Uluru is going to be staying on my list, but the logistics might change a little bit. A friend of mine with whom I have travelled a substantial amount and who knows what I like/dislike went a few years ago and enjoyed it tremendously and assures me that I will as well. But he went via Alice Springs, took a tour bus down for the day, and popped for an overnight train ride back - I don't do tour buses unless absolutely necessary.

I must say I'm very surprised at the outpouring of affection here for Tassie. In my original itinerary, I had thought of it as the vacation within the vacation - leave most of the bags in Melbourne and hop over for a couple of days.

I'm equally surprised at the lack of enthusiasm for other locations, as in "go to X instead of Uluru." So if I understand correctly, everybody thinks that in the eastern half of Australia, Sydney, Melbourne, and Tassie are each worth six full sightseeing days at the exclusion of everything else?

My general feeling is that I'd rather spend not enough time someplace than too much - you can always go back but it's harder to be someplace you hate and adjust easily midstream. The only places where I've ever spent six full days are London, Paris, and Vienna. Hong Kong got 4, and I know I want to go back. Tokyo got 3, and I know I don't want to go back - I'd have been miserable there for six days.

What about the drive from Sydney to Melbourne? Anything interesting that way instead of just flying down on an A$140 one-way?

Thanks for your comments so far, and I'm interested to hear your reaction to my thoughts.