ndonna

It has always been my husbands life long dream to go to Australia. A few of our main interest would be the wildlife and beaches (surfing). It would only be about a one to two week trip, Any thoughts on ideas for this kind of trip would be great, i.e. places to visit, places to stay, itenerary, etc... I am thinking a late June trip.

Thanks so much

longhorn55

I always think the best place to start is with a good guidebook or two. You can get a good idea of climate, places to stay, how to travel within the country, what are the highlights to see, etc. If you don't want to buy guidebooks, check them out from your library. Our local library has a variety of "brands" for almost every country (including Fodor's, of course.)
Having said that, here's a few ideas/questions...

1. Do you plan to go in late June 2009? If so, you better get going on your planning. School holidays for some Australian states begin in late June and accomodations/transportation are always harder to find and more expensive then.
2. Consider the Qantas Airpass. It includes airfare from the U.S. and 3 internal flights within Australia. It might be cost-effective for you.
3. Try to stat at least 2 weeks. In that amount of time, you can easily visit 3 locations (and even 4 if you have to). If you only stay 1 week, don't try more than 2 destinations.
4. Late June is winter, so you'll have to go north for the warm weather and surfing.

Happy planning!

Orlando_Vic

With two weeks in Australia, you will be able to see a lot. One week is simply not enough time considering the distance required to travel to Australia (from most destinations). Nevertheless, the number of choices available to you can be overwhelming. If you are looking for a sample itinerary, let me suggest the approach that works well for me in similar circumstances.

First, look at some Australia package tours that are commercially available and see what kind of Itinerary they put together for 14-21 days. Request a free hard copy of their brochure, with full color pictures, and use it as an guide. If this itinerary fits your interests and budget, use their plan and copy it for yourself. You can fill in your transportation and lodging details later.

Three good companies that will send you brochures are Australia Pacific Touring (APT) http://www.aptouring.com.au/content.asp?Document_ID=17 , AAT Kings http://www.aatkings.com/us/ and Qantas Vacations http://qantasvacations.com/ .

Good luck!

DownUnder

Fodor's Australia is a very good guide book to use. It is comprehensive and fairly accurate with many excellent suggestions. June is mid winter and school holidays so I agree you need to start booking now if your plans are for '09 and definitely for two weeks.
Sydney and the Great Barrier Reef are the obvious places for that time of the year, but if you want to brave the cold, the Great Ocean Road surf coast (e.g. Torquay and Bells Beach) has good waves and of course plenty of wildlife.

Bushranger

1-2 Weeks is bugger all time for Australia and wildlif beaches you might as well just fly to Sydney or Brisbane, both with plenty of wildlife parks and water up Brisbane way being a little warmer for surfing.

I would not waste my time nor money for buying a guidebook for such a short time but have a look back through past threads and you'll find a lot of info, and then google for a bit more.

Neil_Oz

I strongly support longhorn55's recommendation that you buy a good guidebook. The price is quite trivial in relation to the thousands of dollars one outlays for an overseas trip, no matter how brief, and you'll find information organised in a way that no amount of Googling and online queries can match.

In two weeks you can certainly do three locations, which should include temperate Sydney and tropical Far North Queensland (for the Great Barrier Reef, Daintree Rain Forest and other attractions). Depending on budget (and here the Qantas Airpass could certainly be a good investment) you could fit in the Red Centre. Be aware though that flying distances between such locations are considerable.

One week? Sorry, but "forget it" is my reaction. You could spend say 3 days in each of Sydney and FNQ, but I suspect your memories of the trip would be rather blurred.

Bushranger

You do need to know that whilst the GBR will allow you to see some sea life, there is no surf to speak of past a place called 1770 which is about 500 km. north of Brisbane.

Have heard you can get surf lessons there and also trips to the most southern part of the GBR.
The Australia Zoo [Steve Irwin fame] is about 100 km. north of Brisbane and other good surf beaches in that area on what is known as the Sunshine Coast.
Lone Pine Koala Park is one of the largest wildlife parks you'll find, kangaroos in natural habitat there and one of few places in Australia where you can cuddle a Koala.

You will find guidebooks are always going to be based on information that is at least a couple of years old and you may even find some in your local library as an alternative to buying one - help save some trees if not your finances.

So if surfing is something high on your priority, it does confine you to limited areas for that and hardly a need for purchasing a guidebook.

ndonna

Thanks so much for the tips. I will take your advice and plan on at least two weeks. That is the amount of time we spent in Africa and had a magnificent trip. I look forward to reading a lot of the questions and replies on this forum and know I will learn a lot.

Thanks

Saltuarius

One week in Sydney and surrounds and one in Cairns and surrounds.
Sydney for culture, nightlife and surf beaches. Get out into the Blue Mountains for the wildlife and scenery.

Cairns for the Great Barrier Reef and then up to the Atherton Tablelands for the wildlife and scenery. I am living in Yungaburra so am a bit biased but think that a good spot to base yourself. Plenty of accommodation choices and things to do and see. A day trip or overnight to the Daintree/Cape Tribulation might suit you. We usually stay at Redmill House on the south side of the river. An early morning/late evening cruise with Chris Darhberg or Sauce Worchester will get you some wildlife in pleasant surroundings.