Darwin and Kakadu
 

I hope to be in the Darwin area in early June for about 4-5 days. I've been advised to stay at the Poinciana Inn in Darwin, the aurora in Kakadu, the Katherine motel in Katherine and the lake Bennett Wilderness Resort. I've heard mixed things about these places especially the Poinciana and the Aurora. I am looking for 3 star or better accommodations; I realize choices may be limited. Thanks for any advice.

Hi,
What makes you think choices will be limited in Darwin?

Advised by whom?

Cheers.

To be clearer - I thought choices might be limited in Kakadu and other non-Darwin locations, not in Darwin itself.

That's good to hear! Hope someone will be along soon with some feedback for you on the places you mention.

Do a search for "Darwin" "Kakadu" "Katherine Gorge" and "Litchfield" on this forum and you will find long threads that speak to some of your questions. There are also reviews at Tripadvisor.com that might be useful.

I don't know anything about the Poincianna. We stayed at Palms City Resort across from the Esplanade and were happy with it. Pool isn't much. We visited someone staying at the Mirambeena in Darwin. Pool was great, bar beside it and the rooms were more spacious and modern than at Palms City. Good location for Mirambeena but not across from the water. Can't remember the price difference, though, so it might not be apples to apples.

There are lots of options in Darwin.

We stayed at the Mirambeena. Pool was excellent. Public areas had some tropical charm, but our room, a two-level suite, was dark and funky.

Is "funky" a good or a bad thing?

Here it means hip, groovy, etc. - but I domn't think that is what the poster meant.

I would say it's a good thing if you're talking about fashion, but not as good if you're talking about hotel rooms.

Oops - I hit reply too soon...what i meant was that the room was a little run down. Not hip or groovy. We loved Darwin but did not notice any hip or groovy hotels.

On our last trip to Jabiru we stayed at the Gagudju Crocodile Holiday Inn. We had a nice room on the ground floor where the doors opened onto a nicely landscaped central courtyard.
However, the best time we've had is when we stayed here: http://www.lakeviewkakadu.com.au/index.html

Note that there is no air conditioning.

If you are going to do the sunrise Yellow Water Cruise which I would highly recommend then you will probably want to stay at Cooinda (this is in Kakadu)as it leaves about 5.30am. It is well worth the struggle of getting up as this is when the wildlife is really out and about.

I so agree Wallos - we've been on that trip and it was well worth the early rise. To see the birds and animals at sunrise was magical. We stayed in the campground at Cooinda:
http://www.gagudjulodgecooinda.com.au/index.htm
but there are lots of levels of accommodation available.

we enjoyed our stay in a tented cabin with private bath at the Lakeview Resort in Jaibiru. We took our meals at the local social club and swam at the huge community pool

cheers
A/D