Ideas for Port Douglas

The 4 of us all adults from the USA are sailing on the Celebrity Solstice on November 25 2017 out of Sydney The kids 39 & 41 just informed me that they could not find a overnight dive from Port Douglas & want to spend their time in Cairns prior to flying down to Sydney with us.. We plan on flying from LA to Brisbane with a connection to Cairns. Then take a shuttle on to Port Douglas. We will have 4 nights in Port Douglas & have only planned a snorkel trip with Wavelength on Tuesday after a Sunday afternoon arrival. We are now looking for some suggestions as to fill our days. We are 66 & 70 in good walking shape & no mobility issues. Interests include wild animals, the water, nature, landscapes, local culture, & drinking wine. We take many photos on our journeys & enjoy smaller excursions with fewer people. ( not large groups like ship excursions ) Interested in your ideas & suggestions. Appreciate your imput.

Happy Travels, John

I'd recommend a tour of the Daintree region. We went with this company some years ago and had a lovely day out. https://www.tropicaltours.com.au/

There is a wildlife centre at one end of the town. I've never been there but I've heard it's good.

We enjoy pottering around the the town - there are plenty of good restaurants and cafes.

Do go for a long walk along the beach, it's such a nice beach to walk on, flat and beautiful with no buildings overshadowing it, just trees.

If you want another snorkelling excursion then I recommend the Low Isles with Sailaway. http://sailawayportdouglas.com/ There are nice reefs there, not quite as good as the outer reefs but still great for snorkelling, and the Low Isles are only about 30 minutes from Port Douglas. You need reef shoes on the beach there.

Have you booked accommodation in Port Douglas?

To OzKiwiJJ

Thank you for your response. We have booked the Villa San Michele for our stay in Port Douglas. Appreciate your good ideas & will follow up on them.

Happy Travels, John

You might like to consider hiring a 4WD and driving to Cape Tribulation for a long day trip.

You will have a ball in Port Douglas! It's my favorite holiday spot in Aus!

I agree with OZKiwiJJ, the Wildlife Habitat Center is well worth a visit - you can go early and have breakfast with the birds in a large aviary, feed baby kangaroos etc. I go every time I am in Port Douglas.

I also highly recommend going for a sunset sail. It's a lovely way the spend the early evening as the setting is so idyllic. I've been out on Indigo - www.indigoportdouglas.com.au - recently and it was such a beautiful evening. The captain was also the owner of the boat so is really passionate about looking after his guests etc. We only had 5 other people on our cruise, and I think they take a maximum of 12 people, so could be a good option if you want to avoid big groups.

Also highly recommend heading up to Kuranda on the sky rail is also lots of fun - www.skyrail.com.au/

Re food and wine - You can't go past a dinner at Salsa. It's hands down the nicest food in town - salsaportdouglas.com.au

Hope this helps!

Lauren

Follow this link and scroll down to post #4 :)

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2491806

I've been to PD many times, but never in late November when you have stingers, heat & humidity and rain. Those factors will affect your stay, but you can have an enjoyable time then as long as you are aware and prepared.

With your limited time of 3 full days, one of which is a GBR trip, you don't have a great deal of time for sightseeing and touring in PD. On Sunday, walk Four Mile Beach to help get over your jet lag (and to be active after having sat so long on that transpacific flight!) On Monday, do a day tour to Daintree National Park, preferably one that also includes a stop at Mossman Gorge. On Tuesday, do your Wavelength GBR trip. On Wednesday, you could either do a day trip to Kuranda (train/Skyrail or Skyrail/Skyrail) or visit the Wildlife Habitat in the morning and spend the afternoon either by the pool, on the beach (no swimming, though), at Mossman Gorge (especially if your Daintree trip did not include it) or strolling and shopping in PD.

To: MMDown Under

Laurensophie

The Other Tom

GradUT

Thank all of you for your suggestions. Really appreciate your experience & knowledge about Port Douglas. We as 4 Americans, are very excited about visiting this area of Australia. I know the timing seems odd, however we are traveling over the Thanksgiving Holiday here in the USA. Reason is for our working children who could schedule more vacation time & enjoy this trip. After Port Douglas we fly to Sydney for a one & a half day visit to explore the city & then board the Celebrity Solstice for a 14 night cruise around Australia, Tasmania, & New Zealand. Then we fly home to Arizona out of Auckland. With your great suggestions, I am sure you will have enhanced our trip greatly.

Happy Travels, John & Shelley

You will have a ball in Port Douglas! It's my favorite holiday spot in Aus!

 

I agree with OZKiwiJJ, the Wildlife Habitat Center is well worth a visit - you can go early and have breakfast with the birds in a large aviary, feed baby kangaroos etc. I go every time I am in Port Douglas.

 

I also highly recommend going for a sunset sail. It's a lovely way the spend the early evening as the setting is so idyllic. I've been out on Indigo - www.indigoportdouglas.com.au - recently and it was such a beautiful evening. The captain was also the owner of the boat so is really passionate about looking after his guests etc. We only had 5 other people on our cruise, and I think they take a maximum of 12 people, so could be a good option if you want to avoid big groups.

 

Also highly recommend heading up to Kuranda on the sky rail is also lots of fun - www.skyrail.com.au/

 

Re food and wine - You can't go past a dinner at Salsa. It's hands down the nicest food in town - salsaportdouglas.com.au

 

Hope this helps!

Lauren

Can I just say "Ditto" :) all fantastic suggestions. We had 7 days in Port Douglas last year and will be returning for 8 days this year. There's a great Sunday Market too if you're in town that day and Hemingways down at the Marina has good beer and a lovely view.

It's been 5 years, but when we were in Port Douglas (staying at the Rydges Reef Resort) there were signs on that part of the Four Mile beach warning of crocodiles in the area. In our room, was a notice about poisonous jellyfish. We didn't dare get into the water while there and were even a little nervous while walking along the shoreline at high tide since the jungle came up very close to the water. Fortunately, neither of these dangers are present on the Great Barrier Reef

Really appreciate your experience & knowledge about Port Douglas. We as 4 Americans, are very excited about visiting this area of Australia. After Port Douglas we fly to Sydney for a one & a half day visit to explore the city & then board the Celebrity Solstice for a 14 night cruise around Australia, Tasmania, & New Zealand. Then we fly home to Arizona out of Auckland. With your great suggestions, I am sure you will have enhanced our trip greatly. Happy Travels, John & Shelley

For Shelley and John, I wanted to second the suggestions for exploring nearby Daintree Rainforest, etc. It's wonderful and very interesting!! Below are some photo "evidence" examples as my proof and encouragement. Check out my live/blog to see more ideas and options for in and around this area, plus for other stops in Sydney, Tasmania, NZ, etc. Feel free to follow up on my live/blog with any questions. I will be happy to share more info, etc.

Did a “Solstice: Visuals, Highlights Shared!” summary from two different adventures on this ship with many pictures and other details on its many options. This includes our recent Australia to New Zealand sailing. Check it out, including these early 2014 updates, at:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1803477

Now at 45,869 views for this posting.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 185,716 views for this posting.

From the Daintree Rainforest and National Park, here are some samples of our exploring there. First, is a sample for when we did a somewhat challenging 1.43 miles circular hike in the deep, deep of this dramatic rainforest. Lots of rocks, up and down paths, twists and turns, hard work, etc., as this picture illustrates. But we survived!! Even at our ages. Second, shows our group crossing the Mossman Gorge on this fairly long swinging bridge. Not Indiana Jones, but for us it was super spectacular. And, finally, the third picture is one of my favorites as it show John looking at one of these huge trees in the middle of this rainforest and contemplating its majesty, size and history. And I told John this morning, the picture shows his more photogenic side!:

(Open your screen/viewer wider to see these pictures larger!)

The Kuranda rail trip took us back a different routing compared to the sky ride. Plus, this rail adventure offered lots of interesting scenery, dramatic waterfalls, major engineering work, many train tunnels, big bridges, etc. The rail line dates back to 1891. For our group of six, we did the upgrade to the "gold" rail seating with plenty of wine, nice food/snacks, etc., in a wonderful, old-style rail car with great service and attention by the staff The great company and nice sights (plus the flowing wine), made it very much fun on a day with on and off patches of rain.:

Kuranda was a fun, charming town!! Here is a visual sample for its "style and flavor". Yes, it had lots of both, plus more "character" given its hippie past. It offers a variety of interests for travelers doing the Skyrail and/or rail trip from the nearby base of Cairns. Lots of varied shopping "opportunities", plus lots of food potentials. In the main street of this town, there are large, large banyan trees. This picture shows one of those massive works of nature in front of a cute drug and photo shop.:

Food? Yes, we have to eat. Here we had late lunch at a local place called Salsa that overlooked the waterway in Port Douglas. Here is the chef in his kitchen getting ready to prepare our dining treats. YES! They were all super good! To make it more with an Aussie twist, it had crocodile sausage in it. Finally, in this dining place we had a wonderful waiter who was originally from Dublin, Ireland. He pointed me over to the wall where they had had past guests sign a plate. The signature was a little harder to read, but he explained the name . . . Bill Clinton. Signed both the plate and the menu. Then, he made sure that I noticed the date of his dining experience when visiting Salsa and Port Douglas. It was Sept. 11, 2011. But being in Australia, it was much before the terror incidents actually happened in NYC and DC. Yes, Hillary was with Bill on this Port Douglas visit. If needed, I can provide the "rest of the story" for what happened with the Clintons when the Secret Service agents got the word about what happened back in the USA. Interesting story.: