# I want to go to Australia (some day). What advice do you have? What are must-do things? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 29, 2020, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177 "2020-10-29T04:42:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Wallaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/dc4da7/32.png) [@Wallaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallaby)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2020, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/42 "2020-11-02T20:46:26Z")
Melbournian here - the pronunciation is a bit tricky - I would describe it as “Melb’n” - the last syllable is barely pronounced. Definitely not ‘Melborn’. RE the OP: As many have said, it’s a big country (actually bigger than the continental US). Since you basically have to fly between Melbourne-Sydney-Cairns, each of those trips acounts for a day of your holiday - by the time you pack up, leave the hotel, travel to airport with luggage, check-in etc, and then do the same at the other end, you probably only have time to grab a drink at the hotel bar befre dinner. So you do not want to do too many of those. I suggest 5-6 days in one of the big cities to do all the museums, zoos, art and culture, Old Historic Gold-mining re-creation (all cities have variations on these), and then 5-6 days in the ‘Natural Wonder of your choice’ - Cairns and the reef, Uluru and the outback, Kimberleys or Darwin/Kakadu. But don’t forget Tassie - great place to drive around for a week or so. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2020, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/43 "2020-11-03T02:41:58Z")
Teaser … > **[Aussie trivia questions: Fun facts about Australia | escape.com.au](https://www.escape.com.au/destinations/australia/59-things-no-one-told-you-about-australia/image-gallery/a9fda662a94294eaa57870d8be40acc6?nk=da4ab75c8b1c1224c31bb41f844d09e2-1675945223)** > > Australia isn’t a destination – it’s a journey. And post-lockdown, it’s an adventure. But do we really have a 'big wide' knowledge of our 'big wide' land?  Here's a dusty swag full of trivia to get you started, from world heritage sites to goon... ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2020, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/44 "2020-11-03T03:17:52Z")
I don’t have any recommendations to add, but wanted to say that I had a fantastic time in my two visits (totaling about a month) to Oz. I spent 4 days in Tasmania at Cradle Mountain and Freycinet National Park, then went on to visit Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Melbourne, Adelaide/Glenelg, drove the Great Ocean Road, road tripped in WA from Perth to Pemberton to the Stirlings and up to Exmouth and spent a few days in Alice, Kings Canyon and Uluru. Just an amazing place full of natural beauty and friendly folks everywhere. I would go back in a heartbeat to in order to explore the east coast and head up to Cairns. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2020, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/45 "2020-11-03T11:36:57Z")
Firstly forget WA (Perth, Fremantle). Yes they are great but the tough and realistic advice is that in two weeks you won’t have the time. You will lose two days just getting there and back. UK people often go to WA but they are coming from the other direction. Crocodiles stop at about Gladstone. From about there and northward, the beaches and marine stingers and crocodiles start and the beaches stop. The dangerous crocodiles (salties) stop after the first serious waterfall. Swimming in creeks and streams above that is OK. People go to Cairns expecting beaches but are disappointed. Cairns is about going offshore to the Reef and islands. Same with every other coastal town from Cairns to Noosa. From about Noosa south the beaches start, and go all the way to Melbourne. They are the best in the world. I’ve travelled to lots of famous beaches around the world and had to bite my tongue and not appear ungracious by saying “yeah, but this is crap compared to a third rate Australian east coast beach”. However, we have a fairly strong tradition of beaches being free, public and egalitarian, and tropical drinks being brought to you on a tray doesn’t fit into that, sorry. Topless? When I was a teen there were occasional topless women on popular family beaches, and away from the crowd probably over 50% of women were topless. Times have changed. It’s rare now. Some beaches popular with European backpackers maybe (Byron Bay, ). I agree with others about the major cities - Sydney around the harbour is very attractive but other than that it’s, like, a modern city. Melbourne is a bit more cultural but other than that it’s, like, a modern city. Australia’s geography is more interesting than its cities, really. Tasmania fantastic, but quite unlike the rest of Australia. You could spend two weeks there, alone, easily. ---
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2020, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/46 "2020-11-04T21:01:18Z")
