Travel Answers

hi there, we are a family of 2adults and 1child and we are travelling to gold coast in march 2013. we would appreciate if any kind soul could help us in following queries;- 1) how and what is the cheapest mode of transport to get around in gold coast? from airport to surfers paradise around cavil area and getting to theme parks from hotel 2) where and how can we get bus pass for 6 nights stay in gold coast? 3) is there any cheap deals to get hold of theme park tickets as we are planning visit currumbin, sea world, movie world and dreamworld. oh yes and most important of all, the current heat wave that is now happenning in most part of australia, will it be an issue in gold coast. thank you for taking your time in answering my queries. god bless australia, and hope that the current heat wave will ease soon. regards to all...

Hi, Hubby and I are thinking about going to Brisbane for NYE next year or the year after ... and would appreciate any tips for which hotels would have the best rooms with a balcony (big enough to sit out there hopefully with a table) with the best view of the fireworks along the river. Price is not an issue. Thanks in advance!

Hi, I am fortunate enough to be visiting Australia from late Januray 2013 to mid March 2013. I know i will be travelling along the Gold Coast. I plan to travel between Cairns and Melbourne. I'm not sure whether to travel North South or vice versa. If anyone has done this journey in these months please do share any experiences you had. I've looked at the weather the seasons will bring. Wet in the north until March and cooling in the South with the end of summer. I'm curious as to the affect that the weather could have on the trip. As part of the trip is during the summer season will certain places be busier. Any advice appreciated Regards jim

Dear everyone, I am planning to travel to Australia in March/April 2013 and I was wondering whether people have any advice where to go to visit the Great Barrier Reef area for about 7 days. I will be traveling with my boyfriend, we're both in our twenties and we will be without a car. He is an experienced diver, whereas I have never dived before and might just stick to snorkelling! Basically, given our somewhat limited ability to travel once we are there, I was wondering whether people would recommend going to the Whitsunday islands and go on trips from there to the GBR or find a base in Cairns/Port Douglas? What are the relative advantages/disadvantages of the two? Thank you so much for your help and advice - I really appreciate it! :) Anne

I would like drive my car to a place where I can park to take a bus to Kuranda. I would then like to take the sky rail back and be able to walk to my car. It would also work if I could drive to the sky rail, park my car within a reasonable distance of a bus stop, take the sky rail there, and take a public bus back. If this is possible, what is the name of the bus and where do I pick it up? SciKaren

We can spend a total of six days either in Port Douglas/Cairns area or 4 days in Port Douglas/Cairns and fly to Brisbane for 2 days. We are considering Brisbane because my husband prefers more cultural life than beaches, etc. Our trip also includes a week in Sydney and 4 days in Melbourne. I would like some suggestions on things to do in Brisbane that are unique--eg. art museums, historical places, and other cultural events. We will be there in the beginning of March. SciKaren

We are thinking of a sailing holiday in the Whitsunday Islands chartering a yacht from either Abel Point ot Hamilton Island. Can anyone give us information about where we can re-fuel and replenish fresh water on board the boat without returning to either Abel Point or Hamilton Island?

Hi I'm 21female and planning on travelling alone to brisbane and going up the east coast for 3 weeks.Scared of going alone but everyone says how easy it is to meet people in hostels. Is anyone going to be out there or any advice? Thanks

I am looking for one room accommodation for 3 nights of 19th to 22nd January 2013 any body suggest good place at Gold coast. Thanks.

İ have one day at cairns (tomorrow). Which one should i go : Daintree or kuranda

Hi all, I am thinking of travelling to the gold coast with my family of 4.. 2 adults and 2 children ages 7yrs and 6 months. We are torn between November 2013 or February 2014.. when is the best month to travel? idealy it will be mostly a theme park packed holiday, and also a beach holiday, so the weather is a very important factor, as we need it to be warm, for the sea water to be warm too.. also bearing in mind the schoolies and the school holidays.. could someone please advice? Thank you.

Hi, We are a couple in our fifties with one week available at the end of November to spend a relaxing time in Queensland, FNQ, an Island or Fiji or South Pacific island but do not know what to expect weather wise. Not looking to spend the whole week on one resort but like sea, sand, natural attractions, good food and peace and quiet. Budget is mid to high but not exclusive range. Any suggesstions would be appreciated

Hi! As Im gonna visit gold coast for 7-8 days,can anyone tell me what are the top best things i can cover up and visit so as to make this holiday memorable. what about night life ?? thankssss!

