BeckersW8

Hi all,

Many thanks for all your advice over the past couple months to help my fiancee and I plan our honeymoon to Australia/New Zealand in December & January.

As it is now, we're spending the first 1/2 of our 3-week trip in New Zealand and then are going to Australia:

1 night in Cairns
4 nights in the Great Barrier Reef
2 nights - NEED HELP ON THIS
3 nights - Sydney

My fiancee and I are interested in staying in a really nice place near Cairns or Sydney after our 4-night stay in the GBR.

Some of the places we're considering are Palm Beach (Jonah's), Blue Mountains (Lillianfells or Echoes), or Qualia (a new place in the GBR area). Any advice people have for 2 nights before heading to Sydney would be much appreciated.

Many thanks!

pat_woolford

Beckers - Qualia is nowhere near Cairns, its on Hamilton Island in the Whitsundays, over 600km south of Cairns.

For Cairns area would suggest one of the northern beaches, such as Palm Cove or Thala Resort at Oak Beach, just south of Port Douglas. Silky Oaks in rainforest near Mossman might appeal too. But do remember Dec-Jan is the middle of marine stinger season in North Qld, so no swimming on coastal beaches or Whitsunday Islands (GBR is fine).

For a Sydney summer would suggest Jonahs; it looks out over Whale Beach, a northern Sydney beach with an added benefit of no box-jelly fish concerns. Sydney coastal beaches have surf (usually) - there is none in Northern Queensland as the coast is protected by the Great Barrier Reef.

Bokhara

Hi BeckersW8,

Jonah's is in a great location, but you do realize Palm Beach is a suburb of Sydney, don't you?

As you're already staying 3 nights in Sydney, perhaps you might consider Lillianfells, Echoes in the Blue Mountains or something in the Hunter Valley for an "out of town" experience.
http://www.winecountry.com.au/

pat_woolford

Thanks Bokhara, I should have made that plainer.

Palm Cove, Queensland, is the most northerly beach suburb of Cairns, Palm Beach, New South Wales, (just a little north of Whale Beach) is the most northerly beach suburb of Sydney.

BeckersW8

Pat and Bokhara,

Thanks so much for your advice! We like the idea of staying in a stinger-free location, so maybe Jonah's, or perhaps a trip to the Blue Mountains, is the right choice for us.

Thanks again!