Comments on Schedule/Hotels/Activities for 3 weeks in Australia

This will be our first trip to Australia. We are both 30 years old.
Looking for comments on schedule and hotels. We don't need anything
fancy - location is more important. I am particularly concerned about
the hotels and the amount of time spent in each location. We like to
snorkel, hike, etc.

4/15/05
Leave ORD

4/17:
Arrive Sydney,immediately depart to Adelaide
Pickup rental 4x4 in Adelaide
Drive to Quality Resort Clare Country Club for night

4/18:
Drive to and explore Wilpena Pound - hiking, etc. Anything else
interested to do here?
Stay at Wilpena Pound Resort for 2 nights

4/20:
Drive back to Adelaide, return car, and spend night at Rydges South
Park Adelaide

4/21:
Fly for 2 day / 1 night (w/nocturnal tour) for tour of Kangaroo Island
with Adventure Charters

4/22:
Fly back to Adelaide. Spend 2 nights at Rydges South Park Adelaide.

4/24:
Fly to Cairns. Pick up rental car and drive to Port Douglas. Spend 4
nights at Bay Villas Resort. Spend one day doing the DainTree Explorer
tour. Spend some time snorkelling and on beach.

4/28:
Drive back to Cairns, drop of rental car, spend 2 nights at Cairns
Colonial Club Resort. Has anyone stayed here? I have heard bad things
about it's location - but it was recommended by travel agent.

4/30:
Fly to Sydney. Spend 7 nights at the Sydney Menzies Acor. I have
heard good things about this hotel's location. Is this true? We would
like to hike in the blue mountains, do the bridge climb, ferry, etc.
Is this too much time in Sydney?

5/7:
Fly back home!


Any comments are more than welcome!

I can comment on the location of the Menzies in Sydney.
Yes it is centrally located near Wynyard Underground station, easy walk to
Circular Quay, Rocks and Opera House.
Being a Sydney resident, I would say 7 days is a minimum! April is a good
month, not too hot or too cold.
If you like hiking, you might consider staying in the Blue Mountains for a
night, but a day trip from Sydney would be rewarding.

The Commissioner

www.the-commissioner.com


"BH" wrote in message
oups.com...
This will be our first trip to Australia. We are both 30 years old.
Looking for comments on schedule and hotels. We don't need anything
fancy - location is more important. I am particularly concerned about
the hotels and the amount of time spent in each location. We like to
snorkel, hike, etc.

4/15/05
Leave ORD

4/17:
Arrive Sydney,immediately depart to Adelaide
Pickup rental 4x4 in Adelaide
Drive to Quality Resort Clare Country Club for night

4/18:
Drive to and explore Wilpena Pound - hiking, etc. Anything else
interested to do here?
Stay at Wilpena Pound Resort for 2 nights

4/20:
Drive back to Adelaide, return car, and spend night at Rydges South
Park Adelaide

4/21:
Fly for 2 day / 1 night (w/nocturnal tour) for tour of Kangaroo Island
with Adventure Charters

4/22:
Fly back to Adelaide. Spend 2 nights at Rydges South Park Adelaide.

4/24:
Fly to Cairns. Pick up rental car and drive to Port Douglas. Spend 4
nights at Bay Villas Resort. Spend one day doing the DainTree Explorer
tour. Spend some time snorkelling and on beach.

4/28:
Drive back to Cairns, drop of rental car, spend 2 nights at Cairns
Colonial Club Resort. Has anyone stayed here? I have heard bad things
about it's location - but it was recommended by travel agent.

4/30:
Fly to Sydney. Spend 7 nights at the Sydney Menzies Acor. I have
heard good things about this hotel's location. Is this true? We would
like to hike in the blue mountains, do the bridge climb, ferry, etc.
Is this too much time in Sydney?

5/7:
Fly back home!


Any comments are more than welcome!

Would the Russell at the Rocks or the ANA Grand be a better location?

