Australia Itinerary

Old Mar 31st, 2022, 06:15 AM
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Australia Itinerary

Hi,
My husband's dream has always to visit Australia (We live in Israel.). He is 73 years old and I'm 69. We wanted to start planning the trip two years ago but like everyone else, COVID messed up our plans.
Now that it seems possible, I'm starting to plan the trip. But I'm not sure about the weather since we want to be in Cairns but we also want to be in Sydney and Melbourne. When would be the best month/s to combine these places. We are not beach people so there won't be any swimming or snorkeling in Cairns but we will want to go to all the attractions in the area (rain forests, the Great Barrier Reef etc...).
If the trip actually works out, we'll probably will be flying to Australia from Singapore. I'm thinking of two possible routes: 1) Cairns - Melbourne - Sydney - then back to Singapore or 2) Melbourne - Sydney - Cairns - then back to Singapore. (Probably 5 days in each place, maybe more.) We don't drive on the left so any day trips will be with public transportation or organized day tours.
I'd appreciate suggestions of when would be the best time/s to go and what the weather would be like during the months that you recommend. I'm sure that I'll have lots of questions in the future.
Thanks,
Nina
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Old Mar 31st, 2022, 03:02 PM
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I'd suggest either flying into Cairns in August/September and then working your way south to Sydney and Melbourne (that will be Australia's spring) or reversing by flying into Melbourne in March (our autumn) and then heading north to Sydney and Cairns. Either of these suggestions should avoid the wet season in Cairns which can be humid and unpleasant and give you reasonably good weather in other places.

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Old Mar 31st, 2022, 05:52 PM
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Agree that our autumn or spring would be the best bet. Winter (June, July, Aug) will be warm and sunny in Cairns but likely cold and rainy in Melbourne. Summer (Dec, Jan, Feb) in Cairns will very hot, humid and wet but in Melbourne it could be anything from a dry heat to nice sunny days to cooler. Melbourne's weather is very changeable. Try also to avoid travelling in the two most popular times for holidays here - that's the school break over Christmas (Dec/Jan) and Easter.

When researching Cairns, have a look at Port Douglas. It's a much smaller town about an hour to the north - there are transfers available from Cairns airport. Cairns is fine but Port Douglas is very popular. Day trips go from both places.
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Old Mar 31st, 2022, 10:52 PM
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Thanks for the input. How long is the Easter break in Australia? If we go in March starting with Melbourne, do you suggest the beginning/ middle/ end of March? When does the wet/ tornado season end in Cairns? We're not put off by cooler weather since we travel to Europe a lot. (But not freezing weather - 15 - 19 Centigrade is fine.)
Once we decide on when we're going, I'll start researching each place we want to visit. Good to know about Port Douglas.
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Old Apr 1st, 2022, 02:06 PM
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Assuming that you are planning to travel next year, Easter Sunday will be 9 April. The Easter break for most people is over a four day period, starting on Good Friday. However school holidays usually start the week before the weekend and end the week after, giving children a two week holiday. So during this period it would be wise to book ahead for accommodation.

Monday 13 March is a public holiday in Melbourne with a street parade and lots of activities throughout the city - may be of interest to you.

Wet season in the north usually finishes in March, however like most weather conditions, it can't be quaranteed.
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Old Apr 1st, 2022, 08:51 PM
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If you are looking at school holidays dates in Australia, to try and avoid being here (usually more expensive), check each state as they can have varied dates.

Also, just a bit about Cairns and Port Douglas. Cairns is a big city, no beach but a large, lovely, man-made lagoon area for swimming. Lots of tourist accommodation and also a place where the locals live. Port Douglas is much smaller, more touristy, has a gorgeous long beach, shops, restaurants, etc but generally more expensive than Cairns. You could easily visit PD for the day from Cairns if you wanted.
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Old Apr 1st, 2022, 11:22 PM
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I'm getting really good tips. If we decide to go in September / October - are there any holidays - school vacations that I should know of? If we left in the middle of October and flew to Cairns, would that still be considered the dry period? Would Melbourne/ Sydney be OK after that?
Is Cairns easily accessible to all the tourist attractions in the area by public transportation? I read that the public transportation in the area isn't that developed but maybe I've made a mistake (reading too many Internet sites).
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Old Apr 2nd, 2022, 01:15 AM
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For school holidays by state, just google "school holidays 2023 Australia". Check Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. The wet season for the far north, including Cairns, is November to April but will vary slightly year by year. October should be fine but getting hotter the closer it gets to summer. Melbourne and Sydney in October or November should be OK, cool to warm is my guess. You can check historical weather online.

I haven't used public transport in Cairns but generally public transport in Australia is not great - huge distances and a small population. You should be able to easily book day tours and be picked up at your accommodation, unless you are staying a long way out of the city area. There will be public buses, you can check routes etc online and also taxis (Uber?).

Have a look at these for ideas -
https://www.cairnstouristinformation.com.au/
https://www.tropicalnorthqueensland....ation-centres/
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Old Apr 2nd, 2022, 04:10 AM
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I'll check out the sites. I'm used to Europe with the excellent train system and we have no problem driving in the States. I'll looked into the organized day tours.
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Old Apr 2nd, 2022, 06:39 PM
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Oh, how I wish we had train services like in Europe. We were on a TGV in France a few years ago, the electronic board in the carriage recorded a speed of 320km/h. The train from Brisbane to Cairns, all within the one state (!), takes 25 hours. A comparatively sloooooow ride.
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Old Apr 2nd, 2022, 11:21 PM
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Yes, I read about the long train rides in Australia. Even here in Israel we have a fairly good train system and an extensive bus system. Nothing compared to Europe but we are a small country.
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Old Apr 3rd, 2022, 11:34 AM
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Nothing compared to Europe but we are a small country.

There's the point, really. Australia is such a large country, 6th in the world, but a relatively small population, about 26 million.

Israel - towards 10 million in land about a quarter the size of Tasmania
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Old Apr 4th, 2022, 01:51 AM
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You're right. Israel's a very small country and that's why Israelis love to travel abroad.
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Old Apr 4th, 2022, 02:00 AM
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I'm still trying to figure out the best months to go. I can't organize the trip in time for this September. If we flew into Melbourne at the beginning of March and ended in Cairns at the end of March/beginning of Arpil, will the weather be decent? The school holidays in Cairns start on April 1st, 2023. How many hordes of people will descend on the Cairns area at the beginning of April?
Sorry to keep asking.
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Old Apr 4th, 2022, 02:20 PM
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Visiting Melbourne in March should give you good sightseeing weather. As to crowds in Cairns in April, I think if you book your accommodation (and perhaps sightseeing trips) in advance, you shouldn't have any problems. If you have doubts, contact the Cairns visitors centre for more information.
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Old Apr 4th, 2022, 04:02 PM
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If you can book ahead for accommodation, tours and domestic flights, I'd focus on when the weather will be better, rather than the school holiday dates. The Cairns area (including Palm Cove, Port Douglas, etc) is very popular with people visiting from Victoria and NSW, in school holidays particularly. So check those state school holidays dates too. But if you have weather that spoils your trip - too wet, too humid, too cold, whatever - I think that's more of a problem than if it's busy.

April is still the wet season in the far north, it might be OK or could still be wet and humid. Like weather anywhere, it varies year to year. I'm wondering if you could visit slightly later - April in Melbourne and May in Cairns, with Sydney in between. You'd need clothes for if it's cool down south and also things for hotter days up north.
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Old Apr 6th, 2022, 12:49 AM
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Thanks. April - May is much better for us. I checked the temperatures in Melbourne in April and they're very pleasant. Of course someone wrote that they're very changeable but that's OK. Reminds me of San Francisco all year round - one day spring, the next winter, the next summer.... We're going to Munich in May and the temperatures/weather will be very similar to Melbourne in April. Booking accommodations etc... isn't the problem for us. We have to book international flights and that has to be done quite far in advance to get the best prices.
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Old May 7th, 2022, 06:17 PM
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Originally Posted by Taltul
Hi,
My husband's dream has always to visit Australia (We live in Israel.). He is 73 years old and I'm 69. We wanted to start planning the trip two years ago but like everyone else, COVID messed up our plans.
Now that it seems possible, I'm starting to plan the trip. But I'm not sure about the weather since we want to be in Cairns but we also want to be in Sydney and Melbourne. When would be the best month/s to combine these places. We are not beach people so there won't be any swimming or snorkeling in Cairns but we will want to go to all the attractions in the area (rain forests, the Great Barrier Reef etc...).
If the trip actually works out, we'll probably will be flying to Australia from Singapore. I'm thinking of two possible routes: 1) Cairns - Melbourne - Sydney - then back to Singapore or 2) Melbourne - Sydney - Cairns - then back to Singapore. (Probably 5 days in each place, maybe more.) We don't drive on the left so any day trips will be with public transportation or organized day tours.
I'd appreciate suggestions of when would be the best time/s to go and what the weather would be like during the months that you recommend. I'm sure that I'll have lots of questions in the future.
Thanks,
Nina
Hi! Your post has caught my eye because my husband's dream has always been to visit Australia. He is 69 and I am 62, we are from the US and I will surprise him on his 70th with the trip. So far I only have the air tickets to Sydney and was researching various itineraries, and that is why I came upon your post. We will be going in March, and I was thinking of doing Sydney, Uluru, and Cairns. (Maybe Melbourne).
Anyways I will keep following for useful info!
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Old May 8th, 2022, 09:33 PM
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Mariluc

You question is different. Start your own query to get some answers.
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Old May 9th, 2022, 06:59 AM
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Originally Posted by margo_oz
Mariluc

You question is different. Start your own query to get some answers.
Thank you, but I really don’t have a question. Just pointing out our similarities and what period we picked.
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