The Smith Clan Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 First trip to Australia and top of the to do lists is great barrier reef. We plan to hire a camper van and wonder if we can drive or will we need flights. Need the most cost effective way. If we drive what sort of travelling would this entail? Thanks in advance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 It depends where on the Reef you want to get to. It will take you about 5 hours to get to Bundaberg and from there, you can visit Lady Musgrave Island which is the southern tip of the reef. If you really want to see the full Reef experience though, I'd be going up to the Whitsundays which is a good 12 hours' drive. In other words, Brisbane to Airlie Beach is about the same distance as Sydney to Brisbane! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Smith Clan Posted June 2, 2016 Author Share Posted June 2, 2016 It depends where on the Reef you want to get to. It will take you about 5 hours to get to Bundaberg and from there, you can visit Lady Musgrave Island which is the southern tip of the reef. If you really want to see the full Reef experience though, I'd be going up to the Whitsundays which is a good 12 hours' drive. In other words, Brisbane to Airlie Beach is about the same distance as Sydney to Brisbane! Many thanks Marisa, Had a look we plan to fly now to Airlie Beach now and have found somewhere to stay, it looks soo beautiful, what time frame would you say is good to stay, we were thinking 20th - 24th (we have 3 wks in oz), is that a fair amount of time to see some of the islands? Let me know if there are any things not to miss there Daydream island looks simply amazing Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobj Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 First trip to Australia and top of the to do lists is great barrier reef. We plan to hire a camper van and wonder if we can drive or will we need flights. Need the most cost effective way. If we drive what sort of travelling would this entail? Thanks in advance G'day mate, first off, it is a 10 hour drive up the Bruce hwy, but, if you want to see a couple of places on the way, suggest that you call in at Clairview; it is the first place you see the sea from Brissie and is about a 5-6 hour leisurely drive. Sarina Beach would be an alternative camp o/nite; about 8 hour drive from Brissie. From there, it is only a hop, step and jump to The Whitsundays. August in The Whitsundays means lotsa grey nomads and backpackers... Only live 1 hour south of Airlie if you want any more help. Cheers, Bobj. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobj Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 Bugga!!! As I was typing my reply, you changed your plans...:laugh: Plenty of islands to visit, Daydream being one of the closer and better ones. Long Island is good for a day, or o/nite. Shute Harbour is the best "jumping off" place to see the islands. Plenty of ferries to choose from. Cheers, Bobj. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gbye grey sky Posted June 2, 2016 Share Posted June 2, 2016 G'day mate, first off, it is a 10 hour drive up the Bruce hwy, but, if you want to see a couple of places on the way, suggest that you call in at Clairview; it is the first place you see the sea from Brissie and is about a 5-6 hour leisurely drive. Sarina Beach would be an alternative camp o/nite; about 8 hour drive from Brissie.From there, it is only a hop, step and jump to The Whitsundays. August in The Whitsundays means lotsa grey nomads and backpackers... Only live 1 hour south of Airlie if you want any more help. Cheers, Bobj. Clairview more like a 10 hour drive from Brissy than a 5 hour drive Bob if you stick to speed limits. It's about 850kms and a fair stretch in a day with kids in a camper. That last 200kms or so out of Rocky is about as boring a drive as you can get but at least there is little traffic. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgie Bedford Posted June 3, 2016 Share Posted June 3, 2016 (edited) Hey, I live in airlie beach. It's truly a beautiful place! There's only one boat trip which can take u to the outter reef and that's with cruise Whitsundays. But there are also lots of other boat trips you can do plus overnight sailings too. A great day trip here is with ocean rafting. It's a small fast boat which will take you to Whitehaven beach (this is a must do!!!) and they also stop at a couple of snorkelling spots. They are my favourite boat for sure! Daydream island is good but mostly aimed at families so lots of kids there normally. Hamilton island is a nice one too, pretty expensive but a lovely day trip. There's jet skiing here too which is awesome fun! If u need any more info just let me know! :-) Edited June 3, 2016 by Georgie Bedford Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johndoe Posted June 3, 2016 Share Posted June 3, 2016 Look for the all day breakfast package trip that covers 4 or 5 islands (including Whitehaven) first stop Daydream for breakfast, then onto the others with guided snorkelling at one whilst the guide feeds the fish to bring 'em up close to you. Full excellent lunch on board. I forget the actual company/boat, but I'm hard to please and this was certainly value for money and a wonderful experience. We also booked a full day on the reef where the boat takes you out to a pontoon and you can dive as my kids did, snorkel, helicopter trip, or just lounge around. It has a big water slide on it so the kids will love it. Just to wet your appetite :-) Great Barrier Reef, Whitsundays, Queensland. by Kevin Dickinson, on Flickr Rounding The Hook by Kevin Dickinson, on Flickr Blissfully Unaware by Kevin Dickinson, on Flickr Hook Island, Whitsundays, Queensland, Australia by Kevin Dickinson, on Flickr Fishing In Paradise - Airlie Beach by Kevin Dickinson, on Flickr Whitehave Beach, Whitsunday Isles, Queensland, Australia by Kevin Dickinson, on Flickr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.