Australia

itinerary map

Table of Contents

  • 3 days on Oahu
  • 29 days in Australia
  • 2019 Winter/Spring (back home in North America)
  • Summer/Fall (Local)

Australia was the first part of our 54-day trip down under. Even with a full month, there is a lot of Australia to see and distances are long. We narrowed it down to Sydney, Uluru, the Great Barrier Reef, Melbourne and the Great Ocean Road, and Tasmania to visit family. We loved it all and need to go back! We ended our trip with New Zealand.

Food & Beverage $43 per day*

Average per person per day, not including any meals furnished as part of a tour.

Lodging $62-$192 per night

Alice Springs and Yulara were at opposite ends of the spectrum.

Transportation $1,508 per person

This is an estimated amount. We purchased our flights within Australia on Qantas along with our flight to Australia. This got us a discount on domestic flights, but we don't know what each flight cost.

Entertainment $904 per person

Entertainment included opera tickets, three different boat trips, and a full day tour of the Great Ocean Road.

* Costs in US dollars at time of trip

Days 1-3: Waikiki

The Plan: Our stop in Hawaii on the way to Sydney was primarily to break up the long flight from the US.

The Reality: While we planned to go snorkeling at Hanauma Bay, the weather was a little cool and cloudy so we ended up not going. Instead, we just wandered the Waikiki area. It reminded us a lot of Las Vegas, minus the casinos and plus a beach. 

Days 5-9: Sydney

The Plan: Take jet lag into account with a relaxed five days including beach time, walking, and maybe some snorkeling along with some sights. And the opera on my birthday. 

The Reality: We lost a day to the International Date Line that I didn’t account for. We were also sick for a day. That didn’t allow us time to do the Coogee to Bondi clifftop walk. And while we visited both beaches we planned to, the weather didn’t encourage lingering. 

  • Harbour Bridge walk
  • Manly Beach
  • Coogee to Bondi Clifftop Walk
  • Bondi Beach
  • Taronga Zoo
  • Tower Eye
  • The Rocks
  • The Opera

Related Posts: The first post describes daily activities and the destination. Other posts cover anything that generated lots of photos!

Days 10-17: Hobart

The Plan: Leave any planning to our hosts! It was a bit of a struggle since I so enjoy planning trips, yet it was also freeing to let someone who knows the area, and who likes to travel like we do, come up with things to do.  

The Reality: It was great! In addition to all the great stuff that comes with traveling we really enjoyed hanging out with them for a week.

  • Mt Wellington
  • Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary
  • MONA
  • Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery
  • Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens
  • Salamanca
  • Port Arthur
  • Tasman Island Cruise
  • the tip shop

Related Posts: The first post describes daily activities and the destination. Other posts cover anything that generated lots of photos!

Days 18-23: Melbourne

The Plan: Spend a day touring the Great Ocean Road and the rest of the time exploring Melbourne, trying to group sites together to avoid retracing our steps too much. And eat Greek food. 

The Reality: We were able to see and do everything on our list in less time than we thought. We hit the market, the Royal Arcade, the Shrine of Remembrance, and the Royal Botanic Gardens on our first day. We thought that might take two days. With our “extra” day we journeyed to Yarra Bend where the flying foxes hang out.  

  • Queen Victoria Market
  • Royal Arcade
  • Great Ocean Road
  • Royal Botanic Gardens
  • Shrine of Remembrance
  • St Vincent Place
  • Sea Life
  • St Kilda
  • State Library
  • Chinatown
  • Laneways +
  • Flying foxes +

Related Posts: The first post describes daily activities and the destination. Other posts cover anything that generated lots of photos!

Days 24-27: Yulara and Alice Springs

The Plan: Seeing Uluru was an essential part of the trip for me. Since we wanted to see more of the outback than just that, and to save some money, we flew in and out of Alice Springs and drove to Uluru.

The Reality: We weren’t quite sure what we would be able to fit in for Alice Springs. We arrived early enough on the way back to visit the Reptile Center. The following day we drove into the West Macs, then turned around when we realized exactly how far away our destination was. And how much gas we would need.   

  • Uluru
  • Kata Tjuta
  • Alice Springs Desert Park
  • Alice Springs Reptile Centre
  • Scenic drive in West MacDonnell Ranges +

Related Posts: The first post describes daily activities and the destination. Other posts cover anything that generated lots of photos!

Days 28-32: Cairns

The Plan: Cairns was all about the Great Barrier Reef. It was totally worth it.

The Reality: The markets at Kuranda were a bit of a disappointment but the trip there and back was beautiful, and we took a nice walk while we were there.   

  • Snorkeling Great Barrier Reef
  • The Esplanade
  • Kuranda

Related Posts: The first post describes daily activities and the destination. Other posts cover anything that generated lots of photos!
Go to the New Zealand part of the trip
book cover

Resources

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Christmas Ornaments

We buy Christmas ornaments on each trip. The koala was the expected choice. The echidna was so cute we had to get him too.