Australia, New Zealand & the South Pacific - 10 days in Aus. Sydney and ...

My wife and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary and plan to take a 10 day trip (sans kids) down under over the US Thanksgiving (late November). I have been to Sydney and really enjoyed it so I want to "introduce" my wife to the city.

Since we have 10 days I figured we could hit one more place (I hate living out of a suitcase) but was undecided where to go. I know the answer is always "depends on what you like" so here's a little bit about what we like:
1) Stay warm/good weather
2) Wine tourism/eat as many meals outdoors as possible
3) Active stuff, hiking, biking, etc.
4) Enjoy as much immersion as possible in another place/culture.... e.g. hangin' with the locals.

I'm always amazed by the knowledge on these boards, thanks in advance for your help.

mdc

With 10 days minus travel time to another location and time to adjust to jet lag, I would recommend just one other location beside Sydney and environs. First choice would be Cairns/Port Douglas/GBR/Cape Tribulation. Second choice would be the Gold Coast. Others may disagree with my picks, but this is what I would do, given your interests.

With only 10 days, I'd just stick around Sydney. Yes, you can go up to Far North Queensland or the Gold Coast, but I think there's enough to do in Sydney and surrounds for 10 days. IMHO, with travelling time to those places, you may spend a good portion of your holiday going to and from airports.

If you're more interested in a leisurely pace, I'd spend a few days in Sydney (especially if she hasn't been before). Then spend a couple of days in the Hunter Valley for your wines. After that, pop over to the Blue Mountains for some hiking to walk off your meals. :)

If you're more interested in a leisurely pace, I'd spend a few days in Sydney (especially if she hasn't been before). Then spend a couple of days in the Hunter Valley for your wines. After that, pop over to the Blue Mountains for some hiking to walk off your meals. :) Have to agree with the Blue Mountains comment. If you DO decide to pop up here, I am from Katoomba, so feel free to PM me with any queries.

Dave

I second the Hunter Valley/Blue Mountains suggestion. Not that much driving, covers your interests and is pretty. If you had more time I'd suggest Tasmania, but you can do 10 days down here without even trying, so save it for another trip!

I second the Hunter Valley/Blue Mountains suggestion. Not that much driving, covers your interests and is pretty. If you had more time I'd suggest Tasmania, but you can do 10 days down here without even trying, so save it for another trip!

Hijacking the thread a little, would Blue Mountain be doable even if I don't drive?

I'm trying to figure out what can we do in Sydney(no beaches or museums) for about 5 days.

My other option is to go on one of those travel's agencies tours for 10 days that includes Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane. (except the travelling is all on a bus, and I would need to fly back to melbourne instead of sydney from cairns)

I guess I should put in the vote for Melbourne ...... :)

Given the relatively limited time you have available, as has already been said, don't try to do too much. Sydney + one other place.

Do you want to go snorkelling on the Reef (http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/)? If so, it's Sydney + the Reef.

If not, then where to go? Forget the Gold Coast. Some of the residential parts are nice and if you want a quiet few days, there are some nice beaches - but if it's beaches you want, then go to the Reef. Surfers Paradise (the main part of the Gold Coast) is an over-built concrete jungle that I personally wouldn't recommend to anyone (particularly a couple celebrating their 20th anniversary).

Sydney has the glitz and the glamour, the Bridge (http://www.bridgeclimb.com/), the Opera House and the Harbour - but Melbourne has everything else. If you want the gourmet, shopping, cultural, sporting capital of Australia, that's Melbourne. (http://www.visitmelbourne.com/)

Tasmania would be superb but, as has already been said, you don't really have time for it. Melbourne can offer you superb dining and can easily match many of Sydney's attractions, including wineries in the Yarra Valley (an hour's drive) and, of course, the incomparable Great Ocean Road. (http://www.greatoceanrd.org.au/)

To turn the tables, would you recommend a visitor go to LA or San Francisco? If you're an LA-sort of person, then Sydney's for you but if you're a San Francisco-sort of person, then Melbourne's the place.

If you don't want to go to the Reef, then come to Melbourne. Spend a couple of days in town, visit the Yarra valley if you didn't make it to the Hunter in Sydney and take a couple of days to go down the GOR (http://www.greatoceanrd.org.au/Brand.aspx?homepageid=36&brandid=28). If you like hiking, then you may enjoy doing part of the Great Ocean Walk (http://www.greatoceanrd.org.au/Brand.aspx?brandid=12&homepageid=36).

Hijacking the thread a little, would Blue Mountain be doable even if I don't drive? Absolutely - great public transport to get you up here, and then use the Explorer buses to get yourself around.

Dave

Good thoughts... A few follow ups:

1) Based on the feedback I'm thinking maybe an extra day or so makes a 2nd destination more viable.

2) tt7... Would love to do Melbourne as the primary city (since I've never been there) but I know some people in Sydney so that "half" of the trip is non-negotiable. I was thinking SYD and MEL only might be too much pure city? Not sure.

3) If we did GBR, what is the best: (a) way to get there (e.g. I'm thinking open jaw LAX-SYD one way SYD-Brisbane and then return from Brisbane?) (b) place to stay for GBR focused activities. I know a bit about NSW but nothing about Queensland.

4) What is the general "vibe" in visiting the Gold Coast? What's that area about?

Thanks again,

mdc

3) If we did GBR, what is the best: (a) way to get there (e.g. I'm thinking open jaw LAX-SYD one way SYD-Brisbane and then return from Brisbane?) (b) place to stay for GBR focused activities. I know a bit about NSW but nothing about Queensland.
You need to fly to Cairns (CNS). You can do that from any major (Australian) city, so depending on how you ticket the trip, you could just go SYD-CNS-SYD - no particular reason to fly back out of BNE unless you particularly want to go there or the flights are cheaper/more convenient etc. (CNS-BNE is 862 miles, CNS-SYD 1,222 miles, so about an extra hour on the plane).

There are probably any number of threads in this forum on the Reef so I would work your way through those, if you haven't already. Most people would probably opt to stay in Palm Cove (http://www.palmcove.net/) (about 25 minutes north of Cairns) or Port Douglas (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Douglas,_Queensland) (about an hour north), rather than Cairns itself. If bars, clubs and McDonalds are your thing, then stay in Cairns, otherwise go to Palm Cove or Port Douglas. Although most (though not all) reef trips depart from Cairns, all the hotels (up the coast) are geared up to arrange transport to/from Cairns for reef trips. Some other trips (e.g., visiting Kuranda (http://www.kuranda.org/)) are easier done from Palm Cove.

4) What is the general "vibe" in visiting the Gold Coast? What's that area about?The Gold Coast is about an hour's drive south of Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast about an hour or two north.

Question - would you want to go to the place that all the high school and college kids go to for Spring Break? Here, that's called "Schoolies Week" (http://www.schoolies.com/2009/) and if that's your sort of thing, then your timing is perfect, as Schoolie's Week is November 21 - December 13, 2009 (a bit more than a week, I know). The school year here runs on a calendar year basis (as the summer holiday is over Christmas so that's the end of the school year) so that's when all the school-leavers 'celebrate'. The Gold Coast (and Surfers Paradise) will be Party Central, full of drunken kids falling off hotel balconys.

4) What is the general "vibe" in visiting the Gold Coast? What's that area about?


It's sort of like Panama City FL meets Miami. I think at its heart it is still a small town just with a lot of high rises. Most of the GC is fairly tacky but there are some nice parts like Southport and Sanctuary Cove.

There are some great golf courses up there if that's your thing.

I don't mind the GC for a weekend. But as an international visitor with 10 days I would put it a long long way down my list.

My wife and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary and plan to take a 10 day trip (sans kids) down under over the US Thanksgiving (late November). I have been to Sydney and really enjoyed it so I want to "introduce" my wife to the city.

Since we have 10 days I figured we could hit one more place (I hate living out of a suitcase) but was undecided where to go. I know the answer is always "depends on what you like" so here's a little bit about what we like:
1) Stay warm/good weather
2) Wine tourism/eat as many meals outdoors as possible
3) Active stuff, hiking, biking, etc.
4) Enjoy as much immersion as possible in another place/culture.... e.g. hangin' with the locals.

I'm always amazed by the knowledge on these boards, thanks in advance for your help.

mdc

From the 4 points you include as what you are into I would say to base yourself at SYD and do a couple of overnight trips. One to the Blue Mountains and one to the Hunter Valley.

1. Further north you go the warmer it will get. SYD weather is magic at that time of year (normally) and as MEL is further south of SYD it is generally a cooler climate.
2. Wine tourism - well if you are planning to spend your time in SYD then the Hunter Valley is where you want to be for this. Stacks of nice B&B's along with big name hotel chains (Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley springs to mind) and a huge variety of wines and outdoor eating/entertainment.
3. As others have said the Blue Mountains is where you want to be for this. Easy to get to from SYD and again many nice B&B's to stay overnight. Hiking/walking/biking - you have it all there. You also have a local who would be able to direct you towards all the "right" places... good on ya Dave! :)
4. This can be interperated a few different ways. If you are looking for some true aboriginal heritage then you are not in the best place in SYD. However if you are looking to drink beer, eat snags, throw shrimps on the bbq, etc then this is done pretty much everywhere you choose to go.

:D

Another question for those Sydney people that seemed to be in this in thread. I have 5 people coming to Sydney, do the normal taxis at sydney airport accommodate only 4? :( I also need to figure out what are the cheapest places to stay for a group of 5... everyone including the self catered apartments seemed maxed out at 4. If anyone has any suggestions that'll be great, but I mainly just want to know about the taxi thing because that's been bugging me. Haha.

