samins

Hello All....

I have been getting lots of great ideas from this site for our trip to Australia in Sept. I have put together an itinerary and would love for any of the experts out there to review and make suggestions. Fyi...we are travelling with my parents (69 & 71) who are pretty active but want a more relaxed vacation. We want to try and spend at least 2 nights but preferably 3-4 at each place to cut down on travel time, so central locations where we could daytrip out would be great!

Ok...here goes...sorry in advance for the length!

Sept 2 - Aus-LA-Sydney

Sept 4 - Arrive Sydney in the am....I have reservations at the Hilton, since we have a friends and family rate, but am considering the Quay West Suites because the two bedroom suites seem really nice and spacious and having the kitchen might be nice.

Sept 4, 5, 6, 7 - Sydney

Sept 8, 9 - Blue Mounains - Here, we are planning on renting a car in Sydney and then driving ourselves out there. Should we have a plan for what to do before we get there or is it pretty easy to figure out on the way? We just don't want to miss anything amazing because we didn't drive by it. Any suggestions on a nice B&B type place to spend the two nights? Is this too much time in the Blue Mountains....should we spend one of the days back in Sydney?

Sept 10 - Drive back into Sydney for a 1:30 flight to Cairns. Do we have to be at the airport 2 hours in advance for domestic flights?

Sept 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 - Cairns area
We know that we want to do some snorkeling. We are thinking that the Daintree Air trip to Lizard Island will be a great day, and get us out on the reef to do some snorkeling. Then one day on the Pete Baxendell tour sounds good. I am guessing that we will stay in Cairns on the 10th, do the Daintree Air thing on the 11th, spend that night in Cairns, and then move on the morning of the 12th. Any suggestions here for the rest of our time here would be greatly appreciated.

Sept 16 - Cairns-Hobart

Sept 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 - Tasmania
So here, we are arriving in Hobart pretty late, so suggestions for somewhere nice to stay near the airport would be great. I don't really have a great plan for Tasmania. I know that we arrive in Hobart and depart from Launceston. What is the best way to circle around? We definitely want to see Cradle Mountain, Coles Bay, and some of the farms (cheese, rasberry, strawberry, etc.) But we want to stay at least two nights in each place...so what do ya'll think?

Sept 22 - Launceston -Mel-Hong Kong

Sept 23 - arrive in Hong Kong early morning
Sept 23, 24, 25, 26 - In Hong Kong....again, here we have reservations at the Conrad on the island because we have the friends and family rate, but is it better to stay there or on Kowloon ( I know that this is not the right board for this question, but figured I would throw it out there!)

Sept 26 - Hong Kong - LA-Austin

Thanks so much!!!

DownUnder

Your itinerary looks great, but you seem to be spending a lot of time in Tasmania. Now I know Tassy has been well marketed lately and sure Cradle Mountain etc. are worth seeing, but I can't help thinking that you are missing out on one of the truly great areas of Australia and that is The Great Ocean Road area in Victoria. Do a bit of research on that area www.visitvictoria.com or www.greatoceanroad.org and you will see what I mean. Perhaps 4 nights in Tasmania ( the distances are not great) depart Launceston and then 3 nights on GOR before departing from Melbourne. You could base yourself at Lorne or Apollo Bay and then do day trips to the 12 Apostles, the Grampins etc.
Just a thought because when you are travelling so far you might as well see the best of Downunder.
You don't need to be 2 hours prior for domestic flights, but it is advisable to be at the airport at least an hour before your flight.

oliverandharry

I really love Tassie, but agree with DownUnder. Cradle Mountain and Coles Bay are wonderful, but they're in opposite directions, and both closer to Launceston than Hobart. To have only six days and try to make a circle will not work. If you want both these destinations, fly in and out of Launceston. Go one direction for two days then the other, and as suggested spend time in Melbourne. If you are really set on Hobart, stay the night you arrive and one more. (although you will need to come into the city.) Then drive straight up the Heritage Highway and east to Coles Bay and skip Cradle Mountain. Since you will not be there over a Saturday, you will miss the Salamanca Market anyway and may just want to give Hobart a miss. Others will say this is sacriledge, but you can't do what you are asking in 6 days and stay 2 nights in each place.

pat_woolford

samins - will you have a car in Port Douglas? Of course you won't need one for Pete Baxendell's trip as he'll pick you up and drop off in PD but could be handy for the other days. You really shouldn't miss Atherton Tableland while you're in FNQ and there's lots of nice drives around Port Douglas area - am assuming you won't be taking a reef trip out of PD as you'll have already seen one of the best spots on GBR on Lizard Island trip.

