bruce

after reading so many messages my head is spinning. We will be in australia in may. We are suppose to stay in cairns. WE will only be in that area from wednesday afternoon until saturday morning so not too much time. SHould we stay in cairns or port douglas. Will it be more expensive to stay in port douglas. HELP!

tom

I liked the Port Douglas area better, it is essentially a small town with some resorts nearby. If you are going out on the barrier reef cruises, I think you save quite a bit of time starting from port douglas as well.

Debbie

Hi!<BR>I agree w/Tom. I too liked Pt. D better. I was travelling on my own and costs were a concern but I didn't find Pt. D to be more expensive than Cairns. I stayed in both but didn't find there to be an appreciable difference in costs. Both towns offer a variety of lodging and dining at different price points. (Cairns had more choices for really cheap eats,ie fast food). I'm sure you will be able to find something suitable no matter which town you visit.<BR><BR>IMO, Port Douglas is just a nicer place, and like Tom said, it's closer to the reef. Pt. D has a beach, Cairns does not. It's a beter jumping off point to the Daintree. I hope to get back to Australia again and Pt. D is one of the stops that I want see again, but I'm going to skip Cairns next time around! ;-)<BR><BR>Debbie

lynette

Hi Bruce! Check out www.trinityesplanade.com I between Cairns and PD) and Thala Beach Lodge in Port Douglas. Both looked great to us... we just haven't decided yet! talk to you soon!<BR><BR>Lynette

carl

Another alternative in the area is Palm Cove which lies between Port Douglas and Cairns. Palm Cove is a smaller town with several hotels and restaurants along the esplanade looking at the beach. You can check the recent discussion here for more details on the lodging and restaurant choices there. <BR><BR>Cairns is a bigger place without a very attractive beach. You'd probably spend most of your days driving North to see the aboriginal center, Katoomba, the Daintree River and the rainforest.

shannon

definitely NOT Cairns. It wasn't even worth the 1/2 day we spent there....<BR><BR>except we did luck up on some cheap souvenirs....<BR><BR>Trinity Beach was quite neat<BR><BR>We stayed at Palm Cove...very nice, several reasonably priced restaurants if you are considering the exchange rate.<BR><BR>Walk to all the shops/beach in less than 5 mins.<BR><BR>Only went to Port Douglas to get on our Poseidon Dive.....but all the tours will pick you up from Palm Cove so that isn't a problem.<BR><BR>