Just returned from 3 weeks in OZ. Sydney-Perth-Alice-Uluru-Cairns-Dunk Island-Sydney. If I can help with some ?'s please ask. We had a great time, my son (13) REEEEALLLLY enjoyed the trip.

Hi!<BR><BR>We are going to Oz in mid Feb and we have booked most of our accomodation except at Ayres Rock. Which hotel did you stay at and what trips would you reccomend? We are there for 2 nights and 3 days. We were looking at getting an APT Uluru pass, what would you recommend?<BR><BR>

Ayers Rock--We stayed at the Desert Gardens in new room looking at the Rock. It was fine but if it were not for the view(which very few rooms have) it is ordinary. I would stay at the Sails if I had to do it again. I never saw the rooms but the hotel lobby, resturant, and bar was way more upscale.<BR> As far as the tours we took the evening viewing and morning climb to the top. The climb was closed to RAIN!! Just our luck....but the rain cascading(sp) down was beautiful. Only 3% of the tourist get to see all the water falls. To make up for the climb being canceled we took a 30 minute copter ride and this was a high light for my son but was pretty tense for me and his mom.<BR>IT IS VERY HOT THERE!!!! We enjoyed our stay but 2 days was plenty.

Hi!<BR><BR>Thanks for your reply. Bad luck about the rain. Did you go on The Sounds of Silence dinner - or do you know anybody that did? We are thinking of doing this but would like to know of anyone's experience, as it is quite expensive. Did you pay extra for the room with a view of the rock?<BR><BR>We desperatley wanted to go on a day trip to Kings Canyon, but our tour operator tells us that because of a road being closed, they are not doing day trips there!<BR><BR>Were mosquitoes an issue? If so did you take malaria tabs?<BR><BR>Thanks in advance,<BR><BR>Karen

We had reservations for S of S but it was canceled. I'm in the process of getting a refund. No mos. but the flies were annoying.<BR>I just asked for an up-grade due to the fact of my son being 13 and I needed more room. The young lady up=graded me at no charge. Matter of fact the Aussies were great about granting my up-grade request, most at no charge. They are the nicest people on the planet. We had room 346 at the Desert Gardens.

Any feedback on Dunk Island ?? Can't decide between Dunk and Lizard. We are a young couple with no kids, looking for a relaxing time, but would like some activities. Dunk seems like it has more activities than Lizard?? There is a big price difference between the two. Is Lizard that much more upscale ???

Dunk gets day trippers and Lizard does not. Also Lizard is larger and you can have a beach all to yourself. IT would be Lizard no 1 all the way.

HI! PLANNING A 2 WEEK TRIP TO AUS IN<BR>AUG. WITH WIFE. ANY SUGGESTIONS FOR TOURS AT ULURU STAYING THERE 2 DAYS AND REEF AND LAND TOURS AT CAIRNS HAVE ABOUT 4 DAYS AND BACK TO SYDNEY TO SEE FRIENDS. THANKS.

Re mosquitos and flies - we do not have malaria in Australia so no need for medication. Buy some RID (purple container) when you get here, it should keep biting insects away from you. After you've been here with the flies for a day or two, you'll know what the "Great Australian Salute" is!<BR>Kay

ttt

Will you please let me know your overall opinion of Dunk Island? Are the daytrippers problematic? In what way? How much could we expect to spend per day for lunch, snacks and drinks? Are the pools and beaches clean? Does the resort feel crowded??

Don't you just love people who ask " are the pools and beaches clean"?<BR>Where the hell do you think this is - the USA???????? Australians wrote the book on 'clean' and we are a lot cleaner than ANY USA place and certainly a lot cleaner than the UK. <BR>Please have a bit of consideration for us - to say "are they clean"? is rude and insulting at best and bloody ignorant at worst.

My apologies to Alan for the unintended insult to the Australian beaches. Perhaps all of the American tourists have littered the beaches by now.

I doubt that the beaches would remain littered ( even after others have been there who don't care to use bins as provided ) as we have regular clean ups and take pride in the fact that Australia is the cleanest place on earth. <BR>Third World we are NOT so please think before you write

Australia is extremely clean! In Donna's defense however, I don't think she meant any insult in asking if the pool and beaches were clean. If I hear that a place has lots of daytrippers, that is my first concern...not that the housekeeping is bad, but that the sheer number of people can be one step ahead of the cleaning crews. <BR>This is one of the reasons I don't recommend the villas we stayed at in Palm Cove...the pool was dirty and the hallways were full of litter from the big trees. Its no reflection on the Australians, just the proprietors of that hotel.

Re-reading my post, I don't mean to imply that daytrippers caused the litter that made me dislike our hotel. Somehow I didn't connect the two thoughts very well! <BR>I am not very picky about cleanliness when in third world countries, but when you are somewhere where standards are high, like Australia, you may notice smaller detractions.

To Monica - We've been to Dunk as day trippers. Generally day visitors are confined to a small part of the island. There didn't seem to be a lot to do there - certainly nothing we couldn't do on the mainland. Have you thought about going to Hamilton Island in the Whitsundays - more choices of accommodation and eating places, and more to do. Alternatively consider staying at Mission Beach (on the mainland opposite Dunk Island). Beautiful beach, pretty village atmosphere with two or three motels, some B&Bs, and several restaurants. You could visit Dunk for the day, take a trip to Paronella Park and still have the same beach/water activities you would have on the island.

John:<BR>We are in the process of planning a 4 week trip to Oz with our 2 children(Aged 10,12)for mid-July to mid-August.Our plans are similar to yours,except we will skip Perth and go to Darwin/Kakadu. What were the highlights for your son? What did you think of Dunk Island? More details would be appreciated. You can email me!<BR>Thanks!<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>

Hi John: My wife and I planning to visit Uluru and Cairns in August. Any suggestions as to what land day tours to take in both places or not to take.<BR>Also, any suggestions on a GBR tour and what can we expect to spend?