Family trip Down Under
My husband, Fred, and I along with our daughter Rebecca Couillard, son-in-law Greg and 8-year-old granddaughter Sarah visited Australia, Oct. 18-Nov. 12, 2007. This was the fifth trip to Australia for Fred and me, the second for Rebecca and a first-time adventure for Greg and Sarah. In planning the trip, we wanted to limit the days traveling between locations, sample three different parts of Australia and include activities suitable for an 8-year-old.
We arrived in Cairns and spent two nights there. This was a perfect way to “reset our clocks” and recover from the long trip. We enjoyed stretching our legs strolling along the strand and swimming in the city lagoon.
This was followed by six days at the luxurious Green Island Resort (Box 898, Cairns, QLD, 4870, Australia; phone +61 7 4031 3300, fax 4052 1511, www.greenislandresort.com.au).
Staying at Green Island was a special treat for all of us. We could enjoy swimming and snorkeling anytime. The reef and fish were easy to see just in swimming out from the beach. Our stay was much too short for Sarah. Each day was full of new adventures for her, from learning to snorkel to beachcombing to night walks. She still wistfully asks her parents, “When are we going back to Green Island?”
We booked the “Island Retreat” package with connecting suites. The rate per night for two persons was AU$488 (US$390) and for the two adults plus child, AU$554 (US$444). These packages included transfers to/from Green Island, the rooms, breakfast buffets and beach activities but not scuba dives.
We chose our next stop, the Daintree Rain Forest, because it offered a chance to see a very different environment. We spent four nights in Daintree National Park, staying at Ferntree Rainforest Lodge (PMV 9, Mossman, QLD, 4873, Australia; phone +61 7 4098 0033, fax 4041 6741, www.capetribulation.net.au/ferntree). The rate was AU$348 (US$279) per night for two rooms for the five of us, including breakfast — very reasonable.
In the park, we visited the Bat House to see the flying foxes; the Insect Museum, with all the weird walking stick insects, and the Exotic Fruits Farm, where we sampled 10 different fruits. We hiked many short trails and while hiking on a deserted beach encountered a large “salty” (saltwater crocodile) — particularly exciting for Sarah.
We returned to Cairns for three more nights, where we rode the historic Karunda Rail, hiked around Karunda and returned by the spectacular Sky Rail over the rainforest. We also enjoyed the Cairns Botanic Gardens.
The final part of our trip was eight nights in Sydney, where we rented a fully furnished 3-bedroom flat that we found on Owner Direct (Kelowna, BC, Canada; 888/869-6377, www.ownerdirect.com). The cost for the fully furnished apartment was AU$2,367 (US$1,898), which included all taxes and fees. It had linens, dishwasher, clothes washer and dryer plus off-street parking.
We visited many of the typical tourist spots, such as the Opera House, the Royal Botanical Garden and the Toronga Zoo. Our apartment was about two blocks from a ferry stop, so we could easily take the harbor ferries around town and not have to drive.
We bought the “Green Pass” for the inner-city transportation, ferries and trains, around Circular Quay. These cost AU$41 per adult and AU$21.50 for Sarah. With our passes, we didn’t have to worry about buying tickets for each trip.
Having our own place meant that we could have separate bedrooms and prepare our own meals. After several weeks on the road, it was nice to relax “at home” in the evenings. Having the car was nice for grocery trips, trips to the beaches and heading to the airport.
We made most of our arrangements, including car rentals and lodging, on the Internet. The cars were rented from Avis by my son-inlaw, who gets an executive rate. The week in Queensland for a 6- to 7-person Toyota minivan cost US$654, and the 8-day rental in Sydney for the same kind of minivan cost US$720. All of our arrangements worked perfectly and we had a wonderful time.
We only had one glitch on our whole trip. We learned that, when renting a car, one should be sure to sign up for the toll pass offered by the car rental agencies. We didn’t understand that most toll roads and bridges around Sydney have no manned toll booths. As a result, we had to call each authority and register a credit card number, because you have to use these toll roads to drive around town.
We have found Australia to be a very easy country to visit, if you remember that it is as big as the continental US. You cannot see the whole country in a few short weeks. Now our children are eager to return and sample another part of that amazing country.
ANN ABELES
Frederick, MD