I recently had the opportunity to tour Australia. My trip consisted of 13 days in Australia touring Sydney, Cairns (Great Barrier Reef), Ayers Rock, Alice Springs and Melbourne. The most important aspect I learned from this trip is the amount of time required to travel from point to point.
Sydney is a fascinating city with a lot to offer visitors. The city is currently preparing for the summer Olympics, which will begin this September. Other areas of interest and must sees are cruising the Sydney harbor, touring the Rocks area (restaurant/shopping district) and touring the Sydney Opera House. Two of the most popular day trips from Sydney are the Blue Mountains and Hunter Wine Valley Region. Each tour is a full day but will worth the time required.
The Blue Mountains tour began with a trip to Featherdale Wildlife Park. We enjoyed a wonderful breakfast at the park prior to viewing the animals. The park is a great experience because you get up close to the animals. I was able to hand feed and pet kangaroo and wallabe. I also got my picture with Charlie the koala. The park has many of the native animals of Australia. We then continued onto the Blue Mountains for the remainder of the afternoon. The Blue Mountains received their name from the many eucalyptus trees in the area. When the sun heats up the trees, it creates a blue haze and the entire area appears blue. There are several remarkable land formations in this area, like the "Three Sisters".
The Hunter Wine Valley is one of the premiere wine producing regions in Australia. Definitely a must for wine connoisseurs. We began our morning with a wonderful breakfast at B and B in the Australian countryside. It was one of the many convict built homes and still has a basement full of artifacts. From there we continued our journey to the wine region. We visited 3 wineries and had the opportunity to tour a working winery.
Our next stop was Cairns in the northeastern part of Australia. Great Barrier Reef tours depart from this city. The catamaran to the Great Barrier Reef takes about 2 hours to get to the pontoon platform. The activities available to participate in are snorkeling, diving (beginners and certified divers), and a semi-submersible for viewing the reef . The diving is extra but the other activities are included in the tour cost. It also includes a great lunch buffet. The coral and marine life were abundant. I was even bit by a fish because I was invading his territory, or so I was told from the instructors. It was more startling than painful.
Another place to visit when in Cairns is the Tjapukai Aboriginal Park and Kuranda Sky Rail. The Tjapukai park has a cultural center where you can learn about the aborigines and their history. The aborigines performed traditional dancing and demonstrated how to start a fire without the use of matches. We also went to the Dreamtime theater and learned about the creation of the earth from the Tjapukai’s point of view. The Kuranda Sky Rail takes you high above the rainforest canopy. It was impressive to see how tall the trees in the rainforest can grow. The sky rail makes a couple of stops on the way up to the town of Kuranda. You have the opportunity to walk through the rainforest and view a beautiful waterfall.
We then traveled from Cairns to the outback and enjoyed a sunset view of Uluru, (Ayers Rock) on our first evening with a glass of champagne. The next morning I enjoyed a sunrise view of Uluru. I had always heard how the rock changes color as the sun changes direction in the sky. It was most noticeable at sunrise where the rock changed from a dark brown to an incredible red color. The guide said that Uluru is usually much redder in color but the outback has had so much rain recently that it affects the color of the rock. It was still very impressive. From Ayers Rock we then traveled by motor coach to Kings Canyon. The following day we climbed Kings Canyon, which was about a 5 mile hike. Many young people hike there to swim in the pools of the Garden of Eden in the center of the canyon. Our last day in the outback was spent in Alice Springs. I enjoyed a hot air balloon ride over the outback, where I spotted a mob of kangaroo.
Our last stop on my Australian adventure was Melbourne. We took the "Puffing Billy" Steam train through the Dandenong Ranges, which was a 30 minute ride. We stopped at Healsville Wildlife sanctuary. We enjoyed a guided tour through the sanctuary learning about individual animals and their habitats.
I enjoyed my trip to Australia and wish I had more time to see and do so many other attractions. My one piece of advise is, if you are even considering going to Australia, stop thinking about it and just go. It is truly the experience of a lifetime and well worth the long journey. I can help plan your Australian dream vacation. I am a certified Aussie specialist and can customize your vacation to meet your needs.
Please call or for more specifics and recommendations.