Sigh. I feel like I’m at a restaurant with far too much on the menu. I just don’t know what delicious meal to choose. Fortunately, this is all just speculation right now and the waiter isn’t standing there impatiently. Are there any reputable tour operators that have organized tours of these areas? I think we would mostly be interested in a tour that has a mix of foreigners and Australians, rather than a group that just caters to Americans. We’re not there to meet Americans, after all. ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/47 "2020-11-05T04:43:54Z")
I’m somewhat in the same situation as you, as I have never been but definitely want to go to Australia. I am thinking that two weeks is far too short for a once in a lifetime trip. If you can swing a longer trip since your schedule at home doesn’t have constraints set by school years and such, adding a few weeks to the trip, even at the expense of lower food and accommodation budgets, is probably well worth considering. That being said, my style is to rent a car and take some chances on places to stay if needed. ---
**Author:** ![kitap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@kitap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitap)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/48 "2020-11-05T06:45:06Z")
> [@Drum\_God](#): > > Sigh. > > I feel like I’m at a restaurant with far too much on the menu. I just don’t know what delicious meal to choose. Fortunately, this is all just speculation right now and the waiter isn’t standing there impatiently. > > Are there any reputable tour operators that have organized tours of these areas? I think we would mostly be interested in a tour that has a mix of foreigners and Australians, rather than a group that just caters to Americans. We’re not there to meet Americans, after all. If you belong to AAA they often have travel company brochures to look at. It’s how we ended up on the Monograms 9 night tour of Rome, Florence and Venice. Here’s A list of Monograms tours of Australia: [Guided Tours - Globus Europe Tours](https://monograms.com/booking/Monograms/packages.aspx?country=australia) ---
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/49 "2020-11-05T17:41:27Z")
Thank you for that link. It looks like there may be some really good ideas in there. I like the mix of structured activities and free time. That may suit our traveling style, where we need a push to keep to a schedule or plan, but enjoy free time as well. ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2020, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/50 "2020-11-05T20:48:18Z")
> [@Drum\_God](#): > > Are there any reputable tour operators that have organized tours of these areas? This is the company I used in Austraila: > **[Adventure Tours, Small Group Tours & Trips | Adventure Tours Australia](https://www.adventuretours.com.au/)** > > Adventure Tours Australia has tours and trips for active budget travellers. The only thing that we love more than our country is the chance to show it off, so turn your holiday into an adventure with a tour through the Australian landscape. Book... Also the big international tour operators like G Adventures and Intrepid are good. G Adventures I have used before in other parts of the world. Intrepid I have never used but I have heard good things. > [@Drum\_God](#): > > I think we would mostly be interested in a tour that has a mix of foreigners and Australians On my tour I was the only American in the group the entire time. The others were mostly Europeans, with a smattering of folks from other regions. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2020, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/51 "2020-11-11T21:03:52Z")
I was in another thread, and saw this: > [@Best way to get from JFK to Lower Manhattan?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-from-jfk-to-lower-manhattan/767818/18): > > Like he said, of course you need to be aware of your surroundings whether in NY, Los Angeles, London or Paris. … So I came back to add “not in Melbourne”… except when surrounded by drunks in a busy bar (and that’s your choice anyway), you don’t have to be aware of your surroundings in Melbourne. We don’t even have a shark or jellyfish problem. It’s still the case that if you go outback, into the country, you can get a long way away from any kind of rescue, and I wouldn’t go bushwalking by myself. That would be just stupid. But in the _Melbourne_ there isn’t any place I would be afraid of walking at any time without paying any attention. ---
**Author:** ![Tilt-A-Whirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e79b87/32.png) [@Tilt-A-Whirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tilt-A-Whirl)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2020, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177/52 "2020-11-12T05:48:44Z")
Three words: MAD MAX MUSEUM! > **[Mad Max 2 Museum](https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/mad-max-2-museum)** > > This shrine to film's most iconic wasteland wanderer is located in the very outback where the movies were shot. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-want-to-go-to-australia-some-day-what-advice-do-you-have-what-are-must-do-things/924177.md?page=2)