Adventurous Aussies

Mornington Peninsula, with its beaches,.

The Dandenong Mountain ranges with its of gardens, galleries and historical attractions.

Further south east of Melbourne is Phillip Island, the home of motor bike racing and fairy penguins that come ashore in the evening.

The Macedon Ranges have a special charm with historic villages and quaint shops.

Ballarat and its Sovereign Hill, north west of Melbourne, with its old world working gold world goldmine, it also has many historic buildings and ornamental gardens.

Further west out of Melbourne, and north of Ballarat, is Bendigo with its Golden Dragon Museum and Joss House. Bendigo is also famous for its pottery.

In the south is the Great Ocean Road which stretches along the South Eastern coast of Australia between the Victorian cities of Torquay and Warrnambool and is one of Australia’s great scenic coastline drives.

No trip to Australia would be complete without seeing:

 

• Sydney: Including the Opera House, Harbor Bridge, The Rocks and the AMP Tower.

 

• New South Wales: The Blue Mountains, Snowy Mountains, Hunter Valley Wine Country, South Coast of New South Wales, North Coast of New South Wales and Lord Howe Island

 

• Melbourne: Including the Immigration Museum, Gold Treasury Museum, Old Melbourne Gaol (Jail), National Gallery of Victoria, Scienceworks, Royal Botanic Gardens, Fitzroy Gardens, Treasury Gardens and Melbourne Aquarium. While visiting Melbourne make sure you check out an AFL footy game.

 

• Victoria: The Great Ocean Road, Phillip Island Penguin Parade, Mornington Peninsula, Wilsons Promontory Marine Park, The Macedon Ranges, he High Country with its snow covered peaks and The Grampians

 

• Queensland: Including Seaworld, Warner Brothers Movie World, Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, Dreamworld, Australia Zoo and no trip to Queensland is complete without a trip to the Great Barrier Reef and Fraser Island.

 

• Northern Territory: Uluru, Kakadu National Park, Katherine Gorge, Alice Springs, The Olgas and the Devil’s Marbles.

 

• Western Australia: Rottnest Island, Monkey Mia, Shell Beach, Broome, Ningaloo Reef and between July and November you can check out the wildflowers.

 

• Tasmania: Hobart over Christmas for the famous Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race finish. Battery Point, Port Arthur, Remarkable Cave, The Freycinet National Park, Mount Field National Park which includes Cradle Mountain and the South West National Park.

There are 3 lookout in Melbourne which give spectacular views of Melbourne city, 2 are located right in the city and the 3rd is an hour out of the city centre on the urban fringe.

The 3 lookouts are:

1. Eureka Tower
Located alongside the Yarra River right the city, The Skydeck 88 is a whole new way of looking at Melbourne and is 300 m above the ground.
It is the only observation deck in the world that can thrill you with ‘The Edge’ - a glass cube which projects 3 m out from the building offering unforgettable views over Melbourne with that suspended in space feeling.

2. Skyhigh Mount Dandenong Observatory
Less than one hour from the centre of Melbourne you can be SkyHigh - on the uppermost reach of the Dandenong Ranges. At 633 m above sea-level, the Mount Dandenong Observatory is the highest point in the surrounding ranges.
From the Skyhigh Mount Dandenong Observatory you can see the Mornington Peninsula, Port Phillip Bay, Melbourne’s urban fringes, and the You Yangs on the southern horizon. After sunset the lights of Melbourne make a spectacular view

3. Rialto - 360 Observation Deck Offers spectacular 360-degree views from the top of the Rialto building, located right in the heart of Melbourne city.
The Rialto is 253 m above the ground and is the highest office building in the Southern Hemisphere

The blue Mountians are located only in New South Wales, 2 hours from Sydney and are a  must see attraction.

The Blue Mountains, reach a height of 1100m, and have been given their name due to the blue haze that hovered above the mountains produced by the oil from the plentiful Eucalyptus trees. The Blue Mountains National Park is one of eight national parks that make up the Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area.

The Blue Mountains offers many activities such as abseiling, rock climbing, bushwalking and canoeing. The area’s best-known rock formation is The Three Sisters, a trio of pinnacles best viewed from Katoomba, the largest of 26 mountain towns and villages. These include Wentworth Falls (near a beautiful waterfall of the same name), Faulconbridge and Katoomba.

While visiting The Blue Mountains don’t miss

Catching Katoomba Scenic Railway, the world’s steepest railway. It descends from the cliff-top at Katoomba down into the Jamison Valley.

Descending the series of steps by The Three Sisters rock formation to the cool and refreshing valley floor, with its Scenic Walkway boardwalk.

The new Skyway can carry up to 84 passengers across the Jamison Valley at a height of 200 metres. The views are spectacular and breathtaking. The original Skyway was Australia’s first cable Skyway for passengers and was built in 1958.