You need a van taxi. They accomodate 7 and are priced the same as the regular taxis (which are limited to 4 pax, though only 3 are comfortable generally). The type of car is not standardized and some taxis are a lot bigger than others. Normally there are van taxis at the airport at all times, just ask the dispatcher if there isn't one at the curb (the van taxis also have a wheelchair lift).

As for 5 in a single room/suite, you will need to rent a 2BR suite, that is spec'ed to sleep 6. But that is likely to cost more than renting 2 rooms (which are spec'ed to sleep 3 each). It all depends on what hotel or short-stay serviced apt (actually most serviced apts such as Medina don't offer 2BR, they only have 1BR suites). In any case it is trivially easy to arrange this so you won't have any problems except it may cost more than you wanted to pay.

You need a van taxi. They accomodate 7 and are priced the same as the regular taxis (which are limited to 4 pax, though only 3 are comfortable generally). The type of car is not standardized and some taxis are a lot bigger than others. Normally there are van taxis at the airport at all times, just ask the dispatcher if there isn't one at the curb (the van taxis also have a wheelchair lift).


The station wagon taxis have a bench across the front and can take 5 people.

The station wagon taxis have a bench across the front and can take 5 people.But not their luggage! Presumably there will be at least 5 suitcases. Many taxis in Australia are CNG powered, which means half of the baggage space is taken by the CNG tank.

But not their luggage! Presumably there will be at least 5 suitcases. Many taxis in Australia are CNG powered, which means half of the baggage space is taken by the CNG tank.

I've got a friend who has an LPG powered Ford Falcon stationwagon and he gets an enormous amount of stuff in his boot. So I would say 5 mid size suitcases would fit...tightly

The station wagon taxis have a bench across the front and can take 5 people.

I believe those are now all decommissioned, or have you seen one recently?

The station wagon taxis have a bench across the front and can take 5 people. Not true - in NSW, metropolitan taxis cannot be any older than 6 years 6 months from the date on the compliance plate, meaning that (currently) the earliest a current Sydney cab could have been manufactured is November 2002. Australian Design Rules requiring all seat belts to be lap-sash (rather than lap only) were introduced prior to this date. As yet, no vehicle manufacturer has built a sedan with a bench seat in the front, due to difficulties with the anchoring points for the middle lap-sash seat belt.

Dave

Not true - in NSW, metropolitan taxis cannot be any older than 6 years 6 months from the date on the compliance plate, meaning that (currently) the earliest a current Sydney cab could have been manufactured is November 2002. Australian Design Rules requiring all seat belts to be lap-sash (rather than lap only) were introduced prior to this date. As yet, no vehicle manufacturer has built a sedan with a bench seat in the front, due to difficulties with the anchoring points for the middle lap-sash seat belt.

Dave

Fair enough. I haven't ridden in a station wagon taxi since I got back from London so I guess at the earliest, the last time I rode in one would have been early 2006.

You need a van taxi. They accomodate 7 and are priced the same as the regular taxis (which are limited to 4 pax, though only 3 are comfortable generally).

Locally known as a maxi taxi. The taxi guy at the airport will be able to organise one for your party of 5. Head for the taxi rank and once your party gets tothe front just ask the guy for a maxi taxi and he'll organise one (if there is not already one there).

Have to agree with the Blue Mountains comment. If you DO decide to pop up here, I am from Katoomba, so feel free to PM me with any queries.

Dave

Are the Blue Mountains a Sydney day trip activity or would it be better served as an overnight trip?

I am planning a vacation in June/July for the family and just trying to figure out if we should make an overnight of the Blue Mountains.

Thanks,

Onedog

thadocta- We are visiting SYD in July for 5 days; what is Blue Mts. weather and visibility then? If there is likely to be both poor and clear days, we may hold off booking til we arrive and see the forecast...does that make sense or should we reserve a tour now?

OP- My teen and I will visit CNS and there is a bewildering array of GBR tours. The other 180 degrees of the compass surrounding CNS is World Heritage quality rainforest and there are almost as many choices of tours there ! Several companies offer mountain bike tours. Suggest www.tripadvisor.com for reviews of hotels and tours. All the reef and rainforest tours operate out of CNS or Port Douglas and pick up at hotels if you don't want a rental car.

November is the hot/humid/rainy season in CNS. Also it's stinger season so read up on that.

Airfares along the east coast are as competitive as fares along either coast of the US. The carriers to look at are QF, JQ, and DJ. Get onto each of their Australia web area for fare specials. DJ runs a "happy hour" 1200-1300 SYD time which is 1900-2000 California (PDT) time. For quick review of available hotels, cars, and flights I like www.lastminute.com.au but you can usually do just as well or better booking directly through the supplier.

thadocta- We are visiting SYD in July for 5 days; what is Blue Mts. weather and visibility then? If there is likely to be both poor and clear days, we may hold off booking til we arrive and see the forecast...does that make sense or should we reserve a tour now? I would be waiting until you got here and checking the forecast - it can be absolutely perfect one day, horrible and miserable the next, then back to perfect on the third day (or even on the afternoon of the second day).

