We had a wonderful time exploring Queensland's beautiful coastline. Since this is a popular driving route with many choices, I thought it might be helpful to outline what I would have done differently, had I known then what I know now.
An ideal route will depend a lot upon your specific interests and goals for your trip. Our priorities were:
We spent about 3 weeks (22 days) on Australia's east coast - from August 20th through September 11th. Here was our itinerary:
An ideal route will depend a lot upon your specific interests and goals for your trip. Our priorities were:
- SCUBA certification & seeing the Great Barrier Reef
- Seeing & learning about Australia's native animals
- Visiting our friends in Gladstone
- Liveaboard sailing and seeing the Whitsunday Islands
- Beach time
We spent about 3 weeks (22 days) on Australia's east coast - from August 20th through September 11th. Here was our itinerary:
What We Did
| Destination Brisbane Noosa Heads Hervey Bay/Fraser Island Gladstone/Heron Island Airlie Beach/Whitsundays Magentic Island Mission Beach Cairns/Fitzroy Islands | Nights 5 2 2 4 3 2 1 3 | Notes SCUBA certification - 2 days; Gold Coast day trip Fraser Island day trip 2 nights on Heron Island 2 night sailing trip (sadly, canceled due to weather) 1 night on Fitzroy Island |
While we loved exploring the east coast, we would have made some changes. Specifically, we would have skipped Mission Beach, spent less time in Brisbane and dedicated more time to diving off the islands. In hindsight, this is what we should have done:
What We Should Have Done
| Destination Byron Bay Brisbane Hervey Bay/Fraser Island Gladstone/Heron Island Airlie Beach/Whitsundays Magentic Island Cairns/ Islands | Nights 2 3 2 5 3 2 5 | Notes Surfing See city & koala sancturary Fraser Island day trip (ideally in a small group) 3 nights on Heron Island - SCUBA certification 2-3 night sailing trip Snorkeling and Bungalow Bay Koala Village 2 nights in Cairns, 3 nights on Fitzroy or Green Island & at least 2 dive trips to the outer reef |
If you Only Have 2 Weeks
Eliminate the first three stops from the itinerary above and start in Gladstone/Heron.
If it's cost prohibitive to fly to Gladstone, then start and end your trip in Cairns. During this time you can drive as far as Airlie Beach, enjoying the islands off this part of the coast. It would be a shame to miss out on Heron Island but it can be a bit pricey to fly in and out of Gladstone airport, and the drive from Gladstone to Airlie Beach eats up a full day.
If it's cost prohibitive to fly to Gladstone, then start and end your trip in Cairns. During this time you can drive as far as Airlie Beach, enjoying the islands off this part of the coast. It would be a shame to miss out on Heron Island but it can be a bit pricey to fly in and out of Gladstone airport, and the drive from Gladstone to Airlie Beach eats up a full day.
If you Are A SurfER
Spend more time along the coast from Byron Bay through Noosa Heads. If you also like to dive, then go as far as Gladstone and get your diving fix on Heron Island.
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