Australia - big place...any ideas?

Liverlips: If you are staying in Brisbane I recommend the Il Mondo Hotel http://www.ilmondo.com.au/. It's in Kangaroo Point just over the Story bridge so you’re only a short ferry ride away from the city centre, it's good value and they've free parking (or had last August). It is a ‘boutique’ hotel so go for one of the larger rooms.
 
therave said:
jake108.. apologies if i sounded a bit gruff.. i guess different strokes for different fols apply.
BTW.. i thought Bondi beach was awful and would not recommend it for any more than 15 minutes...kooji and manley are better bets imho
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No probs. That's the thing about travelling, everyone's into something different. Didn't actually go to Bondi Beach. I was in Sydney for about 3 months and I managed to avoid it! Manley was quite nice. Took a trip out to Hunter Valley one day and had a great time. Really loved it. And did the bridge climb on a beautiful clear Saturday night which was excellent. Two of my favourite things in/around Sydney. Great city but a shame if you just get caught up in Irish communities drinking in Irish bars. A waste in my opinion.
 

agree about hunter, but think Bondi and irish pubs are fine to experience once, not to do only that though; Another great day trip (or weekend maybe) is the blue mountains, fabulous scenery, great hike around the Three Sisters, oh the memories! Did anyone do the Priscilla queen of the desert show in the Erskinville hotel, fab! but maybe it's passe at this stage : (
Has anybody mentioned the food in australia? Indian, Greek, Chinese or plain ole kangaroo burger..... all excellent!
 
Australia is amazing but New Zealand on a 3 week time scale is much more doable. Spend a week in the North Island and two weeks down south. Probably the most amazingly scenic place in the world. Plenty to do from visiting the incredibly smelly volcanic town Rotorua to swimming with dolphins. White water rafting and black water rafting. Highest bungee jump in the world (or was when I did it!).
It is slightly more expensive than Australia, however you could easily hire a car and drive yourself around the two islands. (ensure you book the ferry from north to south well in advance.. can often be booked up)
Australia is beautiful but with 3 weeks you would spend a lot of time in the air flying from a to b. However if you have your hearts set on it.. I would recommend Perth and the west coast.. A lot less commercial than the east coast.. either way I'm sure it will be a holiday of a life time!
Good luck!
 
If you are planning on snorkelling make sure you head as far North as you can. Port Douglas is a great place to base yourself, fly to Cairns.Fantasea do great day trip to Low Isles.
If you are looking for a holiday off the beaten track, head for Western Australia. Fab snorkelling at Ningaloo Reef (without thousands of other people), you can fly Exmouth from Perth.Beautiful beaches around Perth city and Margeret River for Wine, Esperance for out of this world sunsets. We camped at a lot at National Parks...Cape Le Grand is amazing. We travelled along the East coast and Victoria too but found our time in W.A. fantastic and felt we got the real aussie experience.

Sydney is an interesting city 3 days max and then head out to Blue Mountains. Melbourne much groovier and friendlier and loads to do around...fairy penguins on Phillip Is., Great Ocean Drive, Ballarat, Grampians..... on and on.

Enjoy planning but don't overdo it...stick to one country..I'd actually suggest stick to one state!!!
 
therave said:
jake108.. apologies if i sounded a bit gruff.. i guess different strokes for different fols apply.
BTW.. i thought Bondi beach was awful and would not recommend it for any more than 15 minutes...kooji and manley are better bets imho
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I don't know, the men on bondi are definitely worth seeing!! even if they are gay. fab eye candy
 
I suppose it depends on what you want to do ....do you love cities and the nitelife, are you an action junkie (queenstown in NZ is the place)...

A lot of people don't bother with tasmania but I thought it was a great place...really easy to get around and not as touristy as 'the mainland'...I found it much cheaper and more intimate....some really nice food in small restaurants and some lovely beachs. Wineglass bay in the freycinet national park is fantastic. You could do the east coast of tassie in 5 days. I would recommend flying into launceston and spending a night or two there...you can visit the gorge and there is a fantastic restaurant Quigleys. Next stop would we swansea which is a small sleepy village near to the national park which is a must see ...you could then go on to Hobart with a side trip to port auther, the convict site for a great day and an evening ghost tour....I loved tasmania and prefered it to a lot of the 'must sees' on the mainland.
The lonley planet guide to tasmania is great and you could check out this link too
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