• Not Just Another Best Of

  Filed under Topics of Note
  Sep 20

  As a travel writer I often get asked to list good things to do. here’s some my top 10 about Australia.

  1.The biggest departure point for those looking to snorkel and dive the Great Barrier Reef, Cairns is a popular point to catch a day tour to the reef. There are lots of operators that offer a wide variety of different kinds of tours to the Great Barrier Reef. You may choose between day-cruises or overnight trips, which range widely in price, anywhere from to 0.If you arent yet qualified to scuba dive, but cant imagine a day tour to the Great Barrier Reef without doing so, you can easily pick up your certification in a few days at any Cairns dive school. They offer a 4-day scuba course, which gives you your PADI certification and gives you the opportunity for several solo dives out on the reef. Virtually all operators have an green tourism certification, which means you dont have to worry about damaging the great barrier reef while you are snorkelling.

  2.Generally thought to be the Hot Air Ballooning capital of the country, Atherton is just a short drive from Cairns. Raging Thunder has a ballooning package that includes an early morning pickup from your hotel, a buffet breakfast and champers for about 0 . Enjoy the awe inspiring landscape at sunrise, enjoy half an hour flying in a hot air balloon, and is concluded with breakfast and champagne in scenic and popular resort town of Port Douglas. Checking out the gorgeous views from high in a balloon makes this a must do.

  3.Just south of Cairns, Mission Beach is the perfect departure point for the Great Barrier Reef. The beach is a 15 km long, pristine sandy beach, with fantastic views of Bedarra and a handful of other islands just off the beach. There is a tiny town here, where you can learn more about activities like snorkelling or skydiving, though most would be perfectly content soaking up the sunlight and swimming in the crystal clear water.You can stay overnight in Mission Beach, though most will be on a day trip from Cairns. If you did not rent a car or camper for your [holiday|vacation|trip}, there is a company that offers a coach transfer service named Mission Beach Dunk Island Connections, which takes scenic routs between Port Douglas, Cairns, and Mission Beach.

  4.Tropfest is the world’s largest short film festival and is held early in February each year in Sydney. Tropfest also screens around the country. The aim is to ‘showcase the work of emerging filmmakers and to give them the chance to show their movies for their peers in a festive environment’. For everyone else it’s a chance to watch free films while drinking vino on a hot summer’s evening. Each film must contain a ‘signature item’, something inanimate the organisers decided months previously to ensure the film was made for Tropfest. The event began in 1993 when a local actor/director John Polson screened one of his own short films at the Tropicana Caf in Darlinghurst. 200 people crammed the caf. The next year 2000 showed up and chaos reigned on the caf strip. Last year it’s estimated 100,000 watched the festival in The Domain, while capacity audiences filled the interstate venues.

  5.Try to play Didgeridoo and learn something about Aboriginal Culture. You will find out that blowing into the carved tree is not as easy as you would think (but you may have lot of fun, you or the guy teaching you). Cultural centres of aborginal art and history are spread all around the land. You will learn stories about the Dreamtime and learn a lot of how people lived in the past and what were their values. It may change your perception of the locals you may meet at some places.

  6.The thing to do at Uluru – climb to the top of it. Located in Central Australia aka the Outback, Uluru, one of the World’s Heritage Sites, is a large sandstone formation standing at 1,142 feet in height and turns brilliant shades of bright red during the day, particularly so during sunrise and sunset. Additionally, Uluru is a dreaming site to the Indigenous people who also believe that a curse is placed on anyone who takes rocks away with them. In the tourist information center, there is a exhibition of rocks that have been posted back from tourists hoping to get rid of the curse. There is a long chain right along the side of the rock that acts as a handrail for the hike up and the views from atop this magnificent site are totally unforgetable. The local Aboriginal people do not like tourists climbing the rock, however this decision is up to you.

  7.The oldest continuous area of rainforest on the Australian mainland, the Daintree National Park is a protected area of incredible rainforest a short drive north of Cairns. The park, which encompasses around 1200 square kilometers, is not only a World Heritage site, but is also home to a large variety of plant and animal lifeincluding marsupials, frogs, birds and the endangered cassowary. Generally thought to be the oldest rainforest in the world, the Daintree forest is over 140 million years old and has more than 435 different species of bird, including 25 species found only there. There are several day treks that allow travelers to [see|experience|explore} sections of this giant rainforest on their own, in addition to guided tours that can help teach you about the flora and fauna on your way.

  8.Whitehaven Beach is located amongst the 74 Whitsunday Islands along the Central Queensland coast and can be reached by sea or air. I have been to thousands ofan uncountable amount of beaches in my journeys and this is undoubtedly the most amazing, most incredible beach I have ever visited. If you can think of the softest, whitest, cleanest sand, the clearest, lightest, bluest water that’s Whitehaven Beach. Airlie Beach is the usual departure point to get to the Whitsunday Islands and Whitehaven Beach. The usual way to see Whitehaven is a sailboat liveaboard trip. There are many sailing companies in Airlie Beach that take you there. There are also day tours to just Whitehave or including a visit to another island such as South Molle Island.

  9.See the incredible view of the Sydney Opera House with the world famous Harbour Bridge in the background .The Sydney Opera House is widely considered as the symbol of Australia, as well as being one of the most famous performing arts centres anywhere. The main attraction is off course the unique design. On major celebrations in Sydney history, like New Years Eve and the Sydney Olympic games, the bridge has always been the focal point. For the adventurous, it’s also possible to climb the bridge.

  10.Coober Pedy is most famous for the unusual living quarters of a significant portion of it’s local inhabitants who live underground. This practice came about when local resident sought escape from the intense heat before the days of modern air conditioning. Also known as the the Black Opal Capital of the World, Coober Pedy was first established as an opal mine in the eaerly 20th century. Today tourists can visit the old opal mines, visit underground churches, and stay underground in a motel. The local golf course, with no grass, is played at night with glowing golf balls. The area served as the backdrop for the post-nuclear apocalypse film titled Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome starring Australian son Mel Gibson. Find a Underground hotel and experience this must see Aussie Icon.

  I trust these help any prospective visitors Downunder.

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