Very Early planning for Australia tour 2014
Jun 29th, 2013, 07:11 PM
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Very Early planning for Australia tour 2014
Leaving from the east coast of the US, planning 14 days in Australia, hope you can give us some helpful suggestions.
Plan 5 nights in Sydney. The first day, of course, will be jet lagged and planning no significant sightseeing that day. As for the rest of the time, plan to do as much as we can, including a day in the Blue Mountains. Looking at Russell House as a base for this.
Next, fly to Melbourne, try to get a flavour of the city in an afternoon/evening. Next AM, rent a car, drive to the Yarra Valley. See some vinyards, Stay overnight.
Next, the Great Ocean Road. Will plan 2 nights stay for this. Would it be preferable to have a base in one town for exploration, or stay in different towns? The plan would be to return to Melbourne late afternoon of the second day. This part of the trip requires your assistance. Ideally, would like to have a rental place in which to do some laundry if this makes sense here.
After the night in Melbourne, its on to Cairns for 4-5 days. GBR snorkeling, visiting the rain forest. And thanks to Songdoc, want to spend one night at Thala Beach Lodge. The last evening would be at an airport hotel prior to an early flight back East.
This is a long trip and an expensive one. Hope to have your input to make the most of it. Would love any lodging recommendations, sightseeing out of the ordinary, or any other suppestions.
Cheers,
Cheryl
Plan 5 nights in Sydney. The first day, of course, will be jet lagged and planning no significant sightseeing that day. As for the rest of the time, plan to do as much as we can, including a day in the Blue Mountains. Looking at Russell House as a base for this.
Next, fly to Melbourne, try to get a flavour of the city in an afternoon/evening. Next AM, rent a car, drive to the Yarra Valley. See some vinyards, Stay overnight.
Next, the Great Ocean Road. Will plan 2 nights stay for this. Would it be preferable to have a base in one town for exploration, or stay in different towns? The plan would be to return to Melbourne late afternoon of the second day. This part of the trip requires your assistance. Ideally, would like to have a rental place in which to do some laundry if this makes sense here.
After the night in Melbourne, its on to Cairns for 4-5 days. GBR snorkeling, visiting the rain forest. And thanks to Songdoc, want to spend one night at Thala Beach Lodge. The last evening would be at an airport hotel prior to an early flight back East.
This is a long trip and an expensive one. Hope to have your input to make the most of it. Would love any lodging recommendations, sightseeing out of the ordinary, or any other suppestions.
Cheers,
Cheryl
Jun 29th, 2013, 08:16 PM
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What time of year are you planning this trip? Because of the great distances between Cairns and Melbourne, they have very different weather patterns. When the weather is good in the north (Cairns), it may not be so good in the south (Melbourne) and vice versa. You might want to consider a shoulder season such as April or October.
Jun 30th, 2013, 12:33 AM
#3
I've never heard of "Russell House" in the Blue Mountains.
Could you post a link if you'd like comments, please?
Or, do you mean The Russell, a boutique hotel in The Rocks, Sydney? www.therussell.com.au
Your itinerary seems fine, but the month you're here and any specific likes/ dream activities/ sights will help us give you specific hints, tips and critiques.
Could you post a link if you'd like comments, please?
Or, do you mean The Russell, a boutique hotel in The Rocks, Sydney? www.therussell.com.au
Your itinerary seems fine, but the month you're here and any specific likes/ dream activities/ sights will help us give you specific hints, tips and critiques.
Jun 30th, 2013, 07:38 AM
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Sorry about the confusion, yes the Russell is the Sydney hotel. The plan is for October; will we be able to enjoy the sights in the South and still be able to snorkel on the GBR?
Any thoughts re: the Ocean Road portion of the trip and whether it is better to stay 2 nights in one spot or two different locations.
Our first trip, so all the tourist things are what interest us. Opera house, walk the bridge, the zoo, botanical gardens. We love Sonoma here in California, so really are looking forward to the Yarra Valley. Uluru was on the original plan, but we have put that aside.
While in the big cities, we love dining on local specialties, in outdoor settings if possible.
I have not yet contacted Qantas, but I am hopeful that they will be of help in mapping our flights.
Thanks again.
Any thoughts re: the Ocean Road portion of the trip and whether it is better to stay 2 nights in one spot or two different locations.
Our first trip, so all the tourist things are what interest us. Opera house, walk the bridge, the zoo, botanical gardens. We love Sonoma here in California, so really are looking forward to the Yarra Valley. Uluru was on the original plan, but we have put that aside.
While in the big cities, we love dining on local specialties, in outdoor settings if possible.
I have not yet contacted Qantas, but I am hopeful that they will be of help in mapping our flights.
Thanks again.
Jun 30th, 2013, 08:38 AM
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You might consider starting your trip with Cairns/Port Douglas which is what we did on our last trip to Australia. You can relax in a beach environment on your first day, thus preventing you from losing a day of sightseeing in Sydney due to jet lag. (You'd probably be doing a beach day in Cairns/Port Douglas anyway.) From Cairns, you could then fly to Melbourne and end your trip in Sydney (or vice versa, if you prefer.)
For the GOR portion of your trip, I would probably go from the Yarra Valley to Apollo Bay for one night. Then go to Warnambool for the second night. On the 3rd day, you could take the inland route back to Melbourne which I remember being a quicker drive than the GOR. Look for accommodations in a serviced apartment with a washer/dryer to take care of your laundry needs. We found such a place in Apollo Bay (which, unfortunately I can't recall) as well as the Quest Apartments in Melbourne.
