Travel

Case Study: Australia

By I have come back from Australia hooked on fish and I don’t mean the filleted and cooked variety.

Every holiday should have at least one unforgettable experience. While most people return from Down Under gobsmacked by Sydney and amazed by Ayers Rock I was swept away by swimming at the Great Barrier Reef.

Imagine being surrounded by vivid-coloured fish of seemingly infinite variety, at times swimming through the heart of a shoal of thousands of tiny silver fish racing past so close you can feel the little ripples from their tails as the whole school flows round you or floating in the crystal clear water watching larger but brilliantly coloured parrot fish rasping at the living coral.

Our encounter with the reef was a day spent on Green Island off the coast from Cairns and was an extremely gentle introduction to snorkeling off a beach and jetty. But the experience was the sort to make you yearn to keep getting back into the water to see more.

So much so I confess to spending the next few days of our Australian Adventure holidays with Archers Direct with the whole back half of me , should we say, glowing. But fortunately this was not enough to dampen our enthusiasm to see as much as we could of this great country in our two week tour.

Before getting up close and personal with the aquatic wildlife off the Queensland coast we had already visited the sophisticated city of Melbourne and had a stab at the red heart of Australia, Alice Springs and Ayres Rock.

Melbourne is a relaxing and easy introduction to this vast country after the long flight from the Old Country. The city has a European feel and from our centrally-located hotel we were able to comfortably take in the sights and sample the vibrant food scene.

With a large population of Greek descent and a younger Asian community you are just as likely to eat dolmades and noodles as steak.
Sydney might have the Opera House but Melbourne prides itself on being the cultural and sporting capital with a wealth of festivals and home to major events such as the recent Commonwealth Games.
We opted to visit the city’s stunning new museum, a bold and dynamic piece of architecture, rather than go on the tour of sports venues. But even we sporting philistines could not miss the significance the city puts in its greatest shrine, the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

We spent a relaxing time in Melbourne, getting to known the city and even spotting possums in the beautiful Treasury Gardens opposite our hotel, and still had time to travel out on the Great Ocean Road, one of the world’s great drives, through wild cliffs and tropical valleys to see the Twelve Apostles, the great stone stacks eroded from the cliffs.
The contrast between Melbourne and the country’s Red Heart could not be greater. Not just the dramatic increase in temperature but the sheer size, emptiness and starkness of the Outback.

We visited the famous Flying Doctors and the School of the Outback, both of which provide a vital service to these rugged people living on cattle stations and scattered communities over vast distances.
At Alice Springs we had a fun night out round the camp fire, listening to tales of the cattle stations, traditional Outback songs and star gazing into the vast southern skies.

The next day we traveled by coach to Ayers Rock, know called Uluru, to watch the sunset and the changing palette of colours, while sipping bubbly.

Being a place sacred to the Aborigine people it is frowned upon to climb the rock so we had the perfect excuse not to and were content to walk with our specialist guide as he explained  how the natural features of tne rock are woven into Aborigine legends.

Next stop was Cairns and another complete contrast as we swapped arid for humid in the tropical north of Queensland.

And while the beaches and the reef are undoubtedly the main attractions we were also introduced to some of the oldest rainforest in the world.

Just getting there was an experience in itself on the charming Kuranda Scenic Railway with its original carriages that winds its way up along the sides of a gorge past waterfalls and lakes with a view out over the ocean to the reef islands.

If that wasn’t enough our return trip was on the Skyrail, a splendid aerial journey high above the rainforest canopy with stops to get out and explore with the help of guides keen share their enthusiasm for this delicate natural wonder. As you hover just over the tops of the trees peering through the canopy , you cannot miss the pure white parrots nesting at the very tops if the trees.

Cairns itself has all you would need for a couple of night’s stay with plenty of bars and restaurants to suit all pockets. This is the chance to get to taste the fish that you have spent the day admiring amongst the coral. in one of the excellent restaurants specializing in seafood.
Already this had been given a hugely contrasting experience of Australia. And still we had Sydney to go!

You could feel the excitement in our group as the plane started its decent towards the city and we caught sight of the magical harbour setting for this beautiful city and glimpses of that famous bridge and opera house.

Sydney is quite a sprawling city so having a hotel in the right area is a huge bonus. We were just a short stroll down to the historic Rocks area - where we tended to eat most evenings – and the Circular Quay and therefore the opera house.

Sydney has far more hustle and bustle than cool Melbourne but it still has a more laidback atmosphere than most large cities that makes it great for visitors to explore and instantly feel comfortable and at ease.
Our highlights of Sydney have to include the experience of climbing the bridge at sunset and watching the city transform from being day to night from a truly unique vantage point. We attended a performance at the Opera House, a truly Australian version of an Italian opera with surtitles that gave us an excellent opportunity to brush up on some of the more colourful Australian expressions, though I don’t believe that ‘I will stick to you like a dag to a sheep’ is an altogether accurate translation from the Italian.

But this is a city where just being there, people watching in a waterfront.

Can you experience Australia in two weeks? Certainly. Since returning I have spoken to people who have spent far longer in Australia and seen far less.

Okay, so there were a few early starts but definitely no feeling of being in a rush with enough free time to relax and get your own feel for the country.

 
Mike Smith travelled with Archers Direct, one of the UK's leading direct sell operators. The 11 night Australian Adventure is priced from £2045 and flights are with Qantas from Heathrow.  Archers Direct offers a variety of Australian tours as well as cruising, resort holidays, twin and multi-centre holidays.

For a copy of the Archers Direct worldwide brochure telephone 0845 600 1910 or 0870 460 3648 to make a reservation.  

Visit www.archersdirect.co.uk for full details on the range of holidays available.

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