Hello everyone we are two girls (students right now) who have family in Brisbane and Syd. We are from Slovenia and we would like to move to Aussie. Can you help us, what we have to do to get visa for Aussie, that we can live and work there? Do we have any benefits if we have family there? Plese help us :) Have a nice evening down under, Ivana&Ivana ;)

Hi all, First post... we will be going to the Gold & Sunshine coast Jan 2013, family with 3 kids 8-12, we would like to know - we have 4 weeks, should we spend half and half or more on the sunshine coast, we will want spend our time relaxing, surfing and shopping, plus seeing the best attractions - will we need a car to get around or can we walk/do public transport, we will have surfboards with us some of the time - what are the top attractions to do, we can't do them all, and how is the cheapest way to do them? - where should we stay on the Goldy and Sunny, the most central location or will a single location on each have it all? thanks

Hi all, it will be my 1st time to Gold Coast this coming October. 1.I would like to know what attractions are worth the money and time? 2.Where can i get a good discount or promotion for the attractions? 3.Which is the best place to do shopping? 4.Also, as its my girl friend's bday, is there any Bakery shop at Surfers Paradise to get a cake, as we will be staying at Watermark Hotel. 5.Also we only have 4 full days for all these, so it would be great if some1 could advise me on my itinerary as mentioned below on how to plan them for the 4 full days i'll be having.Thanks Guys!!!!.... .Dream World .Movie World .Currumbin Wild Life sanctuary .Hot Air Ballooning .Paradise Jet Boating .Shopping

My wife and I are coming to Australia (including five days in Surfers Paradise) next February. What are the names and contact information for running clubs in the area? Thank you.

My wife and I are coming from the United States to Australia in February, 2013. We will spend much of that trip at Surfers Paradise. Where are the best shopping malls in and around Surfers Paradise? We are especially interested in souvenirs, surf sandals, swimsuits (mens and womens) and also surf shops.

Hi, I'm new to this forum and am just getting started on my trip. We land in Brisbane on 14 December and have 9 days to get to Cairns in a motorhome (yes, I know its not long!!) Are there any companies that tailor make itineraries does anyone know or should I be able to fix it up myself? We want to see the main "touristy things" and do a boat trip out to the barrier reef so the children (aged 7, 10 and 13) can snorkel etc. I'm waiting for my destination guides to be delivered so I can get my teeth into sorting out the trip, but thought while I've got a few spare hours I'll start searching for information. We fly from Cairns on 23 Dec to Melbourne to stay with relations for 2 weeks. Any information will be greatly appreciated and will help me to get started. Thanks

Hi, I will arrive in Gold Coast airport with my kids age 10 & 12 on either 9/10 nov and will be spending the first 4 days on our own before my husband arrives on the 13 to join us all the way till 21 Nov. My queries is with regards to the first 4 day : 1. Will it be easy for me to drive around on my own. 2. Which area or recommended apartments should we stay for easy access by shuttle to parks if I am not driving 3. Which weekend market is accessible? thank you Thank you for any useful information

Hi. I live in the Whitsunday area. I love bushwalking or hiking up hills or mountains Ect... Overnighting if need-be. Also enjoy kayaking. I am a male in my forties. I am interested in meeting anyone with the same interests. Who likes participating in these activities for exercise and adventure. I am fit, healthy and easy to get on with. Looking forward to a response from anyone in any age group with same interests.

Who can give some advice? We are a group of four people. We will be arriving at Gold Coast airport on Sep.21，2012 at 7:30am. We would like to know if there is shuffle bus or some other transporation at the airport that can send us to Brisbane city or Brisbane airport. We need to pick up our campervan in Brisbane. (The pick up location is: 21 Industry Court, Eagle Farm, Brisbane, QLD, Australia) Please suggest a cheapest way. Thanks.

Hi everyone, After a conference in Cairns, I will have two weeks holidays. I didn't have the time before to plan precisely what to do. So I am looking for suggestions... Obviously I will go to the greet barrier reef. Then I thought to rent a car and go for Daintree and Cap Tribulation. Afterwards nothing is planned... Usually, when possible, I prefer visiting by myself than with a group tour. I would also like to see the wildlife ( Kangaroo, Crocodile, Platypus (?), ...) in the wild, and have a taste of the Outback. One last thing, I like hiking in the wild, so if there is a place nice and not dangerous I would enjoy a few good hikes. Thanks for any ideas or advices. Camille

Hi, Would welcome a 3/4* hotel recommendation for an overnight stay in Cairns preferably close to the Airport Sunday night in October

Hi there. What airport is closest to fly into from Wellington, New Zealand if we are wanting to go to Woombye, Queensland, Australia and also do we have to get another internal flight once we arrive there Many thanks Nikki

Hi all, After some lots of research about Lake Mungo and Carnarvon Gorge, but it turns out I can't go those places with a hire car. So after all that we changed our whole plan and decided to just head to Uluru and then fly to Cairns and head south. So, I have carved out an itinerary (below) but that last bit in particular is over the top busy. Suggestions would be most welcome. This is a trip in August. PART 1: Melbourne August 4-18: Work in Melbourne, overnight trips to Great ocean highway and Yarra valley wineries. Q1: For great ocean highway would you stay 2 nights or is 1 night enough? We thought we'd drive straight inland to the west and do the drive back towards Melbourne, which seems to be the opposite direction of most people doing it. Sound ok? Q2: Yarra wineries- can it be a daytrip from Melbourne or is overnight needed? PART 2: Uluru Sat August 18 Fly to Uluru, arrive 1 pm. Hire car, drive straight to Kings Canyon, stay the night. Sunday 19th, early crater rim hike, see park, afternoon drive back to Yulara. Monday Uluru Tuesday Kata Tjuta Wednesday see stuff in am, fly at 2 pm to Cairns Q3: Do you think 1 night kings canyon/3 nights Yulara is a good balance? Yulara is SO expensive for seemingly crap lodging. We would camp if we had gear- but we dont. Do you just suck it up and stay in Yulara resort? PART 3: This is where it gets complicated... From Wednesday 22nd pm till Wednesday 29th noon, Cairns to Whitsunday? 7 nights... I have too many things on my list though, can't decide what to eliminate. The ideas were: Daintree Port Douglas/Mossman Mission beach Inland detour for Undara lava caves or charters towers Long drive to Airlie Beach to get to any island on the Whitsundays that we can afford Return car in Townsville (since has a direct flight to sydney) This is obviously too much for 7 nights, especially since we just want to have a few solid relaxed days reading on the beach, taking it easy, walking around... Q4: What to cut from above list? Q5: Is Mission Beach this a good place for my only relaxed beach time in AU? Lots of nice seeming relaxed places to stay there, but is it so great it would represent my AU beach experience? Q6: Are there any islands closer to Townsville/Cairns that really are as lovely as the Whitsundays? I living in Europe and am really looking forward to perfect beaches... So I don't want to give us that island experience. Q7: Is it crazy to drive to Whitsundays from up there in such a short time, then back up to Townsville to return car/fly to Syndey? Thanks so much all, in advance, for your feedback. This forum has been so helpful already- I've read so many posts already, but I just end up with more questions!

Does any can tell me the weather at Gold Coast and Melbourne in september and november? What Clothes do i need tov bring along for this season? thank you and appreciate your help^^

Please can anyone advise us where to stay in Port Douglas, we are from UK visiting family in Brisbane in late Sept & would like to go to the Barrier Reef in middle of Oct. It seems flying is the easiest way to get there & we can see you fly into Cairns but we have been told that Port Douglas is a quieter & possibly nicer place to stay???. My wife will just have had her 60th Birthday & I am 65, we have only been to Australia once before & then we stayed all the time with family but this time we thought it nice to venture off for a week or so on own own, HELP... I would really appreciate any recommendation on reasonably priced B&B's or Hotels etc & any info on where would be the best area to stay. Also any general info on trips etc to Rainforest & Reefs, any tips on saving money would be really valuable ( it seems alot more expensive since we came there 5 yrs ago). Thanks very much any suggestions would be most welcome.

Hi, A family of 8 adults and 1 toddler aged 2 yrs old will be travelling down to Gold Coast from 29 Oct to 5 Nov. We would like to know if there is any cherry or strawberry farm around this period. We will be going to theme parks (Movies World and Sea World) as well. Is there any "buy 1 get 1 free" tickets around that period? We would like to know if Mt Tamborine is worth visiting. Any recommendation on whale watching and dolphin feeding tour? So in generally our itineraries are: 1) 1 Day Movies World 2) 1 Day Sea World 3) 1 Day Harbour Town 4) 1 Day Mt Tamborine 5) 3 quarter Day Catch-a-crab 6) ??? We are thinking of cherry and strawberry farm. No we are not thinking of Exotic Tropical Farm.

My wife and I will be in the Cairns/Port Douglas area for 2 weeks in January 2013. We would like to do the usual touristy things whilst we are there such as barrier reef, Kuranda, Tjapukai, Cape Tribulation, Daintree National Park, Rain Forest Walk, Daintree River Cruise. Could anyone advise me on 2 things: 1 - whether it is cheaper to book these activities locally when we get there or pre book from a website? 2 - Can we pick up everything from Port Douglas if we're based there or would it be best to spend part of the time in a Cairns Hotel and then move to Port Douglas? Never been to that area before so would welcome advice.