Jen

That about says it all - <BR> <BR>Ritz in Sydney and Radisson Treetops in Port Douglas <BR> <BR>OR <BR> <BR>Intercontinental in Sydney and Sheraton Mirage in Port Douglas. <BR> <BR>Unfortunately, our budget can't support both the Ritz and Sheraton, so we have a choice to make. We (my husband and I) are spending 7 nights in Sydney and 5 in Port Douglas! Thanks again for your help!

Dick

Jen, <BR> <BR>I know what you are going through. <BR> <BR>We solved it by splurging in Sydney at a fabulous place,,,THe Quay West <BR>http://www.small-hotel.com/quay-west-sydney/index.html <BR>and stayed in an aprtment unit in Port Douglas,,that was ver inexpesive..base on the dollar. <BR> <BR>You need to determine how much time will be spent in the hotel room..and if a view is important...We just kwew that we wanted to be able to see the Opera House and Harbour Bridge from our place in Sydney. <BR> <BR>Godd luck.,,,am sure wherever you stay,,you will have a great time in Oz <BR>There is no right answer,

John

Dear Jen: <BR> <BR>This past November my wife and I stayed at the Rydges Hotel chain in Sydney, Cairns, Alice Springs, Christchurch, Queenstown, Rotorua and Auckland. Fabulous service and accommodations. Check out their website at www.Rydges.com. Recommend them highly. <BR> <BR>John and Kay Schang <BR>Jackson, Tennessee

Michael

Jen, <BR>Since you did not ask for alternate hotels but a preference on these 2 choices then the obvious one is Intercontinental & Mirage. The service at the Ritz is the best in Sydney but the Intercon is a fine first class hotel that with a bit of luck you may get a high rise room with a view. In Port Douglas the Mirage is far and away the best resort with a much better environment/pools/golf etc than anything else. Treetops is also nice. The mix of Intercon/Mirage wins this one.

Anna

My vote is for the Ritz Carlton. We spent New Year's Eve there and I cannot say enough about how wonderful it was. There's nothing special about the InterContinental. Go for a harbour view room at the Ritz. <BR> <BR>There are lots of lovely Queensland hotels outside Port Douglas. The Reef House at Palm Cove is a stunning hotel. Depends on what you want - glitz or understated luxury. If glitz - try the mirage, personally I hate sheratons, so we opted for the quieter Palm Cove option. <BR> <BR>Whatever you choose - enjoy.

Michael

Just a couple of points on Anna's post - the Mirage is not what one would call a Sheraton hotel and should never be confused as a typical Sheraton , particularly for those of you who come of the USA and would have a view of this chain based on that. The Sheraton was not built as a Sheraton but was aquired later. Palm Cove does have nice hotels but is closer to Cairns than to Port Douglas and is not a town but a collection of hotels with a nice beach and some local housing. Anna is right it is a nice place to stay but does not have "personality" as the Port does. Understand I am not trying to "argue" against what Anna has stated just trying to make it a bit clearer around the edges. <BR>Rgds <BR>Michael

Mike

agreed on your comments about Sheraton. It's more akin to a nice full service resort in Hawaii than what one would think of as a Sheraton hotel. Jerry Seinfeld was there when I stayed there. And apparently this is where the cast of Thin Red Line stayed when filming was goin on in the area. It's a posh property to say the least. I also stayed at the Treetops, which is definitely not in the same league. Treetops is a family place, not elegant like the Mirage.

Mike

oh yeah, i forgot to mention that you should join the sheraton starwood club for $25 bucks. i did before staying at the mirage and got a sweet room at 50% off. i'm sure you can get a similar deal. it may help to call the hotel directly to make sure you get the best deal. good luck.

Jen

Thanks so much for your help! <BR> <BR>Mike: Thanks for the Starwood advice - we got the 50% off, and can now stay at the Ritz and the Sheraton! <BR> <BR>Can't wait for our trip!

susie

I called Sheraton and they said to join Starwood club there is no charge and they did not know anything about paying $25. and then getting 50% off. Can you please give me some details as to how you did this. Thanks

Jen

Susie: <BR> <BR>Actually, we had been members of the Starwood 'frequent flyer' program and used 1,500 points to get 50% off - Mike had just reminded us to check on that so that's how we got the discount, so I'm not sure what Mike did to get his discount. Sorry I can't help you any more than that - hopefully Mike will see your post!

Mike

Hi Susie- <BR> <BR>Sheraton just charged me $25 to renew my membership. Maybe the first year it's free? Anyway, I actually joined the club when we arrived at the Mirage. I was told the rate I originally booked on the Sheraton site was a Starwood rate so the woman at the desk gave me an application on the spot and offered me the 50% discount. This was a year ago, so maybe they aren't offering such discounts any more. I would give the main Sheraton # a call and see if there is any price difference between being a Starwood member or not for this property. I recently booked a room at the Sheraton on Kauai and I received a 35% room discount for being a Starwood member so it still seems like a good membership to have in my opinion. Good luck!