From Ms. to Mrs.: Honeymooning in Australia

My husband and I decided that he would plan the honeymoon and I would take care of all the wedding details. During our many conversations we had discussed possible locations for our trip. We knew that we wanted to go somewhere that neither of us had ever been and it had to be a once-of-a-lifetime destination. After much deliberation, we finally chose Australia. Let me tell you, neither of us was disappointed. We decided to go for two weeks and try to hit different parts of the country that we wanted to see.

We ended up staying one week in Sydney and one week in Port Douglas. We left for Australia the day after our wedding and arrived in Sydney 21 hours later. The plane ride was quite the trip, but in the end it was definitely worth it. Our first stop was Sydney. Port Douglas is a beach town so we wanted to leave the relaxing part of the trip to the end. Sydney is such a beautiful city. We enjoyed every minute of it! A week is more than enough time to explore the city and take in the sights and sounds. While in Sydney we were able to:

· Take a tour of the Sydney Opera House

· Climb the Sydney Bridge

· Take a day trip to the Blue Mountains (Australia’s version of the Grand Canyon)

· Spend an afternoon at Bondi Beach

· Enjoy dinner and fireworks at Darling Harbour

· Pet Koalas at Sydney Wildlife

· Eat kangaroo, crocodile, and barramundi

· Use the Hop-On, Hof-Off bus as our tour guide and transportation

· Visit the largest fish market in the southern hemisphere

· Shop at Paddy’s Market (largest open market in Sydney)

After our week in Sydney we flew to Cairns, where we were then transported to Port Douglas. The trip to Cairns was a 2 hour flight north, and another 45 minutes by car to Port Douglas. Port Douglas is a small tourist town right on the beach. We stayed at the Paradise Boutique Hotel. Our room was oceanfront, and simply amazing. We stayed in Port Douglass for another week and we were able to cover quite a bit of land around that area. I would definitely recommend staying in Port Douglas as opposed to Cairns, which is a big tourist destination. In Port Douglas we were able to rent a car for two days for around $100AUD and took a few trips to Cairns. While in Port Douglass we were able to:

· Ride in a hot air balloon

· Snorkel in the Great Barrier Reef

· Relax on the beach

· Eat deliciously well (more kangaroo and crocodile) YUM!

· Explore nearby towns, including Mareeba and Kuranda

· Drive through the outback

· Enjoy a 7-course dinner in the rainforest (Flames of the Forest)

· Take a day-long tour of the Daintree Rainforest

· Pet and feed kangaroos

As you can see, we were really able to make the most of our trip. We soaked up as much Australian culture as we could and we had a blast while doing it. We would definitely like to return to Australia and check out some places we missed, such as Melbourne and Brisbane. I will say this, if you are planning on making a trip to Australia, don’t go for less than two weeks, and be prepared to spend quite a bit more than your average vacation; everything in Australia is more expensive than in the U.S. None the less, Australia is a great place to visit and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested. Check out some of our pictures, maybe they will inspire you!

Happy travels,

Eliza