Australia - aTour DownUnder
£9799.00
Discovery
17 nights in Australia | Solos Board
What to expect
Outback Experience
Experience must-see landmarks that define the Australian landscape like Uluru.
Coastal Wonders
Experience the Great Barrier Reef on a cruise to tropical Green Island.
Outdoor Exploration
Wander the epic coastline & national parks as we take traverse the breathtaking Great Ocean Road.
Australian Wildlife
Observe Australia's diverse animal kingdom up close like Koalas, crocodiles and more
About this trip...
What's Included
Return flights & transfers, plus internal flights-
Airport Transfers
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Airport Taxes & Charges
Private Room
Breakfast daily, four lunches and five dinners
Australia Zoo, Koalas and Penguins at Philllip Island-
Blue Mountains
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Cairns, the Great Barrier Reef and Kuranda Rainforest
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Explore the Sunshine Coast
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Great Ocean Road
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Uluru Rock and Kata Tjuta National Park
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Tours of Melbourne and Sydney
Accompanying Solos Tour Leader
Fully financially protected
What's extra:
- eVisitor visa. There is no visa application charge or service fee
- Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) via the iOS App or Android App. There is no visa application charge, but a service fee of A$20 may apply
Itinerary
- Depart the UK
- Arrival in Melbourne
- Puffing Billy steam train and Melbourne sights
- Melbourne and Phillip Island
- Free day in Melbourne
- The Great Ocean Road
- Melbourne to Uluru
- Uluru and Kata Tjuta National Park
- Uluru to Cairns
- Free day in Cairns
- Green Island and Great Barrier Reef
- Kuranda Rainforest
- Cairns to Brisbane and Australia Zoo
- The Sunshine Coast
- Sunshine Coast to Sydney
- Sydney
- The Blue Mountains
- Free day in Sydney
- Flight to the UK
What you'll be doing
Day One : Depart UK
Day Two : Arrival into Melbourne
Day Three : 'Puffing Billy' steam train & sightseeing tour of Melbourne
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.
- Breakfast & dinner included
Day Four : Touring Melbourne & wildlife spotting on Phillip Island
We spend part of the morning enjoying a brief walking tour of Melbourne with a local guide, discovering many of its hidden secrets located in the small alleyways and arcades. Returning to our hotel, we have the remainder of the morning free. Early afternoon, we make our way to Phillip Island to visit the Phillip Island Koala Conservation Centre & the Nobbies Centre. Overlooking the waters of Bass Strait, the Nobbies Centre showcases Australian fur seals and unique marine life. After dinner at the Rusty Water Brewery Restaurant & Bar, we witness the 'Penguin Parade', part of the Phillip Island Nature Park - a reserve designed to protect and promote awareness of little penguins.
- Breakfast & dinner included
Day Five : Free day in Melbourne
Today is a free day in Melbourne to explore the city further at our own pace.
- Breakfast included
Day Six : Exploring the Great Ocean Road
Today we have a full day exploring one of Australia’s most spectacular coastal drives – The Great Ocean Road. Following an early breakfast, we travel west, bypassing Geelong, to Anglesea and it’s here we commence our breathtaking drive. Built to honour the servicemen and women of World War One, the Great Ocean Road extends more than 186 miles along some of the best coastal scenery Australia has to offer. We travel to the coastal town of Lorne - the first place to be declared an area of 'Special Significance and Natural Beauty' by the Victorian Government.
- Breakfast & lunch included
Day Seven : Melbourne to Uluru with outback experience
After breakfast, we transfer to Melbourne Airport for our flight to Uluru. On arrival, we travel to the mysitcal 36 domes of Kata Tjuta. On the way, enjoy panoramic views of the southern side of Kata Tjuta at a dune viewing platform before arriving at Walpa Gorge. Spend some time exploring the gorge and the unusual conglomerate rock formations. The 1.3km walking trail through Walpa Gorge follows the natural creek between two of the tallest domes of Kata Tjuta.
- Breakfast & dinner included
Day Eight : Kuniya & Mala Walk and Sunrise
Join your guide on a 10.5kms walk around the entire base of Uluru. Along the way, enjoy a light breakfast as you begin to absorb the enormity and beauty of your surroundings. Beginning with Kuniya Piti, a sacred site, hear the Tjukurpa story (beliefs and law of Anangu, the local Aboriginal people) of the Mala Men. Continue around Uluru to the Mala Walk, one of the most important habitation areas for the local Aboriginal people over thousands of years. It includes a visit into Kantju Gorge, where after rainfall, water can cascade of the side of Uluru and plunge some 90 metres. After a short break continue to the Lungkata Walk where your guide will tell you the Tjukurpa story of cheeky Blue Tongue Lizard! Next stop is the Mutitjulu Waterhole, once an important water source for the Anangu. Your Guide will indicate the natural features of the landscape, as well as Aboriginal rock art, and rely more traditional stories relating to this special place.
