cook11uk

Spending 5 weeks touring Australia this July/first wk Aug. Thought we'd break this trip by having 7 nights in Fiji (Westin, Denarau) but travel agent who has visited Fiji and all of east coast Aus thinks we would be wasting our time (4hr flight) and money as the Whitsunday Islands and tropical northern Queensland are far better value, warm enough and would save travelling time. Can anyone help -we are not into sailing and have our 2 adult children (18 and 21) with us. Our itinerary is Singapore, Sydney, Ayers Rock, Palm Cove/Port Douglas then work way down coast inc few nights in Surfer's paradise and Brisbane. Any advice welcome - he gave me impression we'd need to fly to the outlying islands of Fiji to get the gorgeous beaches and that would mean more travelling and much higher cost.

TheWhitsundays

Hi cook11uk,

We can highly recommned a visit to the Whitsundays while you are in Australia. You can choose to stay in Airlie Beach which is on the coast, or choose one of the island resorts, (or a couple!) tomake the msot of your stay here.

Activities you must do while here are visiting the Great Barrier Reer for some snorkelling or scuba diving (you can get your diving tickets while you are here too) and visiting the famous Whitehaven Beach.

Have a look at the website www.tourismwhitsundays.co.au for more detailed information about the region.

We look forward to welcoming you to our beautiful part of the world soon, and hope you have a fabulous holiday!

The team from the Whitsundays

peterSale

Fiji for us was a disappointment. Whilst lovely and with lots of things to do - there seemed to be no community spirit and both Nadi and Suva had little to offer. The museum at Suva was good though.

So unless you really want to see Fiji- I would stick to Australia. There is plenty to see in that part of the country. Head inland to some of the national parks. Further south, Fraser Island is great.