On 9 Feb 2005 09:25:44 -0800, "BH" wrote:

|This will be our first trip to Australia. We are both 30 years old.
|Looking for comments on schedule and hotels. We don't need anything
|fancy - location is more important. I am particularly concerned about
|the hotels and the amount of time spent in each location. We like to
|snorkel, hike, etc.
|
|4/15/05
|Leave ORD
|
|4/17:
|Arrive Sydney,immediately depart to Adelaide
|Pickup rental 4x4 in Adelaide
|Drive to Quality Resort Clare Country Club for night
|
|4/18:
|Drive to and explore Wilpena Pound - hiking, etc. Anything else
|interested to do here?
|Stay at Wilpena Pound Resort for 2 nights
|
|4/20:
|Drive back to Adelaide, return car, and spend night at Rydges South
|Park Adelaide
|
|4/21:
|Fly for 2 day / 1 night (w/nocturnal tour) for tour of Kangaroo Island
|with Adventure Charters
|
|4/22:
|Fly back to Adelaide. Spend 2 nights at Rydges South Park Adelaide.
|
|4/24:
|Fly to Cairns. Pick up rental car and drive to Port Douglas. Spend 4
|nights at Bay Villas Resort. Spend one day doing the DainTree Explorer
|tour. Spend some time snorkelling and on beach.
|
|4/28:
|Drive back to Cairns, drop of rental car, spend 2 nights at Cairns
|Colonial Club Resort. Has anyone stayed here? I have heard bad things
|about it's location - but it was recommended by travel agent.
|
|4/30:
|Fly to Sydney. Spend 7 nights at the Sydney Menzies Acor. I have
|heard good things about this hotel's location. Is this true? We would
|like to hike in the blue mountains, do the bridge climb, ferry, etc.
|Is this too much time in Sydney?
|
|5/7:
|Fly back home!
|
|
|Any comments are more than welcome!

Just a quick initial comment.

You're going to be super jet-lagged coming from Chicago to Adelaide -
then you want to pick up a rental car and drive through an unfamiliar
city on the wrong side of the road.

There are a couple of options. Either spend that night in Adelaide,
then head out to Clare or Wilpena; or do your 7-day Sydney section
first before heading off to Adelaide. That way you will be well over
jet lag by the time you continue, and you will get a feel for the
"drive on the left" system.

So, presuming you specifically want those destinations, I'd recommend:

Sydney first 7 days, SA (consider changing at ADL for KI on arrival,
do KI, then back to Clare, or Wilpena etc), then Adelaide, then the
North. At the end, fly from Cairns to Sydney and do an overnight in
Sydney before heading home.


Cheers, Alan

First bit of advice I'd give is change the format of your dates -
Australia uses the convention day/month/year, you'll run into trouble using
the USA standard if you don't watch out!
You'll be extremely jet-lagged on arrival in Adelaide, far better to start
in Sydney as Alan has said elsewhere.
Hard to know what you mean by a better location for the hotels you've
described, Menzies is most centrally located for public transport. The
Russell may have problems, it can be very noisy in the Rocks area of Sydney
on weekends.
See www.tripadvisor.com for hotel reviews. www.travelmate.com.au is useful
for trip planning within Australia.

Regards

David Bennetts
Australia

Note the pickup point they give you at Adelaide - we're off next week
and there is a hefty premium if you collect at the airport rather than
the city centre.
Have fun!
Phil



BH wrote:
This will be our first trip to Australia. We are both 30 years old.
Looking for comments on schedule and hotels. We don't need anything
fancy - location is more important. I am particularly concerned about
the hotels and the amount of time spent in each location. We like to
snorkel, hike, etc.

4/15/05
Leave ORD

4/17:
Arrive Sydney,immediately depart to Adelaide
Pickup rental 4x4 in Adelaide
Drive to Quality Resort Clare Country Club for night

4/18:
Drive to and explore Wilpena Pound - hiking, etc. Anything else
interested to do here?
Stay at Wilpena Pound Resort for 2 nights

4/20:
Drive back to Adelaide, return car, and spend night at Rydges South
Park Adelaide

4/21:
Fly for 2 day / 1 night (w/nocturnal tour) for tour of Kangaroo Island
with Adventure Charters

4/22:
Fly back to Adelaide. Spend 2 nights at Rydges South Park Adelaide.

4/24:
Fly to Cairns. Pick up rental car and drive to Port Douglas. Spend 4
nights at Bay Villas Resort. Spend one day doing the DainTree Explorer
tour. Spend some time snorkelling and on beach.

4/28:
Drive back to Cairns, drop of rental car, spend 2 nights at Cairns
Colonial Club Resort. Has anyone stayed here? I have heard bad things
about it's location - but it was recommended by travel agent.

4/30:
Fly to Sydney. Spend 7 nights at the Sydney Menzies Acor. I have
heard good things about this hotel's location. Is this true? We would
like to hike in the blue mountains, do the bridge climb, ferry, etc.
Is this too much time in Sydney?

5/7:
Fly back home!


Any comments are more than welcome!

Adelaide city was designed on a square mile. you will be in the South West
corner of that so not too far to walk, depending what you want to look at.
But the art gallery museum Casino and much of the entertainment is in the
North of the city. The Hyatt, the Hilton or Stamford Plaza would be closer to
the action Here is a map that you can move around on
http://www.street-directory.com.au/aus_new/index.cgi



"BH" wrote in message
oups.com...
This will be our first trip to Australia. We are both 30 years old.
Looking for comments on schedule and hotels. We don't need anything
fancy - location is more important. I am particularly concerned about
the hotels and the amount of time spent in each location. We like to
snorkel, hike, etc.

4/15/05
Leave ORD

4/17:
Arrive Sydney,immediately depart to Adelaide
Pickup rental 4x4 in Adelaide
Drive to Quality Resort Clare Country Club for night

4/18:
Drive to and explore Wilpena Pound - hiking, etc. Anything else
interested to do here?
Stay at Wilpena Pound Resort for 2 nights

4/20:
Drive back to Adelaide, return car, and spend night at Rydges South
Park Adelaide

4/21:
Fly for 2 day / 1 night (w/nocturnal tour) for tour of Kangaroo Island
with Adventure Charters

4/22:
Fly back to Adelaide. Spend 2 nights at Rydges South Park Adelaide.

4/24:
Fly to Cairns. Pick up rental car and drive to Port Douglas. Spend 4
nights at Bay Villas Resort. Spend one day doing the DainTree Explorer
tour. Spend some time snorkelling and on beach.

4/28:
Drive back to Cairns, drop of rental car, spend 2 nights at Cairns
Colonial Club Resort. Has anyone stayed here? I have heard bad things
about it's location - but it was recommended by travel agent.

4/30:
Fly to Sydney. Spend 7 nights at the Sydney Menzies Acor. I have
heard good things about this hotel's location. Is this true? We would
like to hike in the blue mountains, do the bridge climb, ferry, etc.
Is this too much time in Sydney?

5/7:
Fly back home!


Any comments are more than welcome!

"Waz" wrote in message
...
Adelaide city was designed on a square mile. you will be in the South West
corner of that so not too far to walk, depending what you want to look at.
But the art gallery museum Casino and much of the entertainment is in the
North of the city. The Hyatt, the Hilton or Stamford Plaza would be closer
to
the action Here is a map that you can move around on
http://www.street-directory.com.au/aus_new/index.cgi



"BH" wrote in message
oups.com...
This will be our first trip to Australia. We are both 30 years old.
Looking for comments on schedule and hotels. We don't need anything
fancy - location is more important. I am particularly concerned about
the hotels and the amount of time spent in each location. We like to
snorkel, hike, etc.

4/15/05
Leave ORD

4/17:
Arrive Sydney,immediately depart to Adelaide
Pickup rental 4x4 in Adelaide
Drive to Quality Resort Clare Country Club for night

4/18:
Drive to and explore Wilpena Pound - hiking, etc. Anything else
interested to do here?
Stay at Wilpena Pound Resort for 2 nights

4/20:
Drive back to Adelaide, return car, and spend night at Rydges South
Park Adelaide

4/21:
Fly for 2 day / 1 night (w/nocturnal tour) for tour of Kangaroo Island
with Adventure Charters

4/22:
Fly back to Adelaide. Spend 2 nights at Rydges South Park Adelaide.

4/24:
Fly to Cairns. Pick up rental car and drive to Port Douglas. Spend 4
nights at Bay Villas Resort. Spend one day doing the DainTree Explorer
tour. Spend some time snorkelling and on beach.

4/28:
Drive back to Cairns, drop of rental car, spend 2 nights at Cairns
Colonial Club Resort. Has anyone stayed here? I have heard bad things
about it's location - but it was recommended by travel agent.

4/30:
Fly to Sydney. Spend 7 nights at the Sydney Menzies Acor. I have
heard good things about this hotel's location. Is this true? We would
like to hike in the blue mountains, do the bridge climb, ferry, etc.
Is this too much time in Sydney?

5/7:
Fly back home!


Any comments are more than welcome!

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
Opinions are like , you know what , but you did ask for em , so for what
its worth , here goes .

Unless you have some sentimental reason then I would ask , why so much
time in Adelaide ? . If you want to fly from Sydney to Adelaide to see
Wilpena Pound and Kangaroo island then go for it , but , check em out then
get out , that's my advice , also , look closely at being on kangaroo island
for two days . Personally after seeing what I wanted around Adelaide , I
would take around 2 or 3 days and drive from Adelaide to Melbourne along the
coast road , check it out here - an old post but worth reading ,
http://www.backpackeressentials.com....s/article1.htm
Then from Melbourne I would fly to Cairns . Between staying in Cairns and
Port Douglas you will
have a great time , ( I think it is still their wet season when you are
there )check out Green Island , Fitzroy Island , take a ride on the Cairns
Cableway and
return on the Kuranda train ( or vice versa ) .Diving , Mountain bike riding
,
Hiking , White water kayaking , Rainforests , this area has it all .
Remember
, you don't need to go far offshore to get good diving . I wouldn't worry
too much about the accommodation in Cairns , the place
isn't that big . Port Douglas is also not very big but it is pretty much a
tourist town . Is 7 days too much in Sydney ? , again my personal opinion is
yes it is too long , but if you wanted you could
spend 7 days hiking in the Blue Mountains alone so I guess it just depends
how you spend it . Make sure you get the standard tourist photo of the opera
house and bridge in the same shot :-)

Hope haven't confused you , I know I most likely have .
How I would REALLY do it -
Fly Sydney to Melbourne , drive from Melbourne to Adelaide along coast , do
my stuff around Adelaide then fly Adelaide to Cairns etc .

but hey what would I know I'm from Perth

.................................................. ...........................
...............................

There is a free city loop bus... ask at the hotel for location of nearest
stop
Other buses go along West Tce,. toward city centre.
Stop on West Tce near that hotel is outside the gates of
West Tce.Cemetery across road from Hotel and north 100 metres
John
"+q" wrote in message ...

"Waz" wrote in message
...
Adelaide city was designed on a square mile. you will be in the South
West
corner of that so not too far to walk, depending what you want to look
at.
But the art gallery museum Casino and much of the entertainment is in
the
North of the city. The Hyatt, the Hilton or Stamford Plaza would be
closer
to
the action Here is a map that you can move around on
http://www.street-directory.com.au/aus_new/index.cgi



"BH" wrote in message
oups.com...
This will be our first trip to Australia. We are both 30 years old.
Looking for comments on schedule and hotels. We don't need anything
fancy - location is more important. I am particularly concerned about
the hotels and the amount of time spent in each location. We like to
snorkel, hike, etc.