- Breakfast included
Day Nine : Uluru to Cairns
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 included
Day Ten : Free day in Cairns
Following several action-packed days, we now have the chance to relax and enjoy a day at leisure. The day is free for shopping and personal sightseeing with several museums and the Cairns Aquarium nearby. Dinner tonight is overlooking the Cairns Marina at Dundees on the Waterfront Restaurant.
- Breakfast & dinner included
Day Eleven : Green Island & the Great Barrier Reef
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
Day Twelve : Kuranda Rainforest
This morning, we have a short drive to the north of Cairns where we board the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway. Making our way up the range, we stop off to visit a rainforest interpretative center and take a short walk through the rainforest before arriving in the pretty village of Kuranda. From the Sky Rail Kuranda Station, we have a short walk through the Kuranda Village to meet our transfer to Rainforestation Nature Park. Here we learn about one of the oldest surviving cultures in the world with the Pamigirri Aboriginal Experience.
- Breakfast & lunch included
Day Thirteen : Cairns to Brisbane & Australia Zoo
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 the Sunshine Coast and check into our accommodation at the Oaks Sunshine Coast Resort.
- Breakfast included
Day Fourteen : The Sunshine Coast
The day is free to relax and enjoy the stunning Sunshine Coast.
- Breakfast included
Day Fifteen : Sunshine Coast to Sydney
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
Day Sixteen : Sightseeing in Sydney
A private coach will collect us this morning for a city sights tour visiting the historical Rocks area, where the First Fleet landed in 1788 to establish Australia's first European settlement. Our tour also includes passing the picturesque Botanical Garens, the Conservatorium of Music, Art Gallery and Mrs Macquaries Chair, stopping for spectacular views of Sydney Opera House. Then it's back to the city's commercial centre, Darling Harbour and Chinatown before travelling through Kings Cross and the exclusive suburbs of Double Bay, Rose Bay and finally Watson's Bay for a spectacular view of the Pacific Ocean from The Gap. Arrive at famous Bondi Beach for a brief srop before returning to the city via PAddington to view it's restored 19th Century Colonial Terraces
- Breakfast included
Day Seventeen : The Blue Mountains
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.
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
Day Eighteen : Free day in Sydney & farewell dinner cruise
Today is a free day for shopping or more sightseeing in Sydney. Our farewell dinner tonight will be a dinner cruise on Sydney’s beautiful harbour.
- Breakfast & dinner included
Day Nineteen : Flight back to the UK
We enjoy breakfast together for one final morning, before transferring to the airport to start our journey back to the UK.
- Breakfast included
Accommodation
(as specified or similar)- Day 2 - 6 | Four-star Clarion Suites Gateway Melbourne
- Day 7 - 8 | Three-star Outback Hotel Ayers Rock
- Day 9 - 12 | Four-star Pacific Hotel Cairns
- Day 13 - 14 | Four-star Oaks Sunshine Coast Oasis Resort
- Day 15 - 18 | Four-star Furama Darling Harbour Sydney
Day 2 - 6 | Four-star Clarion Suites Gateway Melbourne
Day 7 - 8 | Three-star Outback Hotel Ayers Rock
Day 9 - 12 | Four-star Pacific Hotel Cairns
Day 13 - 14 | Four-star Oaks Sunshine Coast Oasis Resort
Day 15 - 18 | Four-star Furama Darling Harbour Sydney
Dates & Prices
Essential Information
Passport validity requirements
For entry into Australia, your passport should be valid for the proposed duration of your stay. If you’re transiting another country on your way to or from Australia, check the entry requirements for that country. Many countries will only allow entry if you have at least 6 months validity remaining on your passport.
Visa requirements
British citizens can usually get the following types of electronic visitor visa:
- eVisitor visa. There is no visa application charge or service fee
- Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) via the iOS App or Android App. There is no visa application charge, but a service fee of A$20 may apply
Not sure what travel documents you need? Our trusted partner, sherpa°, makes it easy to check visa and entry requirements based on your destination and passport. One quick check now means smooth sailing later. Click here to learn more.
Vaccination requirements (other than COVID-19)
At least 8 weeks before your trip, check the vaccinations and certificates you need in TravelHealthPro’s Australia guide.
- Flight Information (regardless of international luggage allowance): Luggage is restricted to one item of ‘checked in’ luggage (20kg) and one smaller item of ‘under seat’ or hand luggage per person (7kg).
- Due to limited storage capacity in the motorcoaches used on tour, each ‘check in’ luggage item should have dimensions not exceeding 30” x 20” x 12” (76x51x30cm) and weight not exceeding 20kg.
- ‘Under seat’ or hand luggage is restricted to one piece per person, not exceeding 17” x 13” x 8.7” (43x33x22cm). ‘Under seat’ or hand luggage handling is the responsibility of each guest and must be taken on and off the motorcoach by you each day of the trip.
- Melbourne to Phillip Island: 2 hours 30 minutes.
- Melbourne to Great Ocean Road: 2 hours 45 minutes.
- Brisbane to Noosa: 2 hours.