Finally, if you intend to fly Qantas, they offer a Walkabout Air Pass which may give you a savings on the internal portions of your flights. It has to be booked in conjunction with your international flight. I believe that Virgin Australia offers a similar deal. You may also find that booking your international flight on another airline, e.g. Delta, United, Air New Zealand, etc. and then looking for deals on the internal flights will be cheaper. You just have to try a lot of combinations and crunch the numbers for yourself.
For the GOR portion of your trip, I would probably go from the Yarra Valley to Apollo Bay for one night. Then go to Warnambool for the second night. On the 3rd day, you could take the inland route back to Melbourne which I remember being a quicker drive than the GOR. Look for accommodations in a serviced apartment with a washer/dryer to take care of your laundry needs. We found such a place in Apollo Bay (which, unfortunately I can't recall) as well as the Quest Apartments in Melbourne.
Finally, if you intend to fly Qantas, they offer a Walkabout Air Pass which may give you a savings on the internal portions of your flights. It has to be booked in conjunction with your international flight. I believe that Virgin Australia offers a similar deal. You may also find that booking your international flight on another airline, e.g. Delta, United, Air New Zealand, etc. and then looking for deals on the internal flights will be cheaper. You just have to try a lot of combinations and crunch the numbers for yourself.
Jun 30th, 2013, 06:45 PM
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"Next, the Great Ocean Road."
You should find various threads around here discussing the GOR etc., but here's a recent one in case you missed it, in which I provided some ideas (which I won't repeat here) -
http://www.fodors.com/community/aust...-australia.cfm
The Yarra Valley is an hour or so drive from Melbourne. I'm not sure I would stay the night there but would be more inclined to stay in, say, Daylesford, as I suggested in the above thread (and visit the Yarra Valley as a separate, standalone day trip). The Yarra Valley and the GOR are on opposite sides of town, so it's not very convenient (and rather time-consuming, I would think) to get from one to the other. Part of the issue, of course, is always the problem of "so much to do, so little time..... You don't have much time in Melbourne itself - it really is one of the world's great cities and worth taking the time to explore.
As to where to go in the Yarra Valley, start the day with a coffee and cheese plate at the Yarra Valley Dairy, move on to Domaine Chandon and do the self-guided tour (remembering that there really isn't very much to actually *see* in a winery, at least for most of the year) and then try a tasting flight ($) of their sparkling wines. Visit the art museum at TarraWarra. Have lunch there or at Yering Station or De Bortoli or Tokar Estate. If time and interests permit, consider visiting the Healesville Sanctuary while you're in the area.
http://www.yvd.com.au
http://www.chandon.com
http://www.tarrawarra.com.au
http://twma.com.au
http://www.yering.com
http://www.zoo.org.au/healesville
As for Cairns/Port Douglas, stay in Palm Cove or Port Douglas (and/or the Thala Beach Lodge). Cairns itself has little to recommend it as a place to stay (and has no real beach). Again, there are probably quite a few threads around here discussing the issue of where to stay. Most people probably do the day trip to Kuranda (again discussed in various threads around here) and spend a day out on the reef. longhorn55's suggestion to head north first is probably a good idea, particularly if you fly into Brisbane. QF flies direct from DFW, gets into BNE early morning and you can be up in Cairns by lunchtime. An afternoon on the beach, a day out on the reef and a day at Kuranda etc. and you can get away with 3 nights, if time is tight.
http://www.kuranda.org
You should find various threads around here discussing the GOR etc., but here's a recent one in case you missed it, in which I provided some ideas (which I won't repeat here) -
http://www.fodors.com/community/aust...-australia.cfm
The Yarra Valley is an hour or so drive from Melbourne. I'm not sure I would stay the night there but would be more inclined to stay in, say, Daylesford, as I suggested in the above thread (and visit the Yarra Valley as a separate, standalone day trip). The Yarra Valley and the GOR are on opposite sides of town, so it's not very convenient (and rather time-consuming, I would think) to get from one to the other. Part of the issue, of course, is always the problem of "so much to do, so little time..... You don't have much time in Melbourne itself - it really is one of the world's great cities and worth taking the time to explore.
As to where to go in the Yarra Valley, start the day with a coffee and cheese plate at the Yarra Valley Dairy, move on to Domaine Chandon and do the self-guided tour (remembering that there really isn't very much to actually *see* in a winery, at least for most of the year) and then try a tasting flight ($) of their sparkling wines. Visit the art museum at TarraWarra. Have lunch there or at Yering Station or De Bortoli or Tokar Estate. If time and interests permit, consider visiting the Healesville Sanctuary while you're in the area.
http://www.yvd.com.au
http://www.chandon.com
http://www.tarrawarra.com.au
http://twma.com.au
http://www.yering.com
http://www.zoo.org.au/healesville
As for Cairns/Port Douglas, stay in Palm Cove or Port Douglas (and/or the Thala Beach Lodge). Cairns itself has little to recommend it as a place to stay (and has no real beach). Again, there are probably quite a few threads around here discussing the issue of where to stay. Most people probably do the day trip to Kuranda (again discussed in various threads around here) and spend a day out on the reef. longhorn55's suggestion to head north first is probably a good idea, particularly if you fly into Brisbane. QF flies direct from DFW, gets into BNE early morning and you can be up in Cairns by lunchtime. An afternoon on the beach, a day out on the reef and a day at Kuranda etc. and you can get away with 3 nights, if time is tight.
http://www.kuranda.org
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