Suggestions wanted for Sydney & Brisbane Australia

[PinkJellyBaby]

Hi Everyone,

 

My partner Jeremy and I are flying out to Australia from the UK for the first, (and considering my age probably last) time.  As it is a big thing for us we want to see and do as much as we can, whilst we are there. 

 

We could really use help on area's to stay before the cruise, we are on a budget so the flash big hotels are out, but reasonable priced locations would be good.  We may even look at Air B&B.

 

Also, we are arriving on the 11th of January, so we have a little while to get over our jet lag :), what places are a must to see apart from the obvious ones.  The Opera House, Sydney Harbour Bridge, The Blue Mountains, etc.  Also can anyone suggest some good tour companies that we can research here before we come over.

 

We are seeing New Zealand and some of the South Pacific Islands which I expect will be wonderful too, but we have two cruises which will take care of the accommodation and hopefully the tours.

 

When we get back from New Zealand in mid February, we will be going up to Brisbane for a week or so, and we will need some help with accommodation & tour suggestions there too.  I hope some of you can help.

 

We are getting very excited now, looking forward to our cruise and maybe meeting some of you all.

 

Best regards Angela and Jeremy

[Globaliser]

There might just possibly be one or two threads already on this forum discussing these questions - at least for Sydney.

[PinkJellyBaby]

Thank you, I am still getting to terms with how this all works, I will read through the main forum.

 

Regards

 

A&J

[Losnab]

A few years back we stayed at the Quest I Potts Point over nye pre Sydney to NZ cruise.  Here are a few things that still stand out

Fun neighbored, mixed residential and tourists, super location very easy access to public transport. Beautiful rooftop.  Our room had a kitchenette and there was an fabulous upscale grocery store steps away.  Even washing facilities on premises.  Fun local reasonably priced restaurants in that area too.

 

if you are up to it a great memory was a long walk with unforgettable views from Coogee beach to Bondi beach.  After the walk there are great bars and fun restaurants accross from Bondi beach.

 

How wonderful that you will get to explore much more of Australia.  We hope to return to visit areas beyond Sydney.   The only kangaroo I saw was in the zoo. 

 

 

 

 

 

[PinkJellyBaby]

Thank you for that Losnab, that is really helpful,  We will definitely looking to this as obviously we just have to go to Bondi 🙂 it's got to be done.  We don't expect to see much of the wildlife so we do want to go to a zoo whilst we are there, I am told Australia Zoo is the one to go to, but I haven't researched that yet.

 

Thank you for your help.

 

A&J

[Globaliser]

Right, that's prompted me to do a job that I've been meaning to do for some time.

 

I have updated the CC list of things to do in Sydney. The current edition can be found here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2597598-sydney-must-dos/?tab=comments#comment-56254856

 

[PinkJellyBaby]

Wow Globaliser, Thank you.

 

That is fantastic, we are in Sydney for a couple of weeks before our Cruise.  One to get over the jet lag and secondly to have a good look around.

 

That link will give us everything we need to know, it's excellent.

Thank you so much.

 

Best regards

 

Angela and Jeremy 🙂  Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year. 🙂

[whimsy7]

for Sydney, you should get an Opal card (it's free) and load some money on it. start with $20 and top up as you go (at convenience stores and newsagents). remember that only people with an Australian bank account can get a refund.

the Opal card fares are cheaper than a single fare ticket from the machine. the daily cap is $15.80 and there is also a weekly cap. on Sunday, the fare is $2.70 all day on all forms of transport.

some things to do, in addition to the extensive list provided by Globaliser....

the Pylon Lookout

the Bondi to Coogee coastal walk

for a full day, get to Circular Quay, take the ferry from Wharf 2 to Watson's Bay, have some fish and chips there (from the takeaway kiosk), catch the 380 bus to Bondi and then do the Bondi to Coogee walk

 

 

[PinkJellyBaby]

Thank you so much whimsy7, that is very useful information.  We will be using a lot of transport while we are there.  We may hire a car when we get back from our first cruise to go upto Brisbane, but a car in Sydney, I guess is as useful as a car in London lol.....  nowhere to park :).

 

Thank you for your help.  much appreciated.

 

Angie & Jeremy

[GUT2407]

You can now use a contactless card (or even phone or watch) on Sydney Trains and Ferries.

[whimsy7]

On 11/29/2018 at 8:12 PM, whimsy7 said:

catch the 380 bus to Bondi and then do the Bondi to Coogee walk

my apologies...it's the 333 bus

[SinbadThePorter]

I might chime in here with some Brisbane info.

 

If you want to cuddle a koala, your best bet is Lone Pine Sanctuary. You can get there by road (ie taxi) or by a river boat from the city.

 

The Australia Zoo is about an hours drive north of the city. They also have koalas available for a cuddle but you have to book ahead.

 

The city itself is not particularly interesting architecturally as most of the best old colonial buildings were knocked down in the 60s and 70s.

 

A trip up and down the river by public ferry is worthwhile and inexpensive. They will even take you to the Portside Cruise Terminal. Stop off at South Bank for a look around or even a quick dip in the artificial beach there. Across the river on the city side is a botanical garden. A nice place for a picnic.

 

In Moreton Bay there is an interesting former colonial prison on St Helena Island. Get there by boat from Manly.

 

Across the bay from the city there are some very large islands with wonderful beaches and giant sand dunes. Tangalooma resort on Moreton Island is probably the pick. You can stay there and take tours across the island. They also allow dolphin fondling.

 

About an hour south of Brisbane is the city of Gold Coast. A sprawling tourist trap that can't decide whether it wants to be an upmarket resort area or a seedy dive, so it manages to be both. Worth a look for the outrageously awful architecture.

 

About two hours north of Brisbane is Noosa. This a laid back hipster type town of expensive real estate and chichi shops. Surrounded by a beautiful coastline though.

 

There's lots more, but it would make the post much too TL:DR.

 

[PinkJellyBaby]

Hi SinbadThePorter.

 

Thank you for that, it's much appreciated.  I am getting a lot of good ideas now.  We will be in Brisbane for about 7 to 10 days, so that will give us some good things to look at.

 

Many thanks

 

 

Angie & Jeremy

[PinkJellyBaby]

Hi GUT2407, that is good to know too.  It will help us until we get our Opal card.  Many thanks. A&J

[cathaana]

If you go with AirBnB, Nundah might be a good location. Great local infrastructure, next to the airport, short train ride to the city. My parents stay there a lot.

[PinkJellyBaby]

Hi Cathaana,

 

Excellent, we will have a look there too.  We should be making some choices this weekend.  Many thanks.

 

Angie & Jeremy

[noosa_blue150]

A cheaper and easier option than climbing the Harbour Bridge may be the Harbour bridge pylon tour- $15, less than 200 steps , 360 degree views almost as high s harbour bridge climb proper. 

 

PylonLookoutEbrochure2017.pdf

[bearmom53]

How much time should do I need to spend at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary? Including holding the koala.

[GUT2407]

14 minutes ago, bearmom53 said:

How much time should do I need to spend at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary? Including holding the koala.

Half a day, or even a full day.

[SeaDog-46]

For accommodation in Sydney & Brisbane - get to know Airbnb & the hotel Booking site before you decide where to stay.

For more than a few days a whole home or apartment would be better value but check there is public transport nearby.

Tours to Australia Zoo on the quieter Sunshine Coast can be had on Viator site - also for Sydney.

Edited September 27, 2019 by SeaDog-46

[SinbadThePorter]

On 9/27/2019 at 6:27 AM, bearmom53 said:

How much time should do I need to spend at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary? Including holding the koala.

 

We went there last month. We walked past the bird cages, strolled through the Koala lab, gawped at the devils and dingoes, wandered through the kangaroo paddock, watched the raptor show, looked at the celebrity photos in the shop and stared at sleeping koalas.

 

An hour and a half.