights instead.

Stephe - Susie is referring to Reef Encounter, a liveaboard, Reef Endeavour is a much larger cruise boat and massively more expensive.

Susie, Pro-Dive's Scuba-Pro does take snorkellers; in fact a group of 15 or so birdwatchers from Audubon Society in Portland, Oregon couldn't stop raving about it recently. They also took the 2 night/3day trip; age range was mid 40's to 60+ and only a couple were certified divers. However, you're right in saying its primarily a dive boat (liveaboards are) and as Pro-Dive also runs one of the best dive schools there will be novice divers as well aboard.