This may seem a wierd post - given I am Australian, but I have not lived there for several years and you are never really a tourist in your own country. I am somewhat at a loss advising an American friend who will be visiting Sydney late March for a wedding.

She will have limited time - probably 2 weeks in total. I am suggesting Sydney/NSW (Blue Mountains, Kangaroo Valley perhaps) and one other place depending on her interests - Melbourne or Cairns/Whitsundays. She is independant, active and over 50 but happy in the company of any age group.

Can anyone who has done similar provide any advice - specifically regarding accommodation (3 star hotel as an example) or some tours/tour companies which you may have used.

The places I know best in Australia are Canberra, Adelaide and Sydney - but have not lived in Sydney since the 80's.

Hi. I haven't been to Sydney in about 4 years, but I'm planning to visit the BF there soon. I remember enjoying Blue Mountains v. much, the "aboriginal embassy" in Canberra, and Melbourne, so I think your suggestions are great!


Hope that helps

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Marta,

We spent three weeks in Australia in 2006. Two and half weeks were spent in Western Australia which we loved. And we spent a half week in Sydney.

We liked staying in the CBD. Our hotel was fine. I wasn't overwhelmed by it so I'm not going to give it a resounding thumbs up. But it was clean and quiet. We stayed at the Blacket. We splurged and got a City Loft. I was a bit disapointed with the layout and it was pretty dark with the black/grey walls. I thought it might have a bit more of a kitchen but it ended up with just a microwave and small refrigerator. But it was a good location.

We did most of touring on foot. I would recommend taking the double-decker get-on, get-off buses for a tour of the city and getting to places like Bondi Beach.

We enjoyed the botanical gardens, the aquarium, walking around Bondi, walking around the Rocks and taking the ferry to Manly. We didn't get to the Zoo but it was on our list.

We also went to a performance at the Opera House which we really enjoyed. It was a fun way to see the inside. The Opera House has a good website and you can buy tickets over the web in advance for the performances. We saw a performance of Gilbert and Sullivan Pirates of Penzance. They have a diverse assortment of different items playing - drama, opera, etc.

I'll look to see if I have any notes on some of the other hotels that we considered.

Hi Eliza3 - I have had some great trips overseas with Intrepid Travel who do independent-style small-group trips(under 12 people) with great leaders and invariably (based on my experience) great groups of people of mixed ages and interests. Intrepid is an Australian company and they have a number of Australian based trips. You can also read the feedback from past travellers on their site. I enjoy travelling with them as they organise all transport (local/public transport generally rather than Contiki style buses!) and accommodation but utilise small, home-style accommodation (including apartments in many cities overseas), generally stay in locations for a few days, focus on "real" experiences and have great leaders who understand what responsible travel means.

Cheers
Christine

Eliza, I am also from Melbourne, however as you will remember distances in Australia are long and for two weeks she doesn't want to spend a lot of time with internal travel.

I would suggest that she will need about a week in Sydney as there is plenty to see and she should be able to pick up local tours through her hotel. The second week would include the Blue Mountains, Hunter Valley etc.

Have a look at www.harveyworldtravel.com.au for both hotels and local tours.
Another option for hotels is www.lastminute.com.au

While in Sydney, I'd suggest "The Rocks" area near Circular Quay, the Museum of Art and the famous Sydney Bridge and Opera House. The Rendezvous Stafford, formerly the Harrington House, on Harrington Street always suited my fancy - large rooms/minisuites with views of the Opera House from the upper floors - no onsite restaurant, but there is a small pool.

There's plenty of boutique-style shopping, dining and pub crawling activity in this area, as well as a Saturday morning open air market. A lot of Sydney central (more shopping) is within a leisurely stroll, including the Queen Victoria Mall Building + a quick ferry ride across the harbor and you can enjoy the Torango Zoo or a little longer ferry ride and you'll be at Manley Beach. Ahhhh, I miss Sydney!