Help with Australia - Family Holiday

[srhutch]

I might have the chance to get myself and the family to Australia next year. Would be for 2 weeks and have to fly Virgin Atlantic so destinations as follows, Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Gold Coast, Melbourne, Perth or Sydney.

Question is where would be the best destination bearing in mind we have two 10 year old girls.

Also considered New Zealand but think there will be more to do in Aus.

Any help appreciated as I might have to move on this quick.

[A1GSS]

I've only been to NZ so can't comment on how it compares to Oz, but if you're down there anyway I'd recommend you try and get some time in NZ. Whales, sailing, walking, beaches, kiting, volcanoes and mud springs, wildlife, jet-boats, cool cities and stunning isolation.

[AlienZed]

Hi bud .can only comment on brisbane.our sons been there3 yrs an we went last year.hes at narangba 30 mins out of Brisbane.which was a great city also from there not far to subshine coast or south to gold coast for the waterparks great beaches all round .we went for 4 weeks an could have stayed longer.
Moz

[pvr]

Nice opportunity.

Quite a lot of my family has been to Australia recently as well as NZ, but the general consensus is that NZ is far nicer (guess it helps that you don't have to fly 6 hours to see the next house down the road ….).

I would quite happily skip Australia and just do NZ.

[marchantsuk]

Depends on time of year, can you do 2 cities? If so I would go Sydney, you can't go to Australia and not see the Opera house and do the harbour bridge walk. Second choice would be Perth, great city nice beaches lots to see.

[Lynchy]

Hi Steve,I've just come back from Australia and what a wonderful experience.My wife and I and our two kids 16 and 19 stayed in a little place called Redcliffe just 25 mins North of Brisbane.We rented a 3 double bedroom apartment overlooking the beach.We have friends that live in Albany Creek so on the days we were not with them they were able to advise us on where to go.I was meant to do a write up but haven't got around to doing it.
The beaches are amazing,Noosa,Currimundi Lake, Bribie Island are well worth going to.We also jet ski-ed down at Surfers Paradise and Visited Australia Zoo which the late Steve Irwin opened .Sydney by all accounts is very very busy.Driving out there was a doddle,my wife rented a Tom Tom off of Ebay for about £25 with Australian maps on it.If I can help or advise don't hesitate to ask.

[wilbo]

Plenty to do in and around Sydney, amazing city combined with beautiful beaches, lots of water activities, open spaces and easy to get around. Second choice would be Brisbane as its only an hour from Gold coast with its amusement parks, wouldn't stay in Gold Cost, its full of stag and hen parties.

[original guvnor]

NZ is an awfully long way to go if you're only going for two weeks.

[srhutch]

NZ is an awfully long way to go if you're only going for two weeks.

Both are a long way for two weeks, on the up side though we are not paying for the flights if it comes off.

[Lynchy]

Go to Australia! We only went for two weeks and it was fine.

[TitanTim]

2 weeks is very little for Australia its a ginormous country, I spent 6 weeks after saving all my work leave and even then it was struggle to do what I wanted to do. Sydney and the Blue Mountains is a must do, but I then flew upto Cairns and the Barrier Reef and lastly did Brisbane but it was all flying and pretty exhausting. I think 2 weeks will only be enough for one city and bit of exploring otherwise you can easily run yourself ragged. I have a alot of relatives out there and really didn't want to come back to the UK, its a fabulous country and would love to emigrate out there, OZ people I found super friendly and Sydney I found very vibrant, great seafood restautants around Sydney Harbour. I stayed in Elizabeth Bay as found accommodation a little cheaper but easy to travel back into the city etc. All round a great place, I was pretty miserable for weeks when I came back here.

Tim.

[CornishRob]

I went out there for a day's work about 3 years ago. i ended up being there for 2 weeks, but it is a long way! I went to Mackay, so took 3 flights to get there. Small place, mainly mining etc.

I would like to go back and explore properly.

[GAZA62]

What time of year are you thinking of going as they do have a winter plus Queensland and Northern Australia have a wet season.

[Toe-side]

We went with our 2 sons when they were 11 and 13.
We did Sydney (plenty to do see and we did the Bridge climb)
Ullaru to see the rock. Conditions are brutal out there, scenery is harsh but lovely.
Cairns and swam off the barrier reef etc
I found the Ozzies to be great very friendly and respectful.
We did NZ on another trip. Yes the scenery is great but I enjoyed Australia better for what its worth (sorry Kiwi's)

[sars]

Wherever you go I'm sure you will have a wonderful time, yes as Tim says, the time you spend there will never be long enough, but isn't that true about everywhere, well with the exception of Belgium

Just remember that the further North you go the more humid it becomes. I went with work for a week and stayed in a place called Glenelg, which is 6 miles from Adelaide and it is beautiful.



We caught a flight back to the UK from Melbourne and drove the 500 odd miles there from Adelaide and it's a great way to see the Country, with a few hours to kill before check-in we parked just outside the airport and spent the time sitting in a park. The park had some facilities, that could be best described as a shack and whilst sitting minding my own business in a cubicle I noticed lots of spider webs, one in particular catching my eye, it looked kinda like a funnel......................agh.........