# sydney to cairns



## coops

myself and my girlfriend are arriving in sydney on the 6th of july and coming back to ireland from cairns on the 7th of august

just a few questions

will i be better off renting a camper van and travel from sydney to cairns stopping off at the camp sites in that or will i be better off renting a car and stopping off at hostels on the way, which would be a better laugh and which we cost me less also?

any suggestions of what would be the best things to do as we travel up, for me and my girlfriend, taking into account we have a month to do stuff

i was told to spend the most time in cairns and do all the stuff around there, is this true?

also the gold coast i hear was a good place to go, this true?

any help would be apperciated, or if you can gimme any websites that would help me out with what im looking for

cheers

coops


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## Wanderer

Furley in thread just below is doing same trip a bit quicker and a month earlier, some stopping places I've mentioned in that thread.

And then


> Betwwen Brisbane and Cairns, you've got:
> . Sunshine Coast, Moolooabah/Maroochydore and Noosa
> YHA hostel is a great one in Noosa [and you ought to consider getting a YHA Australia membership] and ask there re tours to Fraser Island and whether there is one from Noosa that'll drop you at River Heads ferry point on island and you ought to be able to get a lift from River Heads into Hervey Bay and Greyhound on from there - will save you a few hundred kilometres of bus travel.
> . Agnes Water/1770 is last surf beach heading north and you can also do a trip to Lady Musgrave Island on GBR from 1770.
> . Rockhampton has a great botanical gardens/attached free Zoo and good place to see some Crocs up close, Great Western Hotel owned by one of our top C&W singers and it has indoor rodeo shows, and then from there you can get across to Great Keppel Island for superb beaches and some off shore snorkelling.
> . Airlie Beach/Whitsunday Islands and Whitehaven Beach in particular is not to be missed and ask at hostels re cheap standby deals for a few days of island cruising/snorkelling, maybe a place to do your SCUBA and get a combined sailing/SCUBA deal.
> . Magnetic Island just off coast from Townsville is popular and if you could also think of doing a SCUBA course there or if already done, think of doing a dive on the Yongala wreck, a top wreck dive on planet.
> . Then you have places like Hinchinbrook Island and Mission Beach before you get to Cairns
> 
> Another cheap island trip out of Cairns worth considering is over to Fitzroy Island.


 from another thread.

It'll be a bit on nippier side of a night in July, even up as far as Cairns and campers can be a bit like an esky in reverse - they cool down real quick, could even have condensation forming and then unless you go for one of the more expensive ones with showers aboard, you'll need to use a caravan park every so often for a shower.

So with extra fuel the campervans can use, even with an el cheapo one at about $60/n you may not be all that worse off if you get a smaller car - Car Hire | Airport Car Rental | Sydney Melbourne Brisbane Perth Adelaide DriveNow Australia for rates - and use hostels or even some cabins in caravan parks are not too badly priced - no need to book ahead as it'll be quieter times and if you have an auto club membership back home or buy a basic NRMA membership for about $80 you can get discounts. Likewise get YHA Australia membership if you plan on using hostels.

A smaller car will be a much more comfortable drive too.

Yep, GC has a lot to do about there, plenty of bars and nightlife in Surfers Paradise and most other places will be quieter by comparison but all worthwhile if you want some glorious beaches and a lot of smaller towns have some good local pubs, not quite your Irish Pub but our equivalent and some even have cheap accommodation too - less than $20/n off the beaten track well away from the coast but if you find yourself in a smaller town about 4 or 5 and like the look of a pub, ask what a room costs.

Gilhooleys in Cavill Avenue on the GC is a favourite drinking spot for me when I'm about that neck of the woods.

Have a look at hotdockets - Vouchers, Coupons and Dockets from Shop a Docket for some great 241 meal deals too.


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## mama moo

*Travelling in Oz*

Hi,

Marnie from Cheap Az Travel here.

Its a good time to travel, the weather from Airlie Beach up to Cairns will be lovely n hot but below there will be a bit chilly.

You can rent a campervan for about 50 per day and their is a new company that have cool little vans with an esky cooker and dvd with a little lcd screen in them, they are good value for money and they allow you to swap dvd's with other backpackers in the same vans.

Your other option is to do a greyhound bus pass which takes you all the way up the coast, alot of backpackers use this as they do the overnight bus from Syd to Byron. Fraser Island to Airlie Beach etc. Bus its up to you on how you want to travel.

In terms of booking trips such as fraser island and whitsunday islands and magnetic island there is many good tour packages for you to do which save you lots of money, rather than booking trips individually.

If you have any more questions please let me know.

Cheers Marnie


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## coops

cheers marnie

just in your opinion what would be the better craic to do, rent the campervan and stay in the camp sites or stay in the hostels, money is not really a problem, i dnt tink there would be much of a difference between the two anyway

coops


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