You are right to stay the first two nights in Cairns or one of its northern beaches such as Palm Cove or Trinity Beach, much handier to Cairns airport for Lizard Island trip than PD.

As for Hong Kong (I used to live there) I don't think it matters much which side you stay - transport there is excellent and distance is short between Kowloon and Central. Either underground rail or Star Ferry. From Kowloon you do get a wonderful view of HK island at night, but view is not at all a bad from the other direction either.

samins

Thanks so much to the posters who responded....

DownUnder...I will definitely check out the GOR and see if we can work it in...I did want to see Melbourne (saw a great program on it on the Travel Channel) but felt as though we needed focus our time a bit, and also to save something for our next trip out!

OliverandHarry....I think you may be right...Since we are not going to be there on a Sat....perhaps we should give Hobart a miss, and focus on the mountains and the sea. We are thinking of Piermont Retreat for a few days....Have you stayed there...know anything about the place?

Pat_woolford....yes, we will have a car in Cairns. I think now what we will do is fly in to Cairns, spend the night, and then the next two nights on Lizard Island (any thoughts here....better to stay on the island or just fly in for the day??). Then the next three nights in PD, doing the Baxendell tour on on day, and then Atherton the next. How does that sound?

Again, thanks so much!

oliverandharry

Samins,
I think you're on a better track with those ideas. I actually was looking at Piermont Retreat for my next trip, but I have to tell you that the reviews on Trip Advisor are just dreadful. You might want to check those out. Many other places in the Freycinet/Coles Bay area that you would enjoy. If you want to stay inland, take a look at Woolmer's Estate, an incredible historical lodging that was one of our best experiences.

Abby43

I literally just arrived home this evening from a 2 week trip to Sydney and Tasmania. I had already been to Australia 4 times so this time a friend and I went to Tassie for 6 days. This is how we did it (Please, no remarks about lack of time or how we did it-I am home, tired, and HAPPY about how great it all went!)
1. Saturday PM-flew into Launceston
2. Sunday AM-got up early, did Tamar Valley Wine Route (so beautiful), drove to Cradle Mountain, stayed at Cradle Mtn. Lodge in a Pine Pencil Cabin (cute!). Food at lodge is fantastic.
3. Monday AM-Cradle Mtn. Did Dove Lake Circuit walk. It was pretty hot out but we managed...and it was a lot of fun. Back at hotel had fabulous meal at the nice restaurant at the lodge.
4. Tuesday AM-early departure, drove across Delonie/Sheffield and over to Freycinet Bay through Bicheno (not much there but cute) and stayed at a great house in Coles Bay. This was a long day of driving but the sightseeing was fab and we stopped a lot. Go see the alapaca in Sheffield! Got to Coles Bay quite early only to learn the bars and stuff close WAYYYY too early!! Like 9 PM!
5. Wednesday AM-did 4 hour cruise of Freycinet Bay area, including Wineglass Bay. Afternoon did the Wineglass Bay overlook hike. Went to Freycinet Lodge for dinner, then to pub which closed early
6. Thursday AM-drove to Hobart. Had only 4 hours in Hobart but both of us THRILLED we went. It is gorgeous! So quaint, very modern, really "chic" restaurants...loved it.

Freycinet was definitely our favorite, and spending a few hours driving from Cradle Mtn. to Freycinet really was not the biggest deal. Look, Tassie was tremendous but the towns along the way are like a street block or two long so there is not much going on. So glad we chose to go down there for a few days and wished we had more time but we didn't...so it is what it is.

Sydney is the greatest place in the world....I could just spend all my time there but definitely go up north as well. Melbourne will probably be chillier when you are there as it's at the tail end of winter. Have a great time!!

JC01

Hello!
I have just returned from 3 week holiday from Australia including 6 days in Tasmania. And 6 days wasn't enough! I loved Tasmania and I think I could have done with another week there!. There is so much to see and do there!We flew from Sydney to Launceston and hired a car and flew back from Hobart to Melbourne. We travelled to Cradle Mountain (north ) and then to Lake St Claire ( south) and then down to Hobart so anti -clockwise. Be prepaired that there is a lot of driving involved to get from the north side to the south side of the Cradle mountain national park and overall in Tasmania there is a lot of driving...plus the roads are windy so it will take time to get from A to B. The landscape and sceenery are beatiful so worth the long drives and a lot of stops to admire the views along the way! I love walking in the mountains and during the 6 days we did plenty of it!Around Hobart it is worth visiting Port Arthur and Bunny Island. However we did not have time to travel to the Freycinet peninsula - something had to give but hopefully next time!I think that the key sights of Tasmania deserve 2 weeks! that would inlude the major national parks and a visit to the 2 cities.
Re: Staying near Hobart airport - I can't recall seeing anything decent nearby . The airport is approx 30 min drive from town. I would suggest you stay in a hotel and not a B&B so that you can check in late at night. Re: Blue Mountains B&B - we stayed in Melba house B&B -mentioned in Fodor's but I cannot find it among the listings on this website. Nice stay and recommended and we got a good deal as we were not staying at the weekend. Be aware that the prices go up and are ridiculous at the weekends!all the sydney-siders getting away for their weekend. The sights in the Blue Mountain are clearly marked , suggest you visit the Tourist Info center at Echo Point for more.. which is the main stop for all tourists. You can decide how much more walking you want to do.Kotumba is a good place to base yourself.

