Australia

Whenever I travel I try to stay in local places, or fun places… Here is a list of places I stayed in Australia:

• Cairns – Tropical Heritage –  Not the newest hotel I’ve stayed at but acceptable.  Rooms are dated but large and clean with a coffee bar and milk in the refrigerator.  The location is close enough to downtown to walk but it is more that 3 blocks.  You can also walk to the port from the hotel.  Breakfast is basic with some fruit, toast, and a cereal selection.  Not worth the money to me.
• Sydney – Simpsons of Potts Point –  A fun Heritage hotel in a good location.  Withing walking distance of the Opera House, the Port, and the Bay Bridge.  The true highlight of the hotel is the staff as they are extremely helpful, fun to talk with, and have a great grasp of the area.  The room was normal sized with nice furniture and a good bed.  Coffee was available in the room and breakfast was quite good.  Parking is limited so make sure you inform the owners that you have a car prior to arrival.  I would very much recommend this Hotel.
• Narooma – Anchors Aweigh Bed and Breakfast –  A small bed and breakfast just to the south of Narooma’s small downtown.  The rooms are small but nice with a coffee bar in them.  The owners are kind and helpful. The breakfast here was exceptional. Several places to eat and look around are within walking distance.  There is plenty of parking on sight.
• Lakes Entrance – Best Western Coastal Waters Inn  – A small hotel right on the highway.  The room was quite large and clean with a coffee bar and milk in the refrigerator.  It is not within walking distance of the downtown area but it is a short drive.  There is plenty of parking on sight. There are many restaurants in town to eat at and a few small shops.
• Melbourne – Somerset on Elizabeth – A very large downtown hotel in Melbourne.  The rooms are quite large with nice furniture and a coffee bar with milk in the refrigerator.  The location is quite good as it is right downtown however parking is very limited and the use of a valet is 35aud.  It is important to note that this city stays very active until late in the night and the hotel location is right downtown so it can be quite noisy.

I had so much fun in Australia.  Here is a brief rundown of the things I did:

• SCUBA on the great barrier reef – What an amazing dream come true.  I really enjoyed scuba here and would highly recommend that you do it too!  I used a company called Tusa 6 who did a good job.  We divided into groups of 5 or 6 so it wasn’t a huge amount of people going together.  BLOG POST
• Visit Heartley’s Crocodile Adventure – Maybe the most fun thing we did in Australia.  We took the zootastic and the big croc feeding tours.  Both of them were worth the money although they were VERY expensive.  You will get a close up experience with Koalas, Wombats, Walabees, Kangaroos, and Crocodiles.  All of which were very fun.  BLOG POST
• Attend a concert at the Sydney Opera House – I thought it would be an amazing experience but it was less that stellar as the acoustics inside the opera house are awful.
• Drive the Great Ocean Road – This road starts in Sydney and stretches all the way to Perth.  We drove it to Melbourne which was really fun.  it takes you by so many amazing places along the coast.  Take your time to see the small towns and the natural wonders along the way.  If i could do it over I’d add at least one more day, and even more days if i could drive past Melbourne.
• See wild Kangaroos – Check out pebble beach along the Great Ocean Road in order to see them up close. BLOG POST
• See wild Koalas – There is a sanctuary on Phillips Island where the koala bears can come and go as they please. BLOG POST
• Watch a penguin parade – Also in Phillips Island watching the penguins walk up from the ocean and then socialize with one another was quite interesting.  Although you aren’t allowed to take pictures… BOO!

There are so many amazing places to visit in Australia.  Here are a few of the ones i saw:

• Sydney Opera House and Bay Bridge
• Pebble Beach 
• Disaster Bay Overlook
• Pancake rocks
• Royal National Park
• Phillip Island
• Great Barrier Reef

Australia has so much to offer it is tough to narrow down the things that were amazing.  Here is a short list of things I think you should see while in India:

• Pebbely Beach –  A nice beach area with camping and huts near by.  Also many kangaroos running around wild in the beach as well as Lorikeets
• Sorriso Italian Restaurant, Narooma – The food here was excellent.  One of the better places to eat on our trip.  Pizza was only ok but the pasta dishes are exceptional.
• Disaster Bay Lookout and Green Cape Lighthouse – Off the beaten path you can see disaster bay quite well from the view point.  At the right time of year you may be able to see whales migrating by.  The lighthouse offers a tour as well as accommodations if you are interested.  The road to this area is dirt and quite long.  But the views are worth it.
• Koala Conversation Center, Phillips Isalnd – This place was super fun!  There is a boardwalk that takes you all around and you can get up close to wild koala bears in their natural environment.
• Heartley’s Crocadile Adventure – One of the biggest highlights of the trip.  If you are in the area don’t miss this fun place.  We took the zootastic and big croc feeding tours which were both very fun and worth the money.  It isn’t cheap so don’t expect to just sneak by here without dropping some money.  BLOG POST  
• Great Barrier Reef – A must see in Cairns.  This amazing place teems with life and amazing sea creatures.  It is better to dive than snorkel but the snorkeling isn’t bad either!  Go see it!  BLOG POST

As with every trip there are always things you wish you hadn’t wasted your time doing.  Here are a few:

• Concert at the Sydney Opera House – The opera house is best experienced as a tourist.  The acoustics aren’t great inside and unless you just want to be able to say you’ve been to a concert there I’d just take the tour and skip the rest.
• Hungry Jack’s – Its Burger King.  It isn’t very good and you can find better places for the same price.

A few parting thoughts:

• You can acquire your Australian Visa online.  It isn’t expensive and a great idea to do in advance to avoid lines.  Here is a link that will show you where to get started:  Australian Visa
• There is NO tipping in Australia.  They are very proud of the fact that they pay their employees a fair wage.
• Prices are fixed in Australia.  We did not encounter any areas where you would bargain.
• They drive on the left side. If you aren’t comfortable driving a right hand drive car then don’t rent one.  The roads are windy and rain makes them quite slick. Sydney is a very large town and has a lot of traffic. That being said driving is a WONDERFUL way to see this amazing and beautiful country.  We used  Apex Car Rental because they had no relocation fees. Although we got a better price from a third party website.
• Gifts and trinkets are cheaper in Cairns.  Shopping for souviners around the Opera house or in Sydney is going to be a pricy experiance.  Most things were a lot less expencive in Cairns at the night market.  There were NO souviner shops on the great ocean road as it isn’t a touristy thing to do.  So do your shopping in Cairns.