Australia - East Coast Must Do's

[flyingjase]

Me & the Mrs are hiring a campervan for 3 weeks in March next year and travelling from Sydney to Cairns.

Can anyone recomend the "must do's" on this well worn route?

The only thing the Mrs has given me as a must is snorkling off the Great Barrier Reef.

Thanks!

[v15ben]

Fraser Island, cruising in the Whitsundays, Byron Bay, get north of Cairns to Cape Tribulation and the Daintree. So many other places that are not so well known but utterly stunning. Have you booked the camper yet? I can have a look through work at some prices if you like

[Chilli]

v15ben said:

Fraser Island, cruising in the Whitsundays, Byron Bay, get north of Cairns to Cape Tribulation and the Daintree. So many other places that are not so well known but utterly stunning. Have you booked the camper yet? I can have a look through work at some prices if you like

Ditto this.
If you can, go for an overnight on Frase and hire yourself a basjed up old landrover to hoon about in..Great fun. Actually, whilst I think about it, haven't they stopped this now?

[flyingjase]

v15ben said:

Fraser Island, cruising in the Whitsundays, Byron Bay, get north of Cairns to Cape Tribulation and the Daintree. So many other places that are not so well known but utterly stunning. Have you booked the camper yet? I can have a look through work at some prices if you like

Thanks guys

Not booked the van yet, so happy to get a quote. Looking from 5/3/10 - 26/3/10. Although there are only 2 of us + a baby, I want a big van that means we can leave a bed made up all the time, A/C, shower etc. Been looking at 4 berth deluxe or 6 berth options on one way hire.

Any ideas on where to get a list of campsites from?

[furtive]

Daintree if you can get there. We stayed here:

http://www.daintreewildernesslodge.com.au/

highly recommended

[v15ben]

I think you can still bugger off to Fraser in your own 4x4 or one you have hired, but not done it myself. We took a small group tour out of Noosa that was brilliant. Stayed in a bunkhouse, swam in various lakes and ate off the BBQ!

I will grab a quote from work when I am back in Jase which is Saturday. Now to find breakfast in Split and hope my friend eventually stops fannying about in the bathroom

[v15ben]

Hi Jase,
I've got the details for those vans, just need an email address to send everything across to.
Cheers,
Ben

[flyingjase]

Thanks Ben - PM'd

[flyingjase]

Hi Ben

My Mrs has responded to your email, are you in work this week? Let me know best route of contact, keen to get things tied up.

Thanks

J

[v15ben]

Hi Jase,
I am working today. Sent an email across last night.
Give me an email or call and I can get things sorted.
Thanks

[Onz]

To echo other people - Fraser Island - simply brilliant.

I also love the small towns around the sunshine coast - Mooloolaba and Noosa being particular favourites.

Enjoy!

[flyingjase]

I'm now in Sydney and picking the motorhome up on Saturday

This is a well trodden route, so does anyone else have any ideas / secret off the beaten track places to visit?

So far the only 'must do's' I have is Fraser Island and Whitsundays

Any other ideas would be gratefully recieved!

[Google [bot]]

Stop over in Bellingen (nr Coffs Harbour) on the way up, a lovely little place. See the crap that is Australian 'tourist attraction' such as the Big Banana, Byron Bay very nice.

If you post this in the Australia forum too you might get some good advice.

Before you leave Sydney, a couple of things;

http://www.moonlight.com.au/program.php?location=S...

http://www.lorddudley.com.au/

[v15ben]

Hope you got everything sorted with the campervan mate!
Enjoy Sydney and try Pancakes on the Rocks (good pancakes!), an Opera House tour and IMO a coffee or some food somewhere in the inner East like Vaucluse or Double Bay. Some great views back to the city from there. One final place I like is the fish restaurant in Watson's Bay. Take a ferry from Circular Quay and enjoy the views the tourist boats charge a fortune for with just a few dollars!

[hornetrider]

Some good advice here so far, Fraser and WhitSundays are a MUST!

Another of our highlights was the Hunter Valley west of Newcastle near Cessnock. Loads of wineries in the valley - we hired a tandem and rode round a load of them in a day, it was great fun. All the tasting was free as were plenty of nibbles along the way. We went back in the van the next day to buy our favourites. If you like your wine I'd highly recommend it.

[furtive]

Yup I'd definitely second the Hunter Valley as a place to go.

[SlimJ]

Some not so well trodden areas to visit for you...

Don't forget to do Springbrook National Park, inland from Surfers Paradise! Plenty of waterfalls and forests to walk through.

Also, Atherton Tablelands inland from Cairns, some stunning scenery around that area.

Explore the Blue Mountains, I mean, not just Katoomba, but check out the rest of the area and do some of the walks into the valley. Some great little areas to explore.

HTH
James

[hornetrider]

Actually 3 weeks isn't long is it. There'll be some long days of shlepping up through the sugar cane in there!

[flyingjase]

Thanks for the advice so far guys and will also post on the Aussie section.

v15ben - Van is great thanks, although I can't imagine 6 people living in it!!! Really appreciate you sorting and sorry we didn't book whilst you were still there to get the commission.

Currently sunning myself in Nelson Bay, and have found what must be the best pie shop in the world - Red Neds - over 50 choices! It was so good I went back for seconds. First Terriki Kangaroo followed by King Prawn and Scallop in a honey / lime chilli sauce! Perfect.

[v15ben]

Aussies and their bloody pies
Sounds good so far