Hi,<BR><BR>My husband and I are planning a trip to Australia in September from San Fran. We will only have from Sunday - Saturday (short trip). What are the "must" sees? Sydney and Melbourne? I know there are so many beautiful things outside of the city, but I don't know that we'll have time. Also - will it be cold?

September will be beautiful. If I were you I would stay in the Sydney area unless you want to go into Queensland for a look see. It is not much time and Sydney and surrounds would take up most of your time anyway.

Susan -<BR><BR>I was in Australia the first week of September last year. It is very early spring in the south part of Australia that time of year. I would recommend climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge (if you're not scared of heights). It was really fun.<BR>Martha<BR>

Hi, Susan!<BR><BR>I think you will find the weather in Sydney quite pleasant at this time of year, though it does get windy sometimes, so be prepared for that. Going south to Melbourne will be a little chillier, so you may be wise to think about north for your second destination.... Brisbane, which can be VERY trying in mid-summer, should be just delightful at this time of year. Your time is so brief that you won't want to waste it on needless travel, so can you arrange your holiday so you can fly into Brisbane and then out of Sydney? Otherwise, stay in Sydney and do day trips to nearby centres, such as the Blue Mountains, and even Canberra, which is only four hours away by train and is full of interesting museums and galleries. You will feel really at home in Sydney... when I arrived in San Francisco I felt that I had never been in a city that reminded me so much of my home town.

Susan,<BR><BR>I just got back two days ago from Australia, particularly Sydney and Melbourne. <BR><BR>For your short stay, I would recommend you stay in Sydney longer than in Melbourne. <BR><BR>Ok for Melbourne, these are good sites to visit:<BR>1. Crown Casino. <BR>2. Melbourne Downtown (or CBD: Central Business District as it is known there.).<BR>3. Albert Park<BR>4. Great Ocean Road (if you can do it in the time)<BR><BR>For Sydney:<BR>1. Obviously Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge<BR>2. Do not miss Darling Harbour<BR>3. Also walk down George Street if you can<BR>4. Bondi Beach<BR>5. Manly Beach<BR>6. Palm Beach, if you have time<BR>7. Circular Quay and the Rocks are no big deal if you miss them. Well, in my opinion at least.<BR><BR>Have a great time<BR><BR>Anand

Some more suggestions for Melbourne.<BR>St Kilda Esplanade on Sundays for the great craft market and people watching - also wander along to Acland Street for fantastic cakes. Take the ferry along the river to Williamstown - old part of Melbourne on Philip Bay. The lovely parks around the centre of the city - Botanic Gardens, Fitzroy Gardens etc. Southbank along the Yarra for restaurants, up-market shops etc. Queen Victoria market - great range of foods, clothes and souvenirs. If you go to Melbourne Central (shopping mall), watch out for the animated clock on the hour. Within the CBD, use the free City Circle tram - vintage brown trams. Melbourne Zoo is only a few minutes by tram from the city and is really excellent, makes a good opportunity to see Australian animals and birds.<BR>A good day tour (if you like wine) is to the Yarra Valley - only about an hour out of the city, and in pretty countryside.<BR>I wouldn't worry about Albert Park and a casino is a casino.<BR>If you should happen to drive Sydney-Melbourne, the Floriade is on in Canberra mid-September to mid-October - that's if you are mad about gardens.<BR>Hope you have a great holiday.

Well Susan, Marg has it all in one, she really knows her stuff and maybe she lives in Melbourne. I was there twice last year and in my mind it is the top city in Aussie now, very cultural and heaps of fun. I would do everthing she suggests and if you are into art I would make a visit to the art gallery for some wonderful Australian art from the 19th century onwards. Also the Immigration museum is well worth visiting and doesn't take up too much time. The trams are wonderful and take you everywhere you would want to go. I stayed at the Hotel Charsfield and it is a restored mansion on St Kilda road and excellent value besides being five minutes tram ride from the city. Also try a restaurant in Lygon St, one of the great traditions of Melbourne, Chinatown and also the Vietnamese area, you will be spoiled for choice. Have a great time. I doubt whether I would even attempt to fit in two cities.

Sydney rates a 10 on tourist interest while Melbourne rates a 1 in my book. Melbourne's weather in September will be sus too - probably cold and windy. There is nothing much about Melbourne that is nice and as your time is so short you have plenty to see and do in Sydney to keep you busy. I would not bother about going anywhere else actually, other than areas closer to Sydney, 7 days is a minimum.

Regarding a suggestion that was made on an earlier post...<BR><BR>Most of it, I agree with, but IMHO, I really think you could miss Darling Harbour. Some people love it, and it would be great if you have kids, but I think it's a tourist trap (created from scratch for tourists, so I hear). It reminded me of where I live (Los Angeles, which I love, but there definitely some "ew" factors). I hear the aquarium there is great, but if you see the fish up at the GBR, it seems a bit anticlimactic.<BR><BR>The Rocks area is very touristy as well, but I think it's far more worth a look than Darling Harbour. The bridgeclimb, on a nice day if possible, is a "must do".

Susan, the weather will be great in September - just a tad cool, but nice. If I only had 7 days, I think it might be nice to spent most of the time in Sydney, and go to Canberra for a couple of days and a night. Canberra will be cooler than Sydney. It's a short flight or a few hours' drive from Sydney. <BR><BR>There's quite a few interesting galleries and stuff to see in Canberra, including visiting our "new" Parliament House. There's a couple of suburban areas within Canberra, (Dixon and Manuka) where there are lots of restuarants of every type. As someone else said, the "Floriade" floral festival is on in Canberra in September.<BR><BR>So with all the terrific things to do in Sydney and a short side trip to Canberra, that would be a good way to fill 7 days.