Tour 'Down Under'

grannypiper, that is a very good tip. Think I would use my smaller cabin bag for that, as well as putting basic toiletries and other essentials in. Having to keep to the 20kg limit for the hold luggage will ensure that we only pack the essentials. I have a tendency to overpack for UK trips so will have to be very strist with myself when planning what to pack Thanks to everyone for all the useful suggestions.

granfromafar the rain bounced up and soaked my trousers in Sydney!

We thought of doing the Great Ocean Road but must check the temperatures first.
The thing is, Cairns and NQ can be lovely in July but far too hot and humid in their summer whereas Melbourne is much like home - cold and wet in July.

For those of you visiting Adelaide, which is my home town, there is lots to see in South Australia. The Tour Down Under is held here in January then from the 17th February to the 19th March the Adelaide Fringe We went last year and saw a great show at The Garden of Unearthley Delights, street theatre at its best. Then there is the Adelaide Central Market, great place for fresh food and lots of places to eat for lunch. I think the other places worth seeing besides Adelaide's amazing beaches are Stirling, Aldgate, Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills. You can drive through the Adelaide Hills to the Barossa Valley and the wineries or turn off towards the mid north, which has lovely little towns such as Clare and the Flinders Ranges. Also the Riverlands driving from the Adelaide Hills driving past Lobethal to Birdwood. Another lovely drive from the Adelaide Hills through Strathalbyn to Victor Harbor and Goolwa. Great places for whale watching during the winter months.

Qld has extreme muggy heat from around December through to February which is hard to take. I lived there for eight months during 2015 and the most amazing places to see are the Glasshouse Mountains and a visit Montville and Maleny is worthwhile. The views from Montville are absolutely breathtaking. I am also visiting my niece who lives near Gladstone during the middle of this year and will be taking my GSs, we are travelling on the Tilt train. I have been wanting to take this trip for awhile now. Train travel in Australia is cheaper than the UK.

Pigglywiggly my son lived in Perth for 6 years. We went on two visits. Each time we had storms. His car was seriously damaged when there was a hailstone storm and the stones were as big as table tennis balls. It was parked in the works carpark so no cover to protect it and you could not go out to drive it away.

After a summer storm I was wandering around taking photos in the wilderness (we were on holiday). I turned round to see two male kangaroos right behind me! They were busy sucking nectar from flowers on the ground which they love so I was able to slowly tiptoe between them back to our little hut.

My son encouraged me to walk through the water to climb elephant rocks. Later when we got back to England there was a shark sighting right where I had been paddling! Near miss, I would have been hysterical if I had seen one.

It is easy to work out which months to go to Australia if you want mild sunshine. Just remember they celebrate Christmas on the beach in July! Their seasons are the opposite to ours.

Wait until you see all the little children in the infant schools walking down the street in their uniforms, sun hat and glasses included, so cute! They often have lessons on the beach and sit eating a picnic.

Make sure you have some spare memory cards so you can take pictures of the birds and flowers because they are so different to ours.

Don't worry about chemist shop items. They have lots in Australia and also whopping great supermarkets too.

You can buy almost the same things as you can get here. Might be different brands but they do not all live far away from the towns and cities.

Try and climb the bell tower in Perth. The bells there came from St Martin-in-the-Fields, UK and date back to the 14th century.

Take a picture of Sydney harbour including the bridge and opera house from the Royal Botanic Gardens.

If you want to see Koala you will have to look for a wildlife centre. They are not easy to see living wild.

Faye we visited Montville and Maleny last time we were there and agree that the views across to the Glasshouse Mountains and the coast are just stunning. We really enjoyed our stay there.
Australia Zoo is en route too if anyone is interested in going there.

NQ does not really have seasons like the UK though - summer and winter - the dry and the wet (with possible cyclones, fingers crossed there are none this year).
But I will check out Melbourne - don't they say four seasons in one day?