Vacation in Aus.

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084runnerltd

084runnerltd

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Going in a vacation in early Feb. in Port Douglas, Australia.

Any of you Australian members know if there are any trails around there?

Ideally I would like to rent a LC or LX (I guess I would settle for a jeep :p)


Thanks
 
Your welcome but be prepard for the worse and take a epirb and satilite phone for help if needed. The best advice is to stay with your vehicle and never try and walk out because heaps of people go missing up north.
 
Last edited:
ozcrusier said:
Your welcome but be prepard for the worse and take a epirb and satilite phone for help if needed.
Click to expand...

Do you know if there are ever group meet ups with local wheelers that do the "track." It would just be my wife and I. I have a feeling that this could end up being a disaster if not properly prepared.

We are from the states and essentially will be a "work trip" to Port Douglas for 10 days or so. We were going to extend the trip a few days to have some free time.....but obviously I am not going to pack a "hi-jack," winch, straps etc.. on the plane.

Is there a "off-roading" from Port Douglas to Cape Tribulation?? Or is it only after that the the fun begins??

Thanks again!
 
Feb will be STINKING HOT and up north will be HUMID and it's the wet season...

Really not a good time to visit oz to head north... If you have no choice, well, enjoy what you can, else re-schedule for May/June etc.

cheers,
george.
 
george_tlc said:
Feb will be STINKING HOT and up north will be HUMID and it's the wet season...

Really not a good time to visit oz to head north... If you have no choice, well, enjoy what you can, else re-schedule for May/June etc.

cheers,
george.
Click to expand...

No chance of rescheduling....we can pick one of four weeks but all of them are in February.

There are a variety of other locations (new Zealand, Asia, etc.... we can choose). Would you recommend waiting and planning an Australia trip later in life??

We (my wife and I) picked Australia (tenitively) as it will be the dead of winter here and want an escape from the sub-zero temps.

Originally we thought New Zealand (Queenstown) but after further research, it looks like NZ is pretty cool (60-75 f) that time of year.

So, please an honest opinion. We go on international trips 2x a year and Australia will be offered again. Would you pass on this trip and wait until it is offered during a better month??
 
I'm from Oz (living/working in the US), so I go back usually every year for a trip. I ALWAYS go may/june or Sep/Oct.... To travel to the north, then may-sep is a good window.

I personally would NOT head to the north of oz in Feb, especially coming from mid winter in the US - it will be BRUTAL! Anywhere in the central area will be hot as hell and just NOT any fun. A/C is useless since it will only be 'nice' while driving and then when you stop to camp/explore etc - you'll be in the heat. The flies also love coming out when the weather is warm - there are a LOT of flies in oz - hence the "great aussie salute"...

NZ would be fine in Feb - it's a lot further south and would be much more pleasant weather-wise.

cheers,
george.
 
george_tlc said:
I'm from Oz (living/working in the US), so I go back usually every year for a trip. I ALWAYS go may/june or Sep/Oct.... To travel to the north, then may-sep is a good window.

I personally would NOT head to the north of oz in Feb, especially coming from mid winter in the US - it will be BRUTAL! Anywhere in the central area will be hot as hell and just NOT any fun. A/C is useless since it will only be 'nice' while driving and then when you stop to camp/explore etc - you'll be in the heat. The flies also love coming out when the weather is warm - there are a LOT of flies in oz - hence the "great aussie salute"...

NZ would be fine in Feb - it's a lot further south and would be much more pleasant weather-wise.

cheers,
george.
Click to expand...

George,

Thanks for all the input.

Another question for you.

Port Douglas is the "true" location of the vacation at the Seraton Mirage....

The other option we are considering is a Queenstown trip at lake Wakatipu at the Hilton.

Since we are in northern USA, less than an hour from Canada....we want an escape from the extreme cold temperatures in early February.

Our goal is to lay around and relax on the beaches.

Based on our reading, it looks like there are "hot springs" in NZ but it seems like a more "active" location. (Kayaking, hiking, fishing, biking)

With our "goal" of laying around and relaxing, would you still recommend New Zealand?


(Thanks again, I know you kind of answered this in your last post, but wanted you to know what our "goal" of the trip was)

Thanks Again!
 
OPPSS I messed up the dates for the Australia trip.

They are the last 2 weeks of feb. and the 1st week of April.
 
1st week of April is getting 'cooler' but still quite hot up north. You can google for historical weather temps in various places in oz etc and get an idea of what you would be letting yourself into if you went at that time of the year.

Summer time is usually not a good idea to got into the water in the northern parts of oz since lots of places also have nasty stinging jellyfish. I'm from west oz, so don't know too much about the northern parts of QLD, but it would be Humid.

The big problem is that if you travel from well acclimatised winter weather of northern US and go to oz you will really feel the temp change a lot more than if you were just living in the warm/hot temps for a month or two.

If you are staying in a nice hotel, then nasty high temps is less of an issue, but if you want to then go an do some 4wding/camping that's another story.

NZ is cooler, but Feb is still the summer heat, so it would still be nice - especially coming from mid winter in northern US. That temp change from acclimatised cold straight to warm/hot makes things feel hotter than they would otherwise be.

cheers,
george.
 
I was just up on Port Douglas this past April and it was great. I was pm'ing someone who lived nearby and I was going to try to meet up with him for some wheeling and exploring, but I was out on the barrier reef and it didn't work out.
 
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