Planning My Dad’s Big Birthday Trip!

@ Carlos -- Amazing trip, have a great time! Hope our paths cross!

@ Lucky - Thanks in great part to you, I have just booked a trip to Australia on November 12th flying the "holy trinity" of first class (LH, SQ and EK). I will also try QR's 787 business class (which I think [QR] has a great business soft product). My trip is going to be GRU-FRA-DOH-MEL-SYD-SIN-DXB-JFK-GRU. It would be fun to be able to meet you, by chance, in a flight, but that would be too lucky.

Ben, just representing the old folks...keep it easy. I try real hard to not have any 1 nighties anymore. It's even hard and stressful to keep up with my stuff, even in carry on. You need 3 full days in Sydney, so for us that was 2 nights (got in really early am and left on a cruise late) but it could be 3-4 nights depending on schedule. We also loved the Great Barrier Reef area and wish we had been there more than a day. We didn't do Ayers Rock, because it was just too far, too hot, and way too many flies in Jan. not sure about Nov. I would no go around the world. Too hard. And I would do either HKG or Sin for at least 2 nights. To break up the trip if you have to change planes there anyway. You're a very special son. Enjoy! H

I think Josh does a good job pointing out how diverse Australia is, and there really is something there for everyone. I have been to Byron Bay and Cape Tribulation and hadn't even thought of those as options, so glad he pointed those out (though notice he didn't list Nimbin- been there?). Reminded me of Berkeley back in the 60s. I expect Ben already has his Australia map out and is trying to make sense as to where all these different places are.

Hahaa... it’s so interesting to see people’s regional Aussie biases. You can tell where in Australia people have been (or where they’re from) based on their advice. @jct’s recommendation that you’d spend three of your nights in Hobart is hilarious. It’s like going to the USA once in your life and spending all your time in Bakersfield, California. Similarly, Melbournians have a chip on their shoulder about Sydney’s sunshine, beaches, skyline, hedonism and harbor, so they’ll always tell you to spend more time in Melbourne: “fantastic cafes and Italian food!” (which is true, but y’know, not what makes Australia distinctive to foreigners.) I’ve lived in both cities and I love Melbourne, but only because of its European-style charm. If you want European-style charm, why not just go to Vienna? As for Perth or Adelaide, don’t be silly. With limited time, don’t bother with second-tier cities. New Zealand is spectacular, but you just don’t have enough time. Australia occupies the same land mass as the contiguous United States. Don’t try to do both countries and end up doing neither properly. Pick one, relax, and have fun. As for your flights, returning in QF First is great idea, both for the Sydney First Lounge (call them a few days in advance to book your dad a massage in the spa with the living wall gardens!) and for the flight’s departure time, which enables you to spend the daytime in the air enjoying the 12-course degustation menu, rather than taking the outbound trip which departs late at night. The other commenters who’ve recommend alternative itineraries clearly have a “North American” idea about what first class is (i.e. glorified coach.) If you have a chance to give your dad the experience of QF First ex-SYD, you'd be insane to pass it up. On the outbound, unless you adore Dubai -- and I can’t imagine why anyone would -- I’d choose the Cathay option. A night or two in Hong Kong is far more interesting than the U.A.E. or Singapore... and you get to fly Cathay. No shower, sure, but you know you’re gonna get the finest service in the sky. And watching the Hong Kong Symphony of Lights through floor-to-ceiling windows from a cocktail bar on the 67th floor of a five-star Kowloon Hotel is hard to beat. I bring American friends to Australia quite a lot, and the itinerary that I’ve found works the best is: • 5 nights in Sydney (day one: the City center, Hyde park, the Opera House, the Botanic gardens, the Domain, maybe the Museum. Dinner in Chinatown, or at a great Thai restaurant like “House” ... day two: lunch at Icebergs on Bondi Beach, walk to Tamarama or Bronte along the coastal walking path, look out for whales ... day three: climb the Harbour Bridge Pylon Lookout -- much cheaper and less strenuous than the BridgeClimb -- and do the Rocks historic district and Darling Harbour, maybe the maritime museum & aquarium ... day four: ferry to Manly, stroll to Shelly Beach for a snorkel, