Australian Natural Adventures

Custom Itinerary for
Tim Bonsack &Family continues......

Day 11- Monday, June 5: Great Barrier Reef
Another day on the Great Barrier Reef, but this time visiting a true coral cay, home to tens of thousands of seabirds, then the outer reef where there is nothing but the Coral Sea, extensive reefs, and your boat. There is no better way to understand the vastness of the extensive reef system. As the water is deeper, and the currents different, the animals of the reef are also different, and by visiting both locations you get a much better experience of this 1200 mile long wonderland.      (L)

Day 12 - Tuesday, June 6: Cairns / Adelaide / Kangaroo Island
This morning fly to Adelaide at 10.30am, arriving at 1.10pm. As your flight to Kanbgaroo Island is not until 5.45pm, you may wish to taxi into Adelaide, about ten minutes away, for a short look around. Return to the aiprot for your 5.45 Rex flight to Kangaroo Island, arriving at 6.15pm. You are met and transferred to your accommodation for the next two nights, Seashells Apartments.

Day 13 - Wednesday, June 7: Kangaroo Island
Begin your days of exploration of this wildlife-rich island. You’ll first visit the redgum forest along the Cygnet River valley to seek out koalas sleeping in the forks of the trees, then travel through some of the best wool-producing areas on the island to a conservation park on the north coast. Here we walk through the habitat of Kangaroo Island Kangaroos, Tammar Wallabies and the endangered Glossy Black Cockatoo. For lunch enjoy a delicious seafood barbeque served with fine South Australian wines before heading to a colony of Australian Sealions. At Seal Bay Conservation Park a walk among Sealions on a beautiful sandy beach may reveal watching pups nursing or playing in the surf. Old bulls bear the scars of territorial disputes, as your guide explains when he tells us about their unique breeding biology. In the afternoon we visit Cape Gantheaume Conservation Park including D'Estrees Bay - where ospreys nest, and kangaroos come out late in the day to feed. After this you are dropped off at Seashells. This evening walk down to the beach and join a Ranger-led small group walk to watch the Fairy Penguins waddle ashore after feeding out at sea.      (L)

Day 14– Thursday, June 8: Kangaroo Island
Flinders Chase National Park is a 74,000 hectare (190,000 acre) wilderness which covers the entire west end of the Island. We’ll visit Rocky River Homestead - originally a small farm and now the Park headquarters. This area is home to kangaroos, wallabies, possums, goannas, echidnas, koalas, platypus and many birds including the rare Cape Barren Goose. At Cape du Couedic on the south-west tip is a New Zealand furseal colony which is rapidly expanding. These animals can be observed at rest on the rocks or frolicking in the surf under Admirals Arch - a spectacular coastal grotto. On the headland above is Cape du Couedic Lighthouse which plays an important role in navigation. Further down the coast are the Remarkable Rocks, huge natural granite sculptures on the cliff top. Lunch today is a picnic in the bush before exploring more of the Island. Depending upon the day you might take a walk to a secluded cove, or watch for a platypus by a quiet pool. You return to your accommodation at the eastern end of the island via Vivonne Bay, one of the few protected bays on the south coast. Return to Adelaide deaprting at 6.35pm and arriving at 7.05pm this evening. You are met and transferred to your hotel, Saville City Suites.       (L)

Day 15 - Friday, June 9: Adelaide / Sydney
Fly to Sydney at 7.25 this morning, arriving at 9.45 (there's a 30 minute time difference).Due to your early arrival your hotel room at The Stafford may not be ready, but you will be able to leave your luggage. Lunch can be taken on a cruise on the harbor, with views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge, as well as the boats and ferries of what is often called the most beautiful city harbor in the world. While there are tours that utilize the ferries, usually with lunch or morning tea, the cheapest way to do this is to simply buy a return ticket to one of the up-harbour places such as Homebush (where the Olympics were held). You’ll see a map of all the places they go at Circular Quay. The ferries have a snack/meal bar, and you can just get an easy lunch or snack there, sit back, and enjoy the ride. The ferry to Manly goes in the other direction, and as it passes the Entrance, where the harbor enters the Pacific, can get interestingly rough at times. This ferry will pass the Opera House and various other landmarks, and is also a good run.

This afternoon you enjoy an introduction to the city of Sydney and its history by joining a small group for a 2.30pm 90-minute guided walk around The Rocks, the historical center and oldest part of Sydney. Many buildings were built by the earliest settlers, including convicts transported to Australia from England as punishment for their crimes. Houses, hotels, woolsheds and other buildings dating from the very early 1800s (Australia was first settled in 1788) are seen, many of which now house some of Sydney’s most interesting shops, with wares ranging from Aboriginal artifacts to the latest high fashion. The Rocks is at the base of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, right adjacent to Circular Quay. Across the Quay is the Opera House, and lining the quay are cafes and restaurants, many offering al fresco dining. Australia has developed its own cuisine, a far cry from the stodgy English-based fare of earlier years. Restaurants featuring a fusion of Asian, European and even native Australian food abound, often featuring the superbly fresh fish abundantly available from Australia's long coastline.                  (*B)

Day 16 - Saturday, June 10: Sydney
The rest of the day is free to continue discovering this vibrant city. Just a short walk from your hotel are the Botanic Gardens, which has good views of the harbour, an abundant bird life, and a colony of huge but appealing Grey Flying-foxes, whose wingspans are approximately three feet. They are easily seen during the day as they roost hanging from the trees. Many birds, from Black Swans to colorful Rainbow Lorikeets can usually be seen about the Gardens. A pleasant ten minute walk north of the Gardens, along the edge of Farm Cove, brings you to the point known as Mrs Macquarie's Chair (Mr Macquarie was an early Governor). this is probably the best place to get views and photos of the Bridge, Harbour and Opera House in one expanse. Immediately south of the Gardens is a park called The Domain, also a good place for walking, and which houses the Art Gallery, featuring an excellent collection of Australian and overseas art, including Aboriginal Art. A little further south, at the corner of Hyde Park, is the Australian Museum, with possibly Australia’s best collection of Aboriginal artifacts and other pieces. It is also a very good natural history museum, naturally featuring Australian wildlife, geography and geology. On the other side of Hyde Park are the Hyde Park Barracks, home to over 15,000 convicts in Australia’s formative years; it has displays which give a good insight into Australia's early days.      

As well as the immediate downtown and the Rocks, you may wish to visit areas such as the inner suburbs of Wooloomooloo and Paddington, which are now home to restaurants, boutique shops, and other less touristy and more local-flavored shopping and dining opportunities. There's also Darling Harbour, with its world-class Aquarium and shopping precinct, and of course the once-notorious area called Kings Cross, now very trendy with numerous restaurants, shops and Sydney's best nightlife. You may wish to take a guided tour of the Opera House; tours leave on the half hour from 9.30am until 4.30pm, and the cost is about $9. Your hotel desk can help you visit any of these areas. Public transport is excellent in Sydney, and is the recommended way to get about.

Many people think of opals when they think of Australia, and we can recommend a visit to the National Opal Collection downtown. It has a mining and information display about opals in association with The Australian Museum, and offers tax-free buying; we’ve included brochure which also entitle you to a discount and a free gift. You should take your passport and airline ticket to buy tax-free.             

Day 17 - Sunday, June 11: Sydney / Los Angeles
Sadly you leave Australia today. Your late morning flight takes you back across the Pacific, and due to the International Date Line, you arrive in Los Angeles early this same morning, in plenty of time for connections back to Florida.

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