Tour Highlights

Find custom tours in: Australia, 

• Tour Melbourne, an historic city with an eclectic mix of cultures; and see how the discovery of gold in the 1850s shaped the city
• Explore Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (Olgas) to learn about the geology of the region and the spiritual significance of these sites to the ancient people of the Outback
• Experience the mesmerizing marine world of the Great Barrier Reef, which offers premier snorkeling and scuba diving
• Discover the World Heritage listed forest region of Cape Tribulation while on a flat bottom 20-seater Riverboat
• Uncover the delights of Australia’s most cosmopolitan cities – Sydney with its incredible harbor, fascinating history and rich cultural and sporting venues

Day 1:  Arrive Melbourne, Australia
Upon arrival at Melbourne International Airport, you are met by our local representative who will privately transfer to your hotel.  This evening, please make your own arrangements to the nearby Colonial Tramcar.  Since its inception in 1983, the Colonial Tramcar Restaurant has become a star attraction and a tourist symbol for Melbourne.  Dining is not only a culinary delight, but a trip into a little piece of Victoria's history.  The Langham Hotel – Riverview Guest Room (D) 

Day 2:  Melbourne
Today you will be met at your accommodation by a private guide and driver for a sightseeing tour of Melbourne.  The historic city is an eclectic mix of cultures.  Listen to the stories of the early history of Melbourne.  Take a drive through the Golden Mile, past the old treasury building, parliament house and the UNESCO World Heritage listed Royal Exhibition Building.  See how the discovery of gold in the 1850s shaped the city.  Migrant groups give Melbourne its edge.  Visit some of Melbourne’s cultural precincts and grab a coffee at a chic café.  For Melbournians today, life revolves around food, fashion, beaches and sport.  Take some time to really connect with the city and its people. Explore the richness of the fresh produce at Melbourne’s Queen Victoria Market.  Some of the owners of stalls here are true entertainers, and have had their stalls passed down through generations.  Your taste buds will be left tingling as you sample their wares.  Take in Melbourne’s sporting precinct to help you truly understand this city’s obsession with sports.  Enjoy a stroll through some of Melbourne’s laneways - home to a variety of unique bars, galleries, boutiques and cafes in the city.  Drive through the beachside suburbs stopping in St. Kilda – Melbourne’s playground.  You’ll find people from all walks of life here.  Stop for lunch at Pier Restaurant at the end of the historic St. Kilda pier.  Enjoy a relaxing lunch overlooking the St. Kilda marina with Melbourne’s skyline in the distance.  The Langham Hotel – Riverview Guest Room (B,L)

Day 3:  Melbourne – Phillip Island
This morning is at leisure.  While in Melbourne, you can enjoy a range of optional activities:  a sunrise balloon ride, a visit to the Victorian Arts Centre, the Victorian Gallery and Como House, shop at fashionable Toorak and South Yarra, or visit Melbourne's new Federation Square development.  This afternoon, you will be met at your hotel by your guide for a small-group/shared tour to Phillip Island.  Travel south from the city past beef, dairy cattle farms and horse breeding farms.  Stop for afternoon tea before continuing past Westernport, past views of French Island, before crossing over the bridge to Phillip Island.  Recognized as a one of the world’s leading destinations in environmental conservation, Phillip Island’s sandy and rocky shorelines team with wildlife including over 200 species of birds.  Time permitting, you will stop to watch the local fisherman cleaning their catch of the day while battling the gulls and pelicans seeking to take their share of the catch.  On Phillip Island's northern side, look for masked lapwings, spoonbills, ibis, herons and black swans.  Then visit the south side to watch the local surfers.  The Koala Conservation Centre is one of the few areas in Victoria where you can see a protected koala colony.  Walk amongst the treetops in nature reserve bushland to see wild koalas up close.  You may also spot a wild wallaby.  Leave the center and head to the Nobbies, where from this magnificent headland, the views stretch over Mornington Peninsula and Bass Strait.  One and half kilometers offshore are Seal Rocks, home to Australia's largest Australian fur seal colony.  Each evening at dusk on Phillip Island the little fairy penguins arrive in groups on the beach after a day of fishing.  See them waddle into the dunes where their burrow nests are situated.  You will have access to the less populated boardwalks enabling you to get closer to the penguins.  Your evening finishes up with dinner in the township of Cowes before returning to Melbourne in the late evening.  The Langham Hotel – Riverview Guest Room (B,D)