Are the Blue Mountains a Sydney day trip activity or would it be better served as an overnight trip?

I am planning a vacation in June/July for the family and just trying to figure out if we should make an overnight of the Blue Mountains. Hi onedog, I will be responding to your PM later today (I just got home from work, and have other things to do at the moment), but I would encourage a two day trip rather than a day trip, the reason being travel times.

Whilst I always encourage using the train (you see so much more when you don't have to concentrate on traffic), it IS two hours each way (if basing oneself in Katoomba), meaning four hours for the round trip, which doesn't really give you a lot of time once you get here before you have to start thinking about heading back.

Dave

The original post to this thread mentioned that the taveler was planning 10 days in Oz. Lucky him. One item often overlooked, but spectacularly wonderful is the Savannahlander train service out of Cairns.

I had the pleasure of riding this little two car train a couple of years back and miss it everyday. This train makes stops along the way and you get to meet people and places you would never experience by any other means in your entire life.

See www.savannahlander.com.au

In November it will be warm-to-hot, but the "cool" thing is, on this train, especially in November, you may just be the ONLY rider on it.

Enjoy:)

With 10 days minus travel time to another location and time to adjust to jet lag, I would recommend just one other location beside Sydney and environs. First choice would be Cairns/Port Douglas/GBR/Cape Tribulation. Second choice would be the Gold Coast. Others may disagree with my picks, but this is what I would do, given your interests.

I would second the first choice. I wouldn't second the second choice though, and would suggest Sunshine Coast instead. The touristy part of the Gold Coast (i.e. Surfers Paradise) is tacky beyond belief.

... The touristy part of the Gold Coast (i.e. Surfers Paradise) is tacky beyond belief.Some people like tacky. Some very popular tourist destinations around the world are also this way (tacky beyond belief).

Personally I am quite sad at how Surfers was raped and tackified. But money talks.

Hey!
What did you end up deciding on doing?
I'm from Sydney and happy to give advice on places to go, things to do etc.
Cheers,
Speedyy

My wife and I are celebrating our 20th anniversary and plan to take a 10 day trip (sans kids) down under over the US Thanksgiving (late November). I have been to Sydney and really enjoyed it so I want to "introduce" my wife to the city.

4) Enjoy as much immersion as possible in another place/culture.... e.g. hangin' with the locals.
mdc

Now in 2004 my wife and I did a 30th anniversary trip back to CA for 8 days doing Disneyland, Las Vegas & Phoenix.

Being parochial I say make the Gold Coast your other port of call and we can have a few beers together. Surfers Paradise is not as tacky as reported yet the rest of the Gold Coast has a lot to offer.

We were looking for very similar information.

Except we are spending 14 nights once we land in Australia. But since we are flying from California (14+ hours), 10 days would just not cut it. I'm not sure how many days it will take us to get acclimated--hoping not too many.

This is what we've decided so far.

We land in Sydney @ 7:00 a.m. on Oct 30th. We are not even going to leave the airport (other than to get to the domestic terminal!). We have to go through customers/immigration, gets bags, the whole nine yards. We'll be a bit rummy--need to brush teeth, wash up a bit (who knows where)...but we fly over to Brisbane @ 11:00 a.m. It is just a 90 minute jaunt over to Brisbane (I was leaning toward Melbourne, but hubby won and we are going to Brisbane instead).

Land in Brisbane airport around 12:30 p.m. Get taxi to Marriott Brisbane. Get car at Hertz (very close to Marriott....less than a mile away!) on November 1. Drive all over the place, I'm sure (hubby loves to drive), do a few day trips. Stay 6 nights/and get up on 7th morning and drive car to Sydney.

We plan on spending the next 3 nights driving on the Gold Coast...taking our time and ending up in Sydney on day 4. We'll drop the car off on the day we get into Sydney, on November 8th. Spend 5 nights at the Sydney Marriott Circular Quay. Return to San Francisco Airport on November 13th.

Although I am still working out the accomodations for the 3 nights on the road from Brisbane to Sydney, the Marriott has been booked for Sydney and Brisbane.

We typically don't like to stop and do one-nighters, but given the amount of land we are covering, hubby has conceded to take 4 days to get to Sydney. I would like to stop every 4 hours or so (I believe the trip takes just over 12) and spend the night somewhere really cool, but again, I'm still working out those details.

In Sydney, we are definitely taking a ferry over to the Lone Pine Koala sanctuary....and I believe we can take a day trip from Brisbane to Steve Irwin's Zoo....we are animal fanatics so we won't be able to see enough animals!!! We'll miss the Barrier Reef, but you just can't do everything and something has to give.

Any suggestions or really cool stops along the route from Brisbane to Sydney are very much appreciated!!!

Dawn

This is what we've decided so far.

Land in Brisbane airport around 12:30 p.m. Get taxi to Marriott Brisbane. Get car at Hertz (very close to Marriott....less than a mile away!) on November 1. Drive all over the place, I'm sure (hubby loves to drive), do a few day trips. Stay 6 nights/and get up on 7th morning and drive car to Sydney.

If I understand you correctly, don't even think about driving (on the left side of the road) your first day. Coming from California, you will have major jet lag and your perception and judgment will be impaired.

If I understand you correctly, don't even think about driving (on the left side of the road) your first day. Coming from California, you will have major jet lag and your perception and judgment will be impaired.

Absolutey agree....that's why I said we were getting a taxi to the Marriott and then on Nov 1 (land in Brisbane on 10/30 @ 12:30 p.m.). So we'll have two days before we go and get our rental car.

I wish you would post this on the other link for the couple that is doing the 14 days in September (back to back itinerary). I think it would be most useful if he read this as well.

But I couldn't agree more. We went to Barbados in February for two weeks and we did get our car right out of the airport. The flight and time difference was no where near as exteme as Australia, but even so, you are still kind of rummy and it does take a considerable amount of concentration to drive on the other side of the road. My husband has driven many places on the opposite side of the road--but there is something to be said for not doing it after a 14 hour flight and the very first day you land and have not yet acclamated!!!

Thanks....

Dawn

(I was leaning toward Melbourne, but hubby won and we are going to Brisbane instead).Why does he want to go to Brisbane rather than Melbourne? Brisbane is nice (I lived there for 2 years) but I would take Melbourne any time over Brisbane. I'm curious as to why he would pick Brisbane over Melbourne.

We plan on spending the next 3 nights driving on the Gold Coast...taking our time and ending up in Sydney on day 4.
No comment! Drive the Gold Coast? Let's see - shall I drive the Gold Coast or the Great Ocean Road (http://www.greatoceanrd.org.au/)? To parody someone else's comment in a recent thread - "decisions, decisions - a weekend in San Francisco or in Fresno?"

In Sydney, we are definitely taking a ferry over to the Lone Pine Koala sanctuary....In Sydney, take the ferry (from Circular Quay) to Taronga Zoo. Don't try to take the ferry to Lone Pine .... but you might want to drive there when you're in Brisbane. :)

[Edited to add] Now, if you came to Melbourne, you could visit the Healesville Sanctuary (http://www.zoo.org.au/HealesvilleSanctuary) - combine that with a visit to the Yarra Valley and you've got a nice day out (though if you're from Roseville, wineries may be the last thing you want).

P.S. Not matter what you do, you'll have a great time .... some of us are just a bit biased about where to go and what to do.

Land in Brisbane airport around 12:30 p.m. Get taxi to Marriott Brisbane. Get car at Hertz (very close to Marriott....less than a mile away!) on November 1. Drive all over the place, I'm sure (hubby loves to drive), do a few day trips. Stay 6 nights/and get up on 7th morning and drive car to Sydney.



Am I understanding correctly, six nights in Brisbane?:eek:

You're going to be bored out of your mind by day 4. Brisbane is nice, it feels like a big country town, but 6 nights? Have you actually planned anything to do while you're there?

Why does he want to go to Brisbane rather than Melbourne? Brisbane is nice (I lived there for 2 years) but I would take Melbourne any time over Brisbane. I'm curious as to why he would pick Brisbane over Melbourne.

No comment! Drive the Gold Coast? Let's see - shall I drive the Gold Coast or the Great Ocean Road (http://www.greatoceanrd.org.au/)? To parody someone else's comment in a recent thread - "decisions, decisions - a weekend in San Francisco or in Fresno?"

In Sydney, take the ferry (from Circular Quay) to Taronga Zoo. Don't try to take the ferry to Lone Pine .... but you might want to drive there when you're in Brisbane. :)

[Edited to add] Now, if you came to Melbourne, you could visit the Healesville Sanctuary (http://www.zoo.org.au/HealesvilleSanctuary) - combine that with a visit to the Yarra Valley and you've got a nice day out (though if you're from Roseville, wineries may be the last thing you want).

P.S. Not matter what you do, you'll have a great time .... some of us are just a bit biased about where to go and what to do.


I'm still working out all the kinks and just learning about the cities/routes, etc., so let me try to sort some of this out.

I do mean the Great Ocean Road. We are going to visit the Gold Coast, but only on our way to Yamba (I believe...or Byron's Bay...and then over to Coff's _____--I'm still working on this part of the trip). I know we are driving to Sydney from Brisbane and I know the route is approx 12 hours long, but I am still working out the specifics....where to visit, spend the night, etc. But I know that we are going to visit the Gold Coast, on our way to Sydney. I didn't mean to say we are driving to Sydney via the Gold Coast.

Also, I can't remember if it was Sydney or Brisbane that you take the ferry to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. Figuring out what we are actually going to do is still a work in progress. I'm still working on the flights (just completed the flight from Sydney to Brisbane)....the one way rental car (trying to find out which is best in a country we've never been), how many days here--how many days there--all with the kindness of strangers, which I might add is life saving, but the actual tours and such, well, they are just visions of things we've read here or there.

The six nights in Brisbane does seem to be a bit overkill. But remember, and maybe leaving one airport at 11:00 p.m. on a Wednesday night, arriving your destination airport two days later at 7:00 a.m. in the morning doesn't affect you, but it will take a toll on us. We both work full time still so "every day is NOT a Saturday" at this point in our life. We'll work full time the same day we fly out of SFO, believe it or not.

So I'm not expecting great things out of either of us the first day or so. We will need a little time to get used to the time--not to mention zero sleep. We are still relatively "young," but this really does take some time for us. We flew to Ireland a few years ago....landed about 10:30 a.m. Went to hotel just to freshen up, take a little "power nap," and woke up the next day in the afternoon! Say what? We couldn't believe it. But when you put your body through something like that, for us, it takes a day or so to really be able to get all the "rummy" out. I'm in awe of people that can just go from one country to another, absolutely no sleep whatsoever, a gazillion time changes, and they are fine. Unfortunately, that's not us.

Also, we will have a car for a majority of the time in Brisbane. Knowing my husband, we'll be driving somewhere every single day. He loves to explore and he knows that we will not be exploring (in our own car) in Sydney. I don't know why he chose Brisbane over Melbourne--no clue. But it is give and take and he really wanted to go to Brisbane. I think he works with a guy that lived in Australia for a few years and he seems to respect this man's opinion. Who knows.

Any suggestions on "must sees" or "must stays" on our way to Sydney would be appreciated.

Dawn

I'm still working out all the kinks and just learning about the cities/routes, etc., so let me try to sort some of this out.

I do mean the Great Ocean Road. We are going to visit the Gold Coast, but only on our way to Yamba (I believe...or Byron's Bay...and then over to Coff's _____--I'm still working on this part of the trip). I know we are driving to Sydney from Brisbane and I know the route is approx 12 hours long, but I am still working out the specifics....where to visit, spend the night, etc. But I know that we are going to visit the Gold Coast, on our way to Sydney. I didn't mean to say we are driving to Sydney via the Gold Coast.

Me thinks you may need to do a little more research. The Great Ocean Road is west of Melbourne in the far South of continental Australia. You'll be mid way up the East Coast of Australia, about 2000kms (1200 miles) from the GOR.

Also, I can't remember if it was Sydney or Brisbane that you take the ferry to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary.

I don't believe there is ferry to Lone Pine, but the ferry to Taronga Zoo in Sydney is very nice.;)


The six nights in Brisbane does seem to be a bit overkill. But remember, and maybe leaving one airport at 11:00 p.m. on a Wednesday night, arriving your destination airport two days later at 7:00 a.m. in the morning doesn't affect you, but it will take a toll on us. We both work full time still so "every day is NOT a Saturday" at this point in our life. We'll work full time the same day we fly out of SFO, believe it or not.

The time difference between the East Coast of Australia and the West Coast of the US is 7 hours. It's really not that bad. The flight time isn't excessive either, although it is long, think of it more than you're leaving the US at 5pm Sydney time and arrive the next morning at 730am, 14 hours. However you dress it, I really don't think there is enough in Brisbane to warrant 6 days. Most of the things to do are either north or south of Brisbane (Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast) in which case you'd be better off staying in either of those areas than in Brisbane.

Agree with all what bensyd said...

I'm confused as to which road you actually want to drive. (I actually started replying, but bensyd beat me to it.)

Typically:

Pacific Hwy = Brisbane to Sydney
Great Ocean Road = Melbourne and the state of Victoria

Also as bensyd said, don't worry too much about the flight. OK, jetlag affects everyone differently, but in practical terms, the difference is only ~6 hours but a day ahead (I think the US are finishing daylight saving, whereas SYD/NSW would have started theirs, but BNE doesn't have daylight saving at all). Don't think of it as 'WOW! It's 18 hours!" But you've done plenty of travel, you know how you operate best.

Any suggestions on "must sees" or "must stays" on our way to Sydney would be appreciated.I'm not sure there are any but maybe others can suggest some. (Yes, there are some but, to be honest, it would never even occur to me to suggest to someone visiting Australia that they should "drive from Brisbane to Sydney").

As far as driving is concerned, one thing to remember is that although Australia has good roads (assuming you're not headed for Woop Woop or beyond the Black Stump), the roads are nothing like the inter-state highway system you're used to at home. The Gold Coast (Surfers Paradise and its environs) is about an hour or an hour and a half south of Brisbane. It used to be a single carriageway a lot of the way but it went through a major upgrade about 10 years ago and now its 3 lanes (in each direction) most of the way, going down to two later on. However, once you get well south of the Gold Coast (all the way to Sydney), I've no idea what the road is like. Others can probably advise but I would anticipate a rather long, boring drive.

It would probably be much quicker and easier to drive to Lone Pine, rather than take the ferry. It's in the Brisbane suburbs and not very far from downtown. If you want to go for a ferry ride in Brisbane, just ride the CityCat (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CityCat) up and down the river for an hour.

Sydney is certainly the "must see, must do" city for visitors to Australia. However, most visitors - if they want a second city - would opt for Melbourne, where there is far more to see and do than Brisbane. Sydney has the glitz and the glamour (the Bridge, the Opera House, the harbor etc.) but Melbourne has everything else - it's the sporting, fashion, shopping, culture, dining, cafe capital of Australia. Although it doesn't have many of those "must see" attractions that Sydney has, it's just a great city to wander round and explore. Six days here would not be a problem - spend 2 or 3 days wandering the city, a day trip out to the Yarra Valley and a couple of days on the Great Ocean Road and your time's up.

Brisbane is a nice city but I wouldn't recommend 6 nights there and I certainly wouldn't spend time driving from Brisbane to Sydney.

Edited to add:
The most obvious place south of the Gold Coast that comes to mind is Byron Bay (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byron_Bay,_New_South_Wales) where, if nothing else, you can visit the most easterly point of Australia. You can probably get there in a couple of hours from Brisbane. A bit inland from there there's Nimbin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nimbin,_New_South_Wales), an interesting place for a view of an 'alternative' lifestyle you thought was long gone ....

I'm not sure there are any but maybe others can suggest some. (Yes, there are some but, to be honest, it would never even occur to me to suggest to someone visiting Australia that they should "drive from Brisbane to Sydney").

As far as driving is concerned, one thing to remember is that although Australia has good roads (assuming you're not headed for Woop Woop or beyond the Black Stump), the roads are nothing like the inter-state highway system you're used to at home. The Gold Coast (Surfers Paradise and its environs) is about an hour or an hour and a half south of Brisbane. It used to be a single carriageway a lot of the way but it went through a major upgrade about 10 years ago and now its 3 lanes (in each direction) most of the way, going down to two later on. However, once you get well south of the Gold Coast (all the way to Sydney), I've no idea what the road is like. Others can probably advise but I would anticipate a rather long, boring drive.

It would probably be much quicker and easier to drive to Lone Pine, rather than take the ferry. It's in the Brisbane suburbs and not very far from downtown. If you want to go for a ferry ride in Brisbane, just ride the CityCat (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CityCat) up and down the river for an hour.

Sydney is certainly the "must see, must do" city for visitors to Australia. However, most visitors - if they want a second city - would opt for Melbourne, where there is far more to see and do than Brisbane. Sydney has the glitz and the glamour (the Bridge, the Opera House, the harbor etc.) but Melbourne has everything else - it's the sporting, fashion, shopping, culture, dining, cafe capital of Australia. Although it doesn't have many of those "must see" attractions that Sydney has, it's just a great city to wander round and explore. Six days here would not be a problem - spend 2 or 3 days wandering the city, a day trip out to the Yarra Valley and a couple of days on the Great Ocean Road and your time's up.

Brisbane is a nice city but I wouldn't recommend 6 nights there and I certainly wouldn't spend time driving from Brisbane to Sydney.

Edited to add:
The most obvious place south of the Gold Coast that comes to mind is Byron Bay (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byron_Bay,_New_South_Wales) where, if nothing else, you can visit the most easterly point of Australia. You can probably get there in a couple of hours from Brisbane. A bit inland from there there's Nimbin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nimbin,_New_South_Wales), an interesting place for a view of an 'alternative' lifestyle you thought was long gone ....


Yah, I obviously need to do more research, for sure. I have another vacation in August and my attention has been going to that.

I'm going to try and see if I can get my husband to agree to go to Melbourne instead of Brisbane. I booked a Quantas flight, two one way tickets, and who knows, maybe a small charge will allow me to change to Melbourne.

I wanted to go to Melbourne all along....argh....I think there may be a $50 change ticket price, but so what. If it makes that big of a difference, it will be money well spent.

We can get a car and drive to Sydney from Melbourne instead of Brisbane to Sydney.

This is why I love these boards so much. Just wish I hadn't booked the flight to Brisbane. Worst case scenario I'll lose $144 for the two one way tickets.

Thanks again.

Dawn

Yah, I obviously need to do more research, for sure. I have another vacation in August and my attention has been going to that.

I'm going to try and see if I can get my husband to agree to go to Melbourne instead of Brisbane. I booked a Quantas flight, two one way tickets, and who knows, maybe a small charge will allow me to change to Melbourne. With Qantas (no 'u'), you cancel the tickets and the value is placed on hold. You then use the value as part payment towards a new ticket, paying the difference in fare plus the change fee. You just have to do it before the date of travel, and you can't use the credit to travel on the same day you are booking. Pretty civilised, really.

I would also vouch for Melbourne over Brisbane - I have lived in all three, and I love Melbourne - efficient public transport, and lots of nice pokey little places where you can lose yourself and have a good time.

Brisbane is, essentially, a big country town.

Dave

With Qantas (no 'u'), you cancel the tickets and the value is placed on hold. You then use the value as part payment towards a new ticket, paying the difference in fare plus the change fee. You just have to do it before the date of travel, and you can't use the credit to travel on the same day you are booking. Pretty civilised, really.

I would also vouch for Melbourne over Brisbane - I have lived in all three, and I love Melbourne - efficient public transport, and lots of nice pokey little places where you can lose yourself and have a good time.

Brisbane is, essentially, a big country town.

Dave

I wonder what the change fee is on a 79$ ticket! Ha!

Oh well....in the scheme of things, whatever it is--it would be a small price to pay.

Thanks.

Dawn

We can get a car and drive to Sydney from Melbourne instead of Brisbane to Sydney.I really don't understand this (your husband's?) fixation with driving. Why would you want to drive from Melbourne to Sydney? There's not a lot on the way and I suspect it's even more boring than the drive from Brisbane to Sydney. You have limited time available to you so I would have thought that getting from A to B as quickly as possible was paramount. Fly!

I wouldn't give up on Brisbane but maybe just cut back the time somewhat. From your earlier post, you indicated you had 14 nights here. You can do 3 or 4 nights in Brisbane, 5 or 6 nights in the Melbourne area and 5 or 6 nights in Sydney without overdoing it.

For most people coming to Australia there are probably 5 main areas of interest -
1. the cities
2. the beaches, including the Great Barrier Reef
3. Uluru
4. the country, outback etc. etc.
5. Tasmania

It appears that you have decided against the Great Barrier Reef and Uluru. Tasmania probably requires more time than you have available (if you want multiple cities as well).

For beaches (where you're going), you have the Sunshine Coast (around Noosa), about 2 hours north of Brisbane or the Gold Coast, about an hour+ south of Brisbane. Note that earlier you alluded to 'driving the Gold Coast' to Sydney but the Gold Coast really only extends about 20-30 miles north and south of Surfers Paradise. Melbourne is not really a 'beach' city. In Sydney, you have Bondi, Manly etc.

Australia Zoo is at Beerwah, about half way to Noosa. You could visit Australia Zoo on the way to spending a night in Noosa (stay at the Sheraton on Hastings Street) and then back to Brisbane the following day. Seeing the Gold Coast (Surfers Paradise etc., down to Byron Bay, over to Nimbin and back to Brisbane) could be done in a day, albeit a somewhat long one. A day or so in Brisbane to wander round (doesn't take long in Brisbane), go to Lone Pine and ride the CityCat and then it's time to move on.

Assuming you want to end up in Sydney, I would then fly to Melbourne (and then fly Melbourne to Sydney - forget all this driving). As mentioned earlier, 2 or 3 days in Melbourne, a trip to the Yarra Valley and a couple of days down the Great Ocean Road (so husband can get his driving in) and it's time to go to Sydney. You do not want or need a car in Melbourne. You need it for the Yarra Valley - but then you may want to cut that out, anyway - you have Napa and Sonoma on your doorstep so wineries may not be on the itinerary and Healesville Sanctuary isn't necessary if you go to Australia Zoo and Lone Pine (and to Taronga Zoo in Sydney). You obviously need a car to drive the Great Ocean Road and need at least a couple of days for that.

Fly to Sydney. Take the ferry to Manly. Climb the Bridge. Take the ferry to Taronga Zoo. Take the Red and Blue Explorer buses. Wander round Circular Quay, the Opera House, the Rocks, over to Darling Harbour, down to Chinatown, round the Botanic Gardens etc. etc. Drive to the Blue Mountains.

Day 1 Arrive in Brisbane
Day 2 Tour Brisbane, visit Lone Pine, ride the CityCat
Day 3 Visit the Gold Coast
Day 4 Visit Australia Zoo, stay in Noosa
Day 5 Drive back to Brisbane, fly to Melbourne
Day 6 Tour Melbourne
Day 7 Great Ocean Road
Day 8 Great Ocean Road (back to Melbourne to stay)
Day 9 Tour Melbourne
Day 10 Fly to Sydney, tour Sydney
Day 11 Sydney
Day 12 Sydney
Day 13 Sydney
Day 14 Sydney
Day 15 Fly home

Brisbane/Sydney/Melbourne flights are frequent - about every hour during the day. A few hours in the morning in Noosa, drive a couple of hours back to Brisbane airport, a mid-afternoon flight to Melbourne and you're here in good time for dinner. Likewise, Melbourne to Sydney - flights every hour, starting early morning.

Whatever you decide to do, enjoy!