Three Days Down Under

The itinerary for our month-long holiday honeymoon to Hong Kong and Australia is all but complete. However, rather like putting together a piece of flat-pack furniture and being left with a handful of screws and bolts, we've found ourselves with 3 'spare' days.

We're doing 5 days Hong Kong, 4 days Sydney, 5 days Port Douglas which takes us to the 20th. We've then got three free days before taking on a beach house north of Sydney for a week from the 23rd, after which we fly home.

The Blue Mountains look good, and we've thought about one or two nights there. Another idea was to fly from Cairns to Brisbane (on our way back from Port Douglas) then drive from Brisbane to Sydney. Other than that we're stuck. Any ideas?

Newcastle/Hunter Valley - winery tours type things?
Tasmania(Hobart)..?

Actually, why not go to Melbourne for the 3 days - my favourite aussie city.

[honey lamb]

We had planned to go to the Blue Mountains when we were over there but as it was their winter and freezing we decided against, but it really looked good

Originally posted by honey lamb
We had planned to go to the Blue Mountains when we were over there but as it was their winter and freezing we decided against, but it really looked good

Should be a little warmer in December, HL. Can't make three days out of it though, which would still leave us with a day to kill.

McCoy, what rings your bell so vociferously when it comes to Melbourne?

Blue Mountains are great, we went there for my mother-in-laws birthday, we rented a house overlooking the valley and the 3 sisters bums! We went in June so the start of winter, but still great to be up there and rug up and chill. It is a great place to go, and not too far from SYD too. With all your travelling it maybe nice to not go too far and have some time for R n R! [y] It is nice to escape the SYD humidity too as often cooler up there.

Hope this helps.

Dominic

Originally posted by DMetters-Bone
Blue Mountains are great, we went there for my mother-in-laws birthday, we rented a house overlooking the valley and the 3 sisters bums! We went in June so the start of winter, but still great to be up there and rug up and chill. It is a great place to go, and not too far from SYD too. With all your travelling it maybe nice to not go too far and have some time for R n R! [y] It is nice to escape the SYD humidity too as often cooler up there.

Hope this helps.

Dominic

Thanks Dominic. If we manage to do the Blue Mountains, we were thinking of 2 nights at Lilianfels, which looks really nice.

Decisions, decisions...

Nice! Mark you won't be disappointed! Blue Mountains are a great get away from the city! [y]Really relaxing and chilled.

Let us know what you decide on........

All the best

Dominic

Blue Mountains are fab although given time of year could be a bit busier.

Have you thought about Melbourne for a couple of nights, its one of my favourite cities in the world and is so much different to Sydney.

Bit of a long shot and after 5 days in Port Douglas maybe not but how about Fraser Island? THe only way I can think of you geting there is fly CNS-BNE and then catch the train (think a luxury Eurostar with movies and all) up. You can then jump on DJ or JQ for a flight back to SYD I believe. Fraser Island is lovely.

The Blue Mountains are nice but as you'll be chilled out alredy after 5 nights in Port Douglas I'd second McCoy's suggestion of Melbourne.Why Melbourne? Great city, great shopping (very different from Sydney in the way it feels). Fantastic cafe culture (and culture per se really),MCG (go watch an Aussie Rules game for a bit of fun- makes RFU look like a game for cissies!), Great Ocean Road with it's little towns and great beaches and scenery( and perhaps be lucky to see some wild koalas like we did), Phillip Island, Yarra Valley. The list is endless.In this house it was unanimously our favourite destination in OZ.
We too flew from Cairns to Brisbane but then flew from Brisbane to Sydney as it's a long long drive.Whatever you decide to do you'll have a great time - the biggest problem will be getting on the plane to come home[:#].
Incidentally, has Mr Pond Snr been shamed/beaten into submission or is the jury still out?

Originally posted by McCoy

Actually, why not go to Melbourne for the 3 days - my favourite aussie city.

Mine too.

So many first-time visitors to Australia often overlook Melbourne in favour of Sydney/NSW but there are plenty of things to do and see in Melbourne, and indeed elsewhere in Victoria. 3 days in the Blue Mountains or Melbourne? I know which I'd choose.

Melbourne's trams are a tourist attraction in themselves; hop on the free City Circle tram for a tour of the CBD. You can also travel by tram to many places within Melbourne - such as the beach. You can even dine on one whilst travelling around Melbourne!

For child-friendly activities check out the Melbourne Aquarium and Luna Park in St Kilda (fairground). A bit further afield from Melbourne (a hire car would be a good idea) is Hurstville Sanctuary where you can gape at the kangaroos and koalas. Puffing Billy in the Dandenong Ranges is a famous steam train and always good fun with kids. Dandenong Ranges National Park is spectacular and worth a visit in itself. I really enjoyed visiting both the sanctuary and the national park.

Other things to see in Melbourne include the Royal Botanic Gardens - bigger and better than in Sydney and a good place for a family picnic. Don't miss the Queen Victoria market where you can buy all sorts of Australian delicacies. For dining out, whilst there are plenty of places serving all sorts of international cuisine in the CBD, I recommend Toorak St in South Yarra just for the sheer range of options on one street. Actually South Yarra is a great place for dining, drinking and shopping and is only 10 mins south of the CBD.

Yeah, Melbourne is great!

Thanks all. Having a look to see if I can make flights down to MEL from CNS, then back up to SYD work (not having a huge amount of success at the moment, but that comes of travelling with more luggage than 'JLo' on tour).

Will - we looked at Fraser Island - and it looked great - but there wasn't too much going on for your average 2 year old (more's the pity). mdvipond jr. finds 4WD and hiking so passŽ...

DL - we're still working on father-dear. I think he's employing delaying tactics in the hope that the flights will get booked up (or at least D fares will disappear).

Looking at the time we've got to play with, would you sacrifice the Blue Mountains for 3 days in Melbourne? The only other option is 2 in Melbourne, 1 in the Blue Moutains, which effectively doesn't give us much time in either place. Christ, I need a glass of wine.

Port Douglas is great! Let me know if the restaurant Mango Jam is still open on the high street - I worked there in my gap year! [y]

Originally posted by Strawberry Muppet

Originally posted by McCoy

Actually, why not go to Melbourne for the 3 days - my favourite aussie city.

Yeah, Melbourne is great!

Strawb, old boy, are you working undercover for the Melbourne Tourist Board? If so, you're doing a cracking job.

Mighty tempted to drop the Blue Mountains in favour of visiting the 'jewel in Victoria's crown' (oh god, looks like I've OD'd on the guidebooks again). As is so often the case, you lovely VF types, you've given us the inspiration to try something a little different.

Actually, we've worked out that the Blue Mountains are only a couple of hours drive from Avalon, where we'll be spending Christmas week, so we could always make a day trip of it and get the best of both worlds.

NS - we're staying just short of Port Douglas at the Thala Beach Lodge, but will definitely be visiting the town for drinks and such so we'll see if we can track down Mango Jam for you. The question is - was it any good...?

Originally posted by mdvipond

NS - we're staying just short of Port Douglas at the Thala Beach Lodge, but will definitely be visiting the town for drinks and such so we'll see if we can track down Mango Jam for you. The question is - was it any good...?

Yes - great Pizza- may be a good choice in the daytime if you're with jr?

So glad you are thinking about going to Melbourne, it's my favourite Australian city too.

If you do fancy going a bit further afield though, then the penguin parade at The Philip Island Nature Reserve is an absolute must, especially for mdvipond junior. It was one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen. You wait on the beach until sunset and then suddenly you see these groups of tiny penguins getting washed up onto the shore and waddling their way back to their burrows. They seemed to be completely oblivious to us spectators gawping at them as they walked by. Assuming that junior likes cute and cuddly, she will love this:D

Originally posted by NS

Originally posted by mdvipond

NS - we're staying just short of Port Douglas at the Thala Beach Lodge, but will definitely be visiting the town for drinks and such so we'll see if we can track down Mango Jam for you. The question is - was it any good...?

Yes - great Pizza- may be a good choice in the daytime if you're with jr?

It was still there 6 weeks ago (halfway up Macrossan St on the same side as Rehab).It was very busy at dinner time and as there are loads of nice restaurants in Port we didn't eat there.
Personally I'd forsake the Blue Mountains for 3 days in Melbourne (but there again I now want to live in Melbourne.....).
To hell with the baggage (that's what the 30kg UC allowance is for [}:)]).If you're flying DJ it shouldn't be a problem - the only time our baggage was queried was when we were flying back to SYD from MEL (on our 4th internal flight).Presentation of our VS e-tickets showing fare code and cabin (and them checking their "rule book")seemed to confirm that we could carry 30 kgs each(but like I say nobody had mentioned the weight of our bags before then and the cases were lighter than on our first internal flight due to me binning all our sunscreen and mossie repellant!).
The Thala Beach Lodge is quite a (long)way out of town but they may run a shuttle into town (or failing that there are plenty of taxis about) as parking in the town can be a bit difficult when it's busy.
Port is a great place to unwind and relax and we'd definately go back. There are also some other nice little towns around like Trinity Beach and Yorkeys Nob (still can't say the name of the place without a smile appearing on my face[:I]) which have nice beaches too. Also make sure that you get up to the Daintree rainforest and Cape Tribulation which are spectacular too.
I'm sure Mr Pond Snr will come to a decision eventually. It would just be tragic for him to decide that "Thunderbirds are Go" and then find there were no Ds left[:0]

Just to reiterate the Melbourne recommendation - totally unbiased as I now live here:D. We came to Oz in 2003 on holiday and did the usual Sydney, Barrier Reef etc. We did a day trip, totally adequate, to the Blue Mountains but never came to Melbourne. Got offered a job here and moved out last year and now cannot - and don't wish to - consider living anywhere else. Sorry Sydneysiders but the only thing you have to offer is the harbour (including the bridge and opera house) and without that, imho, not much else at all.

It has to be the best of the Australian capitals and has so much on its doorstep Great Ocean Road, Wilsons Prom, Grampains, Alpine area, and there is always something going on in Melbourne itself. There are beaches, bars, cafes, shops et al. The place has a vibe that nowhere else in Oz I have been to has - not unlike the buzz of NYC (but obviously more laid back in the Australian way).

Victoria you'll love every piece - as the toursim board states!

Rob

Fish market in Sydney was pretty good fun.

Other than that we found Sydney a bit of a let down. Melbourne wins easily.

MrsG - another vote for Melbourne, guess it's bordering on unanimous. Does jr. like cute and cuddly? Do sharks sh;t in the sea? She adores 'Pin Ginns', and I've already been reading up on the Penguin Parade this morning. Has to be a 'must do'.

DL - Yorkeys Nob? Sounds a bit like...

Thala do a shuttle into town, which we will be taking advantage of. We're keen to see as much as we can whilst up there (like the look of Kuranda?), but we're a little worried about the heat/humidity, especially for jr. The rooms are airconditioned and there's a pool, so if the worst came to the worst we'd have to stay close to the hotel to ensure darling daughter stays cool.

Rob - there can be no better recommendation for a place than from someone who lives there (although I'm not sure if the same could be said for Hull). We're sold, really looking forward to it, sounds like a chilled place.

Thanks all for the outstanding advice folks. Do keep it coming, any further recommendations for trips, bars, restaurants, 'experiences' will be gratefully received.

Have you decided who you're flying with from CNS-MEL? You can compare fares with all domestic carriers at http://www.webjet.com.au

I'm a bit busy at work right now but will try and come up with some more ideas and tips for Melbourne later.

We were planning on doing all our internal flights with QF, as we could really do with the 32Kg baggage allowance, but if you know any better I'd be glad to try elsewhere.

Thanks again, Muppet.

Barrier reef - has to be done.

Dining out is great because Melbourne is so multicultural. You can find practically anything you want - without breaking the bank.

In the heart of Melbourne, on Swanston St, you can find all sorts of cafes and small restaurants serving everything from burgers to sushi to noodles. Lonsdale St, just off Swanston, is famous for its Greek eateries (well, Melbourne is home to the second largest Greek community outside of Greece). Nearby is Little Bourke St where Chinatown is. I personally prefer to eat Chinese elsewhere but that's just my preference - I think the quality is better in the outer suburbs. So don't just stick to the CBD, I would check out the inner suburbs for the best places to eat, such as Fitzroy for excellent Italian, Footscray for authentic Vietnamese, and of course South Yarra for everything from les escargots to crocodile.

Whilst the Great Ocean Road is highly recommended, given the short duration of your stay I would give it a miss. You can do it in a day but there's no point - I believe it's worth at least an overnight stay. I would probably spend at least two days within Melbourne and allocate one day to exploring other parts of Victoria, such as Phillip Island.

QF is a good carrier for domestic flights. I tend to choose QF over DJ because usually there's very little difference in price (comparing QF Red E-deals to DJ's Blue Saver fares). More importantly, as you say, the baggage allowance with QF is more generous as are the excess baggage charges. DJ is fine on a short hop such as SYD-MEL but for a longer flight like CNS-MEL I would go with QF - better IFE, larger aircraft and, of course, complimentary meals and drinks.

Originally posted by DragonLady
Barrier reef - has to be done.

It's on the 'to-do' list, but to be fair we're not sure how 'to-do' it. We're a little worried that most boat trips out to the reef itself will be too much for jr. The-now Mrs. mdvipond is also worried sh;tless about box jellyfish. She favours flying out by helicopter; I've been looking at a trip out to the Low Isles instead.

Strawb - stop already, you're making me hungry. All sounds more like New York than Oz.

I came to the same conclusion as your good self re. the Ocean Road - it would be wonderful if we had more time, but I think we're better concentrating on the city then, as you say, Phillip Island (and the Pen Ginns). Also fancy the Puffing Billy trip.

[HighFlyer]

The boat trips out to the reef from Port Douglas are quite long, about a two hour journey if memory serves. You can go there by helicopter, i used this company though there are countless others. I flew out on the heli (landing on a floating helipad was a hair raising experience) but had to catch the boat back as i was diving.

Its a fantastic experience to see the reef, but definitely more so if you enjoy snorkelling or diving. Low Isles would be fantastic, especially if you see the Green Turtles.

Thanks,
Sarah