Day 4:  Melbourne / Uluru (AYERS ROCK)
Today you will be met at your hotels by your private car and driver and transferred to Melbourne Airport for your flight to Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock.  Upon arrival at Ayers Rock Airport, you are met by your private car and driver and transferred to your hotel.  This evening, your guide takes you into the desert, where the haunting sounds of the didgeridoo call out to you.  Enjoy a barbecue dinner that includes kangaroo, emu, chicken and barramundi as well as salads, vegetables and Australian wine.  After dessert, you will be introduced to the stars, planets and constellations by an astronomer.  Enjoy stargazing and a glass of port before your return transfer to your accommodation.  Voyages Sails in the Desert – Standard Room (B,D)

Day 5:  Uluru – Kata Tjuta
Before dawn early this morning, you enjoy a small-group tour of the Kata Tjuta (Olgas), a collection of some 36 uniquely shaped rocks that has long been a sacred and spiritual place to the ancient traditional peoples.  Depart the resort on a 40-kilometer drive through the desert landscape to these mighty rock formations.  On arrival at the viewing area, walk to the best vantage point to watch the 36 domes change color as the sun rises.  On the western side of Kata Tjuta, pause for a relaxing gourmet picnic breakfast.  Then explore these unique domed rocks.  As you approach the entrance to Walpa Gorge, named for the wind that whistles between the massive domes, your guide will share the significance of this men’s sacred ceremonial.  Stroll between these mighty rock walls as your guide explains how the environment and the geology has evolved over millions of years.  Return to your hotel.  This afternoon you will be met by your guide and vehicle for a small-group tour to the Uluru.  Travel through the landscape to the Uluru rising from the sand dunes, the largest monolith in the world.  Your first stop allows you a photographic opportunity of this amazing icon.  The closer you wander the more you surrender to the realization of the sheer size of this fascinating rock.  As you drive around the base, your guide will take you to the entrance of Mutitjulu Waterhole, a semi-permanent watercourse nestled in the contours of Uluru.  Here you learn the creation stories and the Tjukurpa, or Dream Time, stories.  You see the rock art of the ancients and learn how Uluru was, and still is, a significant location for teaching young aboriginal people.  Your will then adjourn to the new Talinguru Nyakunytjaku viewing area where you will enjoy an uninterrupted view of Uluru with Kata Tjuta in the background before returning to your accommodation.  Voyages Sails in the Desert – Standard Room (B)

Day 6:  Uluru / Cairns / Port Douglas
Today you area escorted by private car and driver to the airport for your flight to Cairns.  Upon arrival at Cairns Airport, your private car and driver will be waiting to take you to Port Douglas.  An hour’s drive north of Cairns, picturesque Port Douglas on Four Mile Beach attracts visitors with its old-fashioned charm, wide tree-lined streets, restaurants and attractions.  The Great Barrier Reef is just 15 kilometers off-shore offers some of the world’s premier snorkeling and diving opportunities.  There are over 1,000 islands in the Great Barrier Reef chain that are accessible from mainland North Queensland.  Sea Temple Resort and Spa – Studio Spa Room (B)

Day 7:  Port Douglas
This morning you will be met at your accommodation by your guide and vehicle for a small group full day tour.  Discover the rich farming areas on the way toward the World Heritage listed forest region of Cape Tribulation.  Step aboard your Flat Bottom 20-seater Riverboat (maximum 15-16 people) on the mirror-smooth waters of the Daintree River.  The cruise takes you through silent backwaters where crocodiles can often be seen basking on the muddy banks.  The Cape Tribulation section of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Protected rainforest takes you up the beautiful Alexandra Range, passing waterfalls.  Stop for home-style morning tea deep in the rainforest at the Jindalba boardwalk.  Continuing along the Cape Tribulation road, stop at the magical Thornton Beach.  Here your guide will highlight the amazing wildlife and ecosystems unique to this part of the world where the rainforest meets the sea.  Lunch is a special treat today, deep under the rainforest canopy.  After lunch, tour an exotic tropical fruit orchard.  Here, depending upon the season, you will see unusual, exotic fruit originating from tropical regions around the globe.  Ice cream lovers can sample some unique flavors (optional).  Enjoy panoramic picture postcard views at Alexandra Range Lookout before returning to your hotel in Port Douglas.  Sea Temple Resort and Spa – Studio Spa Room (B,L)

