Australia for Honeymoon trip - itinerary ideas

Butterface

Hi all,

The job of planning (or at least starting the research) for our honeymoon has been left to me.. We're hoping to go away from mid-December to mid-January next year, about 3-4 weeks (max 28 days). Budget will be around 12 grand.

Neither of us have been to Australia before, and honestly we're not sure where to begin or end the holiday. We just know that we want to visit the East coast, and we will be obliged to visit a relative in Brisbane for at least a few nights!

Before caving in and going to visit one of the tour operators, I was wondering if any boardsies have a travel itinerary from their holiday in Oz that would give me some guidance on where to begin i.e. cities traveled to, method of travel between cities, outline of costs, any hotel recommendations.

Even though it's our honeymoon, we're not planning a luxury trip but at the same time we won't be backpacking, so no hostels.
We're also open to domestic flights and overnight trains between cities to avoid self-driving.

Budget would be around 12 grand, more or less.

Thanks in advance!

conor_ie

12K should be plenty for 3 to 4 weeks

You've plenty of choice in terms of beginning and ending your holiday in the sense that you can get to any of the big cities from the main airport hubs (Emirates via Dubai, Etihad via Abu Dhabi, Qatar via Doha, BA and Singapore Airlines via Singapore) so it's just a case of picking one! If you're going for that length of time I suppose it's nearly as handy to fly to Perth, then Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and finish off in Cairns. You could also book a multi-stop for your flights for example.. So your outbound would look something like: Dublin to Dubai to Perth and coming home it would be Cairns to Sydney or Melbourne to Dubai to Dublin. Both times I've flown to Australia and back it's been with Emirates, they feed you very well and the entertainment selection is one of the most comprehensive of any long haul airline.

Getting around is very handy, last time I was there I used Jetstar. They are the Australian version of Ryanair.. get you there no fuss or fanfare. I've heard good things about Virgin Australia too so once you have a rough idea of your route and dates look at flights..

As for driving, it's not too far off driving around Ireland, the only difference is the roads are busier! One of my mates let me drive her car while I was there and it was grand! As for Brisbane I found it a bit quiet so visit your relative and
spend some time in Byron Bay and the Gold Coast. My only regret is not hopping into a rental car and heading down the coast for a couple of days!

Also get your phones unlocked before you travel, data sims aren't expensive and you get loads of data for your dollar.. Roaming rates to Australia are ridiculous at the best of times and I'm sure you don't want to get a massive bill when you get back from such a long trip!

gypsy79

Those flights will be super expensive. That is the absolute peak travel time. So book as soon as they become available which will be essentially a year before the date you want to return.

12k will be tight minus 2k (min) for flights. Australia is a much more expensive country than Ireland. It is 10 years since I lived there and I flew threw 5k travelling up the coast. You will have to make decisions.Not everything will be possible especially if you are not willing use hostels

Inflation in Australia is insane and their Celtic tiger never bust

mel.b

If you can leave before about the 10th Dec, flights will be slightly cheaper, you should be able to get them for around €1000 (or less) per person. I regularly fly home to Australia for Christmas, leaving around this time and normally pay less.

Bear in mind that from the 26th Dec onwards is peak time for Australians having their summer holidays so accommodation will be booked out well in advance and expensive. Internal flights will also be more expensive.

Distances are vast so I'd advise that you fly between capital cities rather than flying. For example Sydney to Byron Bay is a 9hr drive, Brisbane to Cairns is a 21hr drive. You have tigerair (ryanair equivalent), virgin (aerlingus equivalent) and qantas for domestic internal flights.

In that time you could hit up the Melbourne & Sydney for a week each which would give plenty of time for day trips
- Melbourne - great ocean road, phillip Island, yarra valley etc
- Sydney - Blue Mountains, hunter valley/central coast etc. New Years Eve on Sydney Harbour with the fireworks is always fantastic (although accomodation will be $$$)

Then you could do a week up in Brisbane / Cairns, although it will be wet season up there (& cyclone season), so not the best time to go - will be hot, humid & wet

You could also do a week in the Northern Territory - Uluru, Kakadu NP etc.

I'd advise hiring a car for the day trips to give you the flexibility, although there are plenty of organised day trips if you wanted to do it that way.

Also book an open jaw flight - flying into one city and out of another...it shouldn't cost any more than flying into and out of the same city and will be much more convenient.

jlm29

I flew to Melbourne, and made my way up the east coast. Myself and my friend flew between cities, except for one stretch which we drove. We drove to whitsundays from Brisbane I think. We stayed on one of the whitsunday islands for a bit of luxury one night.
I would highly recommend kakadu, though it will probably be a bit hot when you’re there?
I didn’t go to Perth, but flew home from Darwin. It was a nice way to shorten my journey home!
I really regret not seeing a bit of New Zealand while I was that far over- It will be a long time before i go that far again!
I found trailfinders very helpful and not pushy when it came to planning.

AGC

Don’t forget Cathay Pacific will be flying direct to Hong Kong at that stage and could be an option

zoobizoo

Sydney is a must

And if you're in Sydney, head to the Northern Beaches of Avalon and Palm Beach (where they film Home & Away).
You could see Sydney in a few days really. There are great restaurants and various parts in the city to see (Glebe, Rose Bay).... do a trip on a boat to take it all in.

Definitely do the Coogee to Bondi Beach walk... It's a beautiful coastal road. Have lunch in Bondi... if you like coffee culture, you'll love Oz.

Do the Great Ocean Road and Melbourne for a few days / nights. Amazing views on the G.O.R. and Melbourne is a cool city.

I'd then take a bus tour / or hire a car up through the middle to Alice Springs and then onto Ayers Rock / Uluru. I had no interest in it but was travelling with some friends...... it was pretty amazing to see.

What was more amazing were the little towns you'd pass through and the people you'd meet and the dessert in front and behind you..

Avoid Adelaide and don't spend too much time in Brisbane... cities are pretty much the same and I found those two boring enough.


If you want to hit the Great Barrier Reef then head to Cairns. If you're not diving then don't bother.

KAkadu - I never went but would love to have gone... we headed to Cairns instead.

Then down the East Coast - avoid Surfer's Paradise... and I woudn't bother with Frasier island either (it's a sand island and you'll be travelling in a car with a bunch of others and roughing it... I didn't like it at all.

Whitsundays are well worth a trip. They do two night / three day tours on boats and it was pretty amazing.


Byron Bay is worth a visit.



If I was doing it again I'd try to Air BnB it... . so many interesting places to stay.

Noo

As already mentioned, your dates are the peak of the peak of summer, and the aussies love domestic holidays! You'll have to book months in advance and be prepared to fork out extra to get what you want.