4/15/05
Leave ORD

4/17:
Arrive Sydney,immediately depart to Adelaide
Pickup rental 4x4 in Adelaide
Drive to Quality Resort Clare Country Club for night

4/18:
Drive to and explore Wilpena Pound - hiking, etc. Anything else
interested to do here?
Stay at Wilpena Pound Resort for 2 nights

4/20:
Drive back to Adelaide, return car, and spend night at Rydges South
Park Adelaide

4/21:
Fly for 2 day / 1 night (w/nocturnal tour) for tour of Kangaroo Island
with Adventure Charters

4/22:
Fly back to Adelaide. Spend 2 nights at Rydges South Park Adelaide.

4/24:
Fly to Cairns. Pick up rental car and drive to Port Douglas. Spend 4
nights at Bay Villas Resort. Spend one day doing the DainTree
Explorer
tour. Spend some time snorkelling and on beach.

4/28:
Drive back to Cairns, drop of rental car, spend 2 nights at Cairns
Colonial Club Resort. Has anyone stayed here? I have heard bad
things
about it's location - but it was recommended by travel agent.

4/30:
Fly to Sydney. Spend 7 nights at the Sydney Menzies Acor. I have
heard good things about this hotel's location. Is this true? We
would
like to hike in the blue mountains, do the bridge climb, ferry, etc.
Is this too much time in Sydney?

5/7:
Fly back home!


Any comments are more than welcome!

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
Opinions are like , you know what , but you did ask for em , so for what
its worth , here goes .

Unless you have some sentimental reason then I would ask , why so much
time in Adelaide ? . If you want to fly from Sydney to Adelaide to see
Wilpena Pound and Kangaroo island then go for it , but , check em out then
get out , that's my advice , also , look closely at being on kangaroo
island
for two days . Personally after seeing what I wanted around Adelaide , I
would take around 2 or 3 days and drive from Adelaide to Melbourne along
the
coast road , check it out here - an old post but worth reading ,
http://www.backpackeressentials.com....s/article1.htm
Then from Melbourne I would fly to Cairns . Between staying in Cairns and
Port Douglas you will
have a great time , ( I think it is still their wet season when you are
there )check out Green Island , Fitzroy Island , take a ride on the Cairns
Cableway and
return on the Kuranda train ( or vice versa ) .Diving , Mountain bike
riding
,
Hiking , White water kayaking , Rainforests , this area has it all .
Remember
, you don't need to go far offshore to get good diving . I wouldn't worry
too much about the accommodation in Cairns , the place
isn't that big . Port Douglas is also not very big but it is pretty much a
tourist town . Is 7 days too much in Sydney ? , again my personal opinion
is
yes it is too long , but if you wanted you could
spend 7 days hiking in the Blue Mountains alone so I guess it just depends
how you spend it . Make sure you get the standard tourist photo of the
opera
house and bridge in the same shot :-)

Hope haven't confused you , I know I most likely have .
How I would REALLY do it -
Fly Sydney to Melbourne , drive from Melbourne to Adelaide along coast ,
do
my stuff around Adelaide then fly Adelaide to Cairns etc .

but hey what would I know I'm from Perth


.................................................. ...........................
..............................

Have you considered coming to Western Australia?
It seems a pity coming all that way and missing a large part of
Australia. You can get a small apartment in Perth from the Duke's
Apartments, see the website at http://www.dukesapartments.com/ . These
are all located in the centre of the city and on the free city bus
route.


John H wrote:
There is a free city loop bus... ask at the hotel for location of
nearest
stop
Other buses go along West Tce,. toward city centre.
Stop on West Tce near that hotel is outside the gates of
West Tce.Cemetery across road from Hotel and north 100 metres
John
"+q" wrote in message
...

