Australia - a Tour Down Under

Late morning we head for the hills, as we travel through the eastern suburbs to the Dandenong Ranges. We take a ride through the lush mountainside from Belgrave on the historic ‘Puffing Billy’ steam train. Disembarking at Lakeside Visitor Centre & Museum, our coach will be waiting for us.

On our return to Melbourne, we enjoy a sightseeing tour around the city. Within the parks and gardens around the city centre are many gracious buildings such as the Old Treasury Building and the Exhibition Building, built for the Great Exhibition of 1880. Melbourne also has many beautiful gardens within easy reach of the city. We drive past the MCG (the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground) and Melbourne Tennis Centre (where the Australian Open Tennis is played each year), the parklands and the War Memorial, the stately old buildings in town and the Federation Square. We also visit the Melbourne Skydeck for amazing views over the city and Port Phillip Bay, before enjoying our ‘welcome to Australia dinner’ at a nearby restaurant overlooking Melbourne’s Yarra River.

• Breakfast & dinner included

Today is a free day in Melbourne to explore the city further at our own pace.

• Breakfast included

After breakfast, we transfer to Melbourne Airport for our direct flight to Uluru.

In the late afternoon, we begin our preparations for dinner, for tonight we’re dining out –  way way out! The Sounds of Silence Dinner is a gourmet dinner under the stars. Winner of many tourism awards, the Sounds of Silence is a unique outback experience. The romance of the desert, the setting of the sun behind the domes of Kata Tjuta and Uluru, the haunting sounds of a didgeridoo, sumptuous outback fare, the star-filled heavens – this is the best of the Red Centre, distilled into four magical hours. Shortly before sundown, we will be driven to a special location in the desert. As a didgeridoo player weaves his magic spell, we will enjoy canapes and witness a spectacular sunset. After a feast of Northern Territory delights including barramundi, bush salads and classic Australian desserts, we’re treated to some of the world’s best stargazing, with the assistance of a resident astronomer.

• Breakfast & dinner included

Our flight to Cairns, the capital of the Tropical North, marks the start of a new adventure in a different state, offering a completely distinct atmosphere from the landscape we’re leaving behind. Our coach will meet us on arrival for the transfer to our hotel, with an orientation tour en route. The remainder of the afternoon is free for personal sightseeing or to enjoy the hotel’s facilities. Cool off with a swim in the hotel pool and later tonight, we come together to enjoy dinner in the hotel restaurant.

This modern, colourful city is the capital of the Tropical North. The cosmopolitan Esplanade traces the bay foreshore and blends the city life of cafes and shopping with the natural attractions of the Coral Sea.

• Breakfast & dinner included

Today we will be having a complete Great Barrier Reef and Queensland tropical island experience. From the hotel, we have a short walk to the Reef Fleet terminal, where we take a fast 45-minute catamaran ride to beautiful Green Island, enjoying two hours on this unique reef and rainforest coral cay. Then, we depart Green Island to continue our day of adventure and discovery with three hours on board ‘Great Adventures’ spacious activity platform, moored on the majestic Outer Great Barrier Reef. We enjoy lunch, with the afternoon spent either snorkelling, viewing the underwater observatory or taking a tour in the semi-submersible sub. Late afternoon, we arrive back in Cairns following a wonderful day on the Great Barrier Reef.

• Breakfast & lunch included

After breakfast, we transfer to Cairns Airport for our morning flight to Brisbane. No holiday to this part of Australia would be complete without a visit to Australia Zoo on the Sunshine Coast – home to the late Steve Irwin. Australia Zoo has a reputation for conservation work, due mainly to the popularity of the documentary series ‘The Crocodile Hunter’. Many millions of dollars have been invested in the park so that it is an ever-changing and growing attraction. Late afternoon, we make our way to Noosa and check into our accommodation at the RACV Noosa Resort.

• Breakfast included

We transfer to the Sunshine Coast Airport for our direct flight to Sydney this morning. Radiating from the sparkling waters of Sydney Harbour, Australia’s largest city stretches from the shores of the Pacific Ocean to the foot of the Blue Mountains. On arrival into Sydney, we make our way into Darling Harbour and check-in to our hotel.

• Breakfast included

This morning, we are ready to begin our tour of the Blue Mountains to the west of Sydney. Travelling through the western suburbs of Sydney, past the former Sydney 2000 Olympic site, we make our first stop at Featherdale Wildlife Park. This is where we will see Australia’s unique wildlife in a natural bush setting. We have the opportunity to feed a kangaroo, wallaby or emu. Featherdale has one of Australia’s largest private collections of native animals and birds. Our coach climbs into the Blue Mountains as we take the scenic Cliff Drive to Echo Point and see the Three Sisters at Katoomba – a great stop for a photo opportunity and our lunch venue is at the nearby Lookout Restaurant. Near here is Scenic World where we ride on the Scenic Railway, the world’s steepest incline railway. We descend 415m down the escarpment at a gradient of 52 degrees and travel through the tunnel and ancient rainforest. When we disembark, we walk the 300m rainforest boardwalk to connect with the Flyway platform. The Scenic Cableway is the steepest aerial cable car in Australia. It will take us on a 545-metre ride up through the World Heritage listed rainforest of the Jamison Valley. Our final adventure at Scenic World is to join the Scenic Skyway to take the journey 270m above ancient ravines and dazzling waterfalls. The 360-degree birds eye view takes in the Three Sisters, Katoomba Falls, Mount Solitary and the never-ending expanse of the Jamison Valley.

• Breakfast & lunch included

We enjoy breakfast together for one final morning, before transferring to the airport to start our journey back to the UK.

• Breakfast included