JC01

p.s. We planned to hire a car in Melbourne and travel along the Great Ocean Drive but gave up as it is a long journey... I think you need to decide what you want to do during your trip to Aus and avoid trying to do everything.... and accept that Australia is a huuuge country with beautiful sights and enjoy the ones that you decide to visit and forget about what you missed...

LizzyF

Just had to reply regarding "nice" places to stay near the airport in Hobart - because there are many!!!!
Do a search on the village of Richmond which is 10 minutes from the airport, it is a lovely Georgian village which should be on you "must sees" anyway. There are lots of lovely places to stay there from self-contained convict built houses to more modern 2 bedroom self-contained houses on farms - the latter being at Hatcher's Manor. Yes I have stayed in the self-contained cottage and it is lovely and has everything you need included washing machine etc. If you are going to Port Arthur then Richmond is a good place to stay because you are on the way there so a couple of nights would be a great idea for that area. So my first night Day 1 would be in Richmond ( eat at the Bakery for breakfast and anything else to take away) second day down to Port Arthur and the Tasman peninsular - second night in Richmond. Day three drive down the Huon Valley and around that area - perhaps go to the Tahune Airwalk ( parents can sit at the information centre and have coffee etc ) the drive is lovely and the area is particularly beautiful) See the Boat Building place at Franklin - which means building wooden boats in the old fashioned way useing hands and sandpaper and dove tailing etc - other lovely little areas to walk or shop for the ladies while the men see the boats. The Huon has lovely eateries, wineries and all sorts of things to see and do. Drive to New Norfolk - about 30 miles NW of Hobart and stay at " Tynwald" which is a lovely Heritage listed B&B on the banks of the Derwent River and the owners are chefs so you can eat very well there. They have different styles of accommodation so there will be something for you all - perhaps in the Old Grannery ( I think it is called). If you don't stay at Tynewald in N.N. then go a bit further to Hamilton and rent a convict built cottage for the night there - do a search for those. From New Norfolk or Hamilton, and seeing you are on a quick trip, I would drive to Strahan 4th day and stay there in a cottage on the waterfront taking the trip down the Gordon River on day 5 - overnight again in Strahan. Day 6 drive from there along the western side of Tasmania to Cradle Mountain and just do a day walk there - I am suggesting this because there is not much for people who are not rather able hikers to do at Coles Bay whereas in Strahan everyone can sit on a boat and go down the Wilderness which is really beautiful. Continue from Cradle Mountain in the afternoon to your next place of call - say Deloraine - night 7 at Deloraine because you can attack the cheese factory first thing in the morning then the Raspberry Farm. You do not say what time your flight out is because if you wanted to you could stay at Cradle Mountain overnight - depending on time of flight. The Launceston airport is south of the town and easy to get to from Longford and Deloraine - about 1/2hr - it is a very, very small airport so you will not need too much time around there leaving the car etc.
I know this does not fit in with your plans very much BUT I really think that this is better for everyone because of the fitness level needed in your plans. Coles Bay is nice but it is not really that special - the Three Sisters Beach on the North West is much better to my way of thinking and easier to get to as well. The West and Strahan is special and is part of the World Heritage listed areas - Queenstown too is special just to see what you should NOT do to the environment and to see what a contrast it makes. There is a lovely little steam train that goes from there which is worth a trip on if time allows.
I have suggested really good accommodation because at times I have not stayed with your 2 night plan BUT I have considered that in my accommodation ideas as the ones I have suggested are very, very relaxing and interesting, in the main.

samins

I just wanted to thank all of you for your great responses!! Especially about Tasmania....which to this point has been the area of most concern in terms of how to schedule. I think I have some great ideas, esp the village of Richmond as a base, and can make doing what we want work within the time we have.

Thanks so much!!!!