Aussie Holiday, need input
 

Looking at dragging the family down under for surf holiday. LAX to Brisbane, then Noosa to Cairns for waves. Need to try and keep the wife and daughter occupied. Son and I can just surf and maybe do some family stuff between sessions. Window is late March to mid April. Thx.

Hope you get to Sydney. One of the nicest cities in the world...

Right outside of Brisbane is where Steve Irwins' (The Crocodile Hunter) zoo is. It is really more of an open air animal preserve then a zoo but that's what they call it. When my wife and I visited after the Olympics we had a great time there and I normally HATE zoos. I also have to vote for visiting Sydney. One of the nicest places I've ever been. I wold have moved there of they didn't have arcane quarantine laws for Dogs!

Have fun down under!
Michael

Jim,

+1 on Australia Zoo. I'm not a surfer or a Queenslander although I've spent a lot of time up there (we're in Victoria; 2 states down!).

Why not post this is in the Aussie regional site on the board? I am sure you'll get lots of ideas from the locals that way :).

Hopefully the coast would have recovered from the battering its had weatherwise of late by the time you're over. SouthEast Qld and the Northern parts of NSW are in a state of emergency at the moment. Record floods; lots of damage :(.

Cheers,

Lisa

If you want to surf, there are no waves much beyond Noosa.

Not much surf in Cairns. The black sand on the beach is pretty cool.

If you want to dive the GBR this is a good jump off point though. Pretty low key town too. Atleast when I went in the mid 90's.

All the usual Sydney sights are nice but the aquarium is the best I've ever seen. Go EARLY and avoid the crowds.

Noosa is very nice but also (as you may know) pretty cosmopolitan. A nice beach but nothing great IMO. Very nice houses for rent at (by our standards) low rates. Very nice restaurants. Good shopping.

If you're looking for something a little more Australian try Byron Bay instead. You can buy back that bong you lost years ago. And there is the famous "Bli-Bli" Castle (Americana corny Australian style).

Up North there's so much I don't know what to say.

Lower North:
Drive down to Mission Beach and try to find a Cassowary. Take a day trip to Dunk Island or around the "Twins" and Bederra (a wonderful but pricey place in itself). Stop at Josephine Falls and Innisfail.

Middle North: All the wonders off Cairns. Catering a lot to Japanese now and much more touristy than it used to be but still wonderful. Go out to Mareeba- there's the largest privately owned airplane museum (a very nice bloke and his wife)- and that's where the outback starts. There are the Atherton tablelands and all the lakes. Or drive North from Mareeba up to Mossman (now you're in the far North) for beautiful scenery and amazing termite mounds.

Up North visit Mossman- it's still Australian. Visit Daintree and see the Crocs live. (a beauty of a swimming hole mate). Cross the Daintree to see the Forest (VERY narrow roads- no railing- one of the most harrowing drives I've taken- in the pouring rain) and drive up to Cape Tribuation and see some frog races. You can rent nice beach houses just south of there or just go for walks along the beach. Stop and watch the hug cane reapers and turn off side roads to see the cane trains.

You're in for a wonderful trip to one of may favorite parts of the world. Let me know if I can answer anything else- and ENJOY!

one point of caution- up north I do not swim in the ocean except in netted areas- even out of season. The irikijinis and box jelly fish can kill you- and the former can go through the nets. Swim in pools or in inland rivers (like at Josephine falls). "Seek local knowledge" as they say.

Good info!!! Thx...now I've found a couple of real time beach cams at Kirra and Snapper...now I'm really Jonesin'
SmileWavy

Some more info here.

http://www.snapperrocks.com/