"Waz" wrote in message
...
Adelaide city was designed on a square mile. you will be in the
South
West
corner of that so not too far to walk, depending what you want to
look
at.
But the art gallery museum Casino and much of the entertainment
is in
the
North of the city. The Hyatt, the Hilton or Stamford Plaza would
be
closer
to
the action Here is a map that you can move around on
http://www.street-directory.com.au/aus_new/index.cgi



"BH" wrote in message
oups.com...
This will be our first trip to Australia. We are both 30 years
old.
Looking for comments on schedule and hotels. We don't need
anything
fancy - location is more important. I am particularly
concerned about
the hotels and the amount of time spent in each location. We
like to
snorkel, hike, etc.

4/15/05
Leave ORD

4/17:
Arrive Sydney,immediately depart to Adelaide
Pickup rental 4x4 in Adelaide
Drive to Quality Resort Clare Country Club for night

4/18:
Drive to and explore Wilpena Pound - hiking, etc. Anything
else
interested to do here?
Stay at Wilpena Pound Resort for 2 nights

4/20:
Drive back to Adelaide, return car, and spend night at Rydges
South
Park Adelaide

4/21:
Fly for 2 day / 1 night (w/nocturnal tour) for tour of Kangaroo
Island
with Adventure Charters

4/22:
Fly back to Adelaide. Spend 2 nights at Rydges South Park
Adelaide.

4/24:
Fly to Cairns. Pick up rental car and drive to Port Douglas.
Spend 4
nights at Bay Villas Resort. Spend one day doing the DainTree
Explorer
tour. Spend some time snorkelling and on beach.

4/28:
Drive back to Cairns, drop of rental car, spend 2 nights at
Cairns
Colonial Club Resort. Has anyone stayed here? I have heard
bad
things
about it's location - but it was recommended by travel agent.

4/30:
Fly to Sydney. Spend 7 nights at the Sydney Menzies Acor. I
have
heard good things about this hotel's location. Is this true?
We
would
like to hike in the blue mountains, do the bridge climb, ferry,
etc.
Is this too much time in Sydney?

5/7:
Fly back home!


Any comments are more than welcome!

'''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''
Opinions are like , you know what , but you did ask for em , so
for what
its worth , here goes .

Unless you have some sentimental reason then I would ask , why so
much
time in Adelaide ? . If you want to fly from Sydney to Adelaide to
see
Wilpena Pound and Kangaroo island then go for it , but , check em
out then
get out , that's my advice , also , look closely at being on
kangaroo
island
for two days . Personally after seeing what I wanted around
Adelaide , I
would take around 2 or 3 days and drive from Adelaide to Melbourne
along
the
coast road , check it out here - an old post but worth reading ,

http://www.backpackeressentials.com....s/article1.htm
Then from Melbourne I would fly to Cairns . Between staying in
Cairns and
Port Douglas you will
have a great time , ( I think it is still their wet season when
you are
there )check out Green Island , Fitzroy Island , take a ride on the
Cairns
Cableway and
return on the Kuranda train ( or vice versa ) .Diving , Mountain
bike
riding
,
Hiking , White water kayaking , Rainforests , this area has it all
..
Remember
, you don't need to go far offshore to get good diving . I wouldn't
worry
too much about the accommodation in Cairns , the place
isn't that big . Port Douglas is also not very big but it is pretty
much a
tourist town . Is 7 days too much in Sydney ? , again my personal
opinion
is
yes it is too long , but if you wanted you could
spend 7 days hiking in the Blue Mountains alone so I guess it just
depends
how you spend it . Make sure you get the standard tourist photo of
the
opera
house and bridge in the same shot :-)

Hope haven't confused you , I know I most likely have .
How I would REALLY do it -
Fly Sydney to Melbourne , drive from Melbourne to Adelaide along
coast ,
do
my stuff around Adelaide then fly Adelaide to Cairns etc .

but hey what would I know I'm from Perth



.................................................. ...........................
..............................