Day 8:  Port Douglas
Your car and driver transfer you to Port Douglas Marina for board your boat for a full-day sail to the Great Barrier Reef.  Enjoy a leisurely two-hour sail to the outer Great Barrier Reef on board your vessel, which carries a maximum of 12 passengers.  You may visit Tongue Reef, Rudder Reef or Chinaman Reef as your skipper will choose the best location for the day.  The reef is home to turtles, hundreds of varieties of colorful reef fish, sea cucumbers, starfish, and bright orange and pink soft coral.  On board, enjoy morning tea and barbecue lunch, and snorkeling in this amazing marine environment.  Upon return to Port Douglas, you will be met by your car and driver and transferred to your accommodation.  Sea Temple Resort and Spa – Studio Spa Room (B,L)

Day 9:  Port Douglas / Cairns / Sydney
Today you will be met at your accommodation by your private car and driver and transferred to Cairns Airport for your flight to Sydney, where you are met by your private car and driver and transferred to your accommodation.  Four Seasons Hotel Sydney – Opera-View Room (B)

Day 10:  Sydney – Blue Mountains
This morning, enjoy a full-day, small-group tour with your guide and vehicle in the Blue Mountains.  Traveling westwards across the coastal plain, you make your way to the Great Dividing Range of Australia.  You enter the National Park and unlock a very special piece of Australia you would never have known existed!  You will visit ancient Aboriginal sites and outstanding lookouts, examine rock formations and the unusual plants and wildlife that abound the area.  From the quaint little village of Leura, skirt around Cliff Drive to Katoomba where you will look out over the magnificent Jamieson Valley, Australia's Grand Canyon, and the Three Sisters rock formations.  Enjoy a delicious barbecue lunch with a selection of fine Australian wines and cheeses under the canopy of the Australian bush.  Before returning to Sydney, you visit a hidden valley where you can wander around the area, seeking out the many kangaroos that graze in the wild (conditions permitting).  Returning to Sydney, you pass by the site of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.  Upon completion of your tour you will be transferred to your accommodation in late afternoon.  Four Seasons Hotel Sydney – Opera-View Room (B,L)

Day 11:  Sydney
Explore Sydney with your guide and driver on this small-group tour of Sydney.  First you will travel through the historic Rocks precinct.  See the birthplace of Sydney and explore the convict built cottages and pubs, and the first church in Australia.  Climb Observatory Hill for views of Anzac Bridge and Darling Harbour.  Next you cross the magnificent Sydney Harbour Bridge, one of Australia’s most recognized landmarks.  Travel through the leafy northern suburbs before arriving at Manly, a beautiful seaside town.  Continue up to North Head to catch great views of the harbor.  Take a secluded walk along the rugged sandstone cliffs.  Journey south and travel to the stunning botanical gardens situated in the heart of Sydney.  En route you pass through Macquarie Street, named after the first Governor of Sydney.  Here you will see Australia’s first Parliament House, Mint, Hyde Park Barracks and St Mary’s Cathedral.  Lunch today is a special treat.  Situated in the magnificent botanical gardens, the Botanical Gardens Pavilion offers splendid views and good food.  Sit back and immerse yourself in your peaceful surroundings.  After lunch, your tour continues down to Mrs. Macquarie’s chair, situated on the water’s edge.  Continue through Woolloomooloo, Kings Cross and onto Darling Point, one of Sydney’s most affluent suburbs and see some of Sydney’s most sought after addresses.  Continuing on, you will pass by Double Bay, Rose Bay, and Watsons Bay, before traversing along the coastline to Sydney’s most famous beach, Bondi.  Here you will have some time to soak up the atmosphere of the beachside haven.  Stroll down the esplanade with the locals and maybe enjoy an ice cream before reboarding your vehicle for your return to the city via the vibrant Oxford Street and the suburb of Paddington, a boutique shopping precinct with charming Georgian and Victorian architecture.  This evening, you will make your own way to the Opera House.  You will begin the evening with a tour of the principal theatres before enjoying an intimate pre-theatre dinner in Guillaume at Bennelong restaurant, the signature restaurant of the Sydney Opera House.  Following dinner, enjoy a performance in the famous Opera Theatre.  Four Seasons Hotel Sydney – Opera-View Room (B,L,D)

Day 12:  Sydney / Depart
Today you will be met at your accommodation by your private car and driver and transferred to Sydney Airport for your departure flight.   (B)

Rates / Departures

Land price, per person, double occupancy:  Starting from $7290

Internal Airfare (subject to change until ticketed):  $1490

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