Author: Michelle P Jenkins

Queensland has a subtropical climate with hot, humid summers and dry, mild winters. It boasts that it has 300 sunny days a year. Brisbane is the capital of Queensland and most populous city in the state of Queensland.

Brisbane is widely known as Australia’s most liveable city and is renowned for its excellent climate and laid-back lifestyle, it is set close to the Pacific Ocean, and is situated beside the Brisbane River on plains between Moreton Bay and the Great Dividing Range in south-eastern Queensland. Brisbane has a state of the art public transport network that includes trains, buses and ferries. There are also taxis and rental cars, should you wish to travel on your own.

Other areas outside of Brisbane to check out include:

The beautiful Sunshine Coast begins at Caloundra, just one hour’s drive north of Brisbane and extends to Cooloola, the gateway to Fraser Island. It takes includes imposing National Park rainforests and tourist attractions such as Australia Zoo, Big Pineapple, UnderWater, SuperBee, Ginger and the internationally renowned Australia Zoo at Beerwah. Queensland’s Sunshine Coast is a unique and varied destination where fun, nature and relaxation are the key ingredients.

The Gold Coast is the small coastal area between Brisbane and the New South Wales border. If you like sun, surf and sand, unpolluted air and a relaxed lifestyle, and heaps of tourist attractions, then you’ll love the Gold Coast of Australia. The Gold coast is home to more attractions than any other destination in the Southern Hemisphere, the Gold Coast has the fastest, longest, highest and the most thrilling rides in the country. Theme parks located on the Gold Coast include Dreamworld, Whitewater World, Warner Bros. Movie World, Sea World and Wet’n’Wild Water World. The Gold Coast is also home to the famous Surfers Paradise which is located in the heart of the Gold Coast and is a hub of shopping and nightlife activities.

Far North Queensland offers a wide variety of activities and places to visit, from the National Parks and waterfalls within the Atherton Tableland, the rainforests of Cape Tribulation and the Daintree, or diving on the Great Barrier Reef. You can ride the Kuranda Scenic Railway or experience a world first in environmental tourism taking the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway over the Tropical Rainforest canopy and deep into the forest.

Queensland offers the most amazing holiday activities and attractions, from watching logger head turtles lay eggs on the beach, to thrill seeking adventure holiday activities and heart pumping theme rides. So if you are planning on visiting Australia, Queensland is the perfect holiday destination.

There’s more to hiring a car than just reserving it and paying for it, to make sure that you get the best deal follow these steps and tips.

STEPS:

1.Choose three to four car hire companies that fit your needs and desires, do this either through the yellow pages, or through the internet, remember to scan every possible firm before you make a choice, you don’t want to overlook the best car hire because you got bored from looking

2.Contact the company and ask about their special offers, location, availability, pickup and drop off sites, rates, special rates, hotel and airline partnerships, extra charges, insurance, everything you can think of that can help lower what you have to pay for your car hire, or what would make the car hire more convenient for you.
3.Choose a pickup and drop off point; find one that is near you so it won’t be a hassle, can u drop off and pick up from the airport or the train station, is the company near public transport.

4.Pick a car, depending on your needs, find a car that could fit all the people you’ll have in it and there luggage. If you’re alone just get a small car or lash out and hire that sports car u have always wanted, some rentals charge higher for larger vehicles.

5.The next thing to do, after you’ve totally decided on which to take, remember to reserve it, some car rentals include the reservation fee on the overall rent, some make it out to be an extra fee, you should also look out for this when hire a car.

TIPS

For the best deals for your money here are some tips when looking, finding and taking out a car rental.

1.When getting a car hire check for available upgrades at no charge, you’d want the best deal so you’d want the best car, to do this, you should go pickup your car early in the morning, when the other cars haven’t been returned yet, this way there would be a shortage on economy cars and the firm might just give you an upgrade for a lower price or even free.

2.Get an internet car rental. These types of rentals offer internet only discounts, and sometimes even accepts find a car at your own price methods where you just give them your budget and they’ll find the best deal for you, plus you wont have to go anywhere to get a rental.

3.Fill the petrol tank before you return your car, car rentals will charge you, at an inflated price, the cost of the petrol needed to fill the tank.

4.Look for packages deals that offer fly-drive-stay or fly-drive, these will get you great discounts on hire cars, and what’s more you won’t have to worry about other details like a hotel or an airline, everything’s there.  

5.If you’re a frequent flyer you may get a discount as there are some car hire companies that are affiliated with airlines.

These are just a few of the things you’ll need to know, but always remember to be polite, ask questions, ask for discounts, ask if they have any specials on offer, the only reason why people don’t get better value for the things they buy is because they’re too shy to ask.