Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Australia Who's been to Australia for a holiday?

Where did you go and what do you see, and anything worth talking about?

Gotta admit, given that Australia is as big as the USA, it doesn't have the tourist drawcards that the USA has. Most of Australia is deserted bar the east and south-west coastal regions.

I was in the USA in 2007 and was absolutely awe-stuck by the Grand Canyon (and Bryce Canyon). I suppose we have Ayres Rock, Kakadu and the Daintree but they don't really compare.

My wife and I went to Australian a few years ago and never got very far out of Sydney. We are normally not "city folks", but Sydney was really unique.

Lots to see and do and the harbor area is really nice...if you can afford to eat and drink there.

donsm70

went to Adelaide for most of a month and staid with Aussielad....explored Adelaide and we went into the hills and Murray river bottom outside of town.....i had a blast and want to go back....was the first big city i had ever been in where the majority of people seemed friendly....you hear alot of chit about people overseas not liking Americans but i never had an issue....

My wife and I have spent a total of 10 weeks in Australia over the course of 3 different trips. All trips were around Christmas (the beginning of summer). We always rented an RV and covered lots of miles. Enjoyed every part of it. Really liked Perth, the Rocks area in Sydney, the timbered area of Pemberton. We drove from Darwin through the red center to Adelaide on the Stuart Highway. Sydney to Cooktown on the east coast was another great trip. The beach at Broomshead was great - and very deserted. The nurses and doctors in the old colonial hospital in McClean were very helpful.

Sounds like you have really travelled around and had a good look at the country. Darwin around Christmas, wow, the heat would have been oppressive? That's one hot place in summer!

Coming down for the first time in August/September for three weeks.

We have a couple expat friends in Sydney and Brisbane. Of course I mandated at least a week on the south island of NZ. Hopefully I can coordinate some trigger time while I am there.

We lived in Brisbane for a year and a half and spent a lot of time up and down the coast. We had a great time camping on Frazier Island. We spent two weeks over Christmas in Tasmania which was great too. A short flight to Fiji for a week was equally fine.

Where in Brisbane did you live? I lived in Brisbane back in the early 80's before moving to the Gold Coast.

My wife and I flew into Perth for a wedding and spent about 10 days in the area. We toured the vineyards around the Margaret river and enjoyed the beach. We decided to relax and enjoy the area around Perth rather than burn 2 or 3 days traveling around to other tourist destinations. It was a great trip. Take lots of money.

I pulled into a port somewhere on the eastern coast about 12 years ago, but unfortunately can't quite remember exactly where.

It sure was a neat area, though I didn't get much past the closest bar. I'd like to go back someday and see more of the natural side of Australia.

Yes, the south west region is a real gem - civilised yet sparsely populated and nice countryside. I lived in Perth for 13 years and spent many holidays in that corner. I used to stay in Denmark - only 1/2hr away from Albany.

Many east coasters here have never been to WA - it's very underrated. It's cheaper to holiday in Bali than fly across to Perth.

That sums up my travel in the Corps. Been all over the place don't remember most of it. I try not to drink as much now and take better photos in the daylight.

Loved my time in Australia but man that is a loooong flight!

After a week in Sydney a friend and I rented a car and drove 10K kms to see the sights. We had already been up to the big canyon in the nearby Blue Mountains so we boogied at an angle across country down to Port Augusta, then up the middle to Coober Pedy, climbed Ayers Rock to watch the sunset, through Alice up to Tenant Creek, and changed our minds about going on up to Darwin. East to the coast again, and regret that I did not ask to go marlin fishing with a couple of friendly young blokes we met at a sporting goods store. They were going out the next day.

The weather had been stormy for weeks and the water clarity was zilch so I bagged my intent to dive the Great Barrier. I've dived quite a bit and had no interest unless we could see well. I was surprised that it was not more clear way out on the reef, according to those who had been out each day.

Meandered the coast up and down, then inland to Lightning Creek (?) and more opal mines. Bought two bags of uncut sapphires from a miner in Ruby and had a local gem cutter cut them and send them to me. Moving on south, went through the Snowy Mountains in a spring snow storm, down to Canberra and back to Sydney. I regret that we did not stop and try to call a dingo with a predator call, and would liked to have made Perth but not enough time and we used it well.

Good steaks and lamb, enjoyed the people, the land and the game. Hilarious rudeness. When an Aussie is being polite he comes over as rude to Americans and Canadians.

BTW, I'm having breakfast this morning with the son of Sir Charles Kingsford-Smith.

I see your point and do much the same these days...

I was in a bar in Australia with some others and some random Aussie came up and asked us for a fag...being 1) Drunk 2) Marines and 3) not familiar with the Aussie lingo, in addition to the loud music we couldn't figure out what he was saying. We figured he was calling us a faggot or something.

Long story short 5-6 of us Marines beat the living $hit out of about 10-12 random dudes. We didn't put 2 and 2 together until the next morning that the guy was just asking for a cigarette. We still laugh about that whenever I call my old Marine buddies.


Anyhow sorry to the OP about the derailment.

likely Lightning Ridge......prolly the best source of black opal in the world.....at the museum on the college campus in Adelaide they had a plesiosaur(long neck sea-going "dinosaur") whose fossil was actually replaced with precious opal.....not sure how many millons of dollars worth of opal in it and then throw in the fact its a rare fossil, one of those things that is prolly near literally priceless....

Thanks. I knew something wasn't right in my memory of the name.

We lived in Chelmer, right on the river. I worked in the CBD.

Lived in Melbourne for 6 months. Take the great ocean coast road. Best road trip I have ever been on and I have been LOTS of places.

Back in '89 the wife and I did a 2 week tour. Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne, Alice, the Rock, Townsville and Cairns.
We'd love to go back.