As an Aussie would say, our trip through Australia was a ripper. We traveled for two weeks as part of a small group of 12 organized by Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) . We based out of Melbourne, Alice Springs/Uluru, Cairns and Sydney, each for a few days, and flew between these cities. Our trip also included 2 weeks in New Zealand, and more about that in another post.
How was the experience? Our hotels were 4 star or better, centrally located and walkable to restaurants and sites. The included meals were all in nice restaurants and good food choices. Lots of side trips – hikes, city tours, aboriginal culture deep dives – were included. And we enjoyed all of the benefits of a highly compatible group of 12 and guides. We highly recommend OAT and how they handle this sort of adventure trip.
Melbourne
Melbourne is so much like our home city Toronto that Cathy and I were immediately comfortable. It is cosmopolitan, lots of street action day and night, and affordable (CDN $ and AUS $ are close to par). We broke from the tour group to spend a day with friends from a previous Cuba trip who live in Melbourne. On our way to Point Nepean southeast of Melbourne, we try out a flight of 9 wines at the Montalto Winery with a focus on pinot noir for which this area is famous. A nice lunch on the outdoor patio of the Portsea Hotel set us up well for some more exploring. Most notable to us was the Point Nepean Quarantine Station with a history going back to 1854. You have to believe that this was a good idea to avoid infectious diseases coming into Australia and managing outbreaks like the Spanish Flu. But how frustrating it must have been to be held at the Station within sight of Melbourne after traveling from so far away, and perhaps even being infected by your fellow inmates at the Station. In case you are wondering when you see the picture below, footy tipping is betting on Australian Football matches.
Alice Springs/Uluru
Getting off the flight from Melbourne, our first impression of Alice Springs and the Outback is that it is very hot and dry. Add buggy after we headed out of the city and so we wear head nets all day. The area is scraggy bushes and quite flat with some dry river beds, sort of like West Texas. Lots of snake warning signs, however no snakes seen. Yes!!! Both Cathy and I suffer from heat exhaustion on hikes at 112 degrees F. All this said, this is now our favourite spot in Australia. The endless horizon, the night skies and the Southern Cross, the friendly people, Uluru at sunrise and sunset, driving around in a cool expidition truck, all a ripper. Check out more about Uluru (Ayers Rock) here .
Cairns / Great Barrier Reef
It is quite a switch flying into Cairns. Still hot but more in the high 90 degrees F. And now the ‘dry’ is replaced by sub tropical rain forest. Our big deal is this is where we stage to go to the Great Barrier Reef. More about that here . Near Cairns, we have the opportunity to visit an aboriginal community. Our guide ‘smokes’ us into the community and then shares his stories. We learn that no-one swims in the ocean due to sharks, crocodiles and stingers. This explains the immense free swimming pool right on the ocean edge in Cairns. I eat ‘bugs’ for the first time. Actually bugs are a local crustaceon bigger than a crayfish and smaller than a lobster. Very tasty.
Between snakes, sharks, crocs, dingos, poison flora, etc, etc, Australia is a scary place. The working rule is simple: Everything is Dangerous!!
Sydney
From Cairns, its on to Sydney. The Opera House is an iconic image of Sydney and Australia. Its a must to take in a performance and makes for a great date night . Sydney is very walkable and the public transit (trams, buses, ferries) got us to wherever we wanted to go. Most of our trips originated at or near Circular Quay. Take the ferry over to Manley Beach and walk the boardwalk. It was very windy and the beach was closed due to rip tides, so my swim suit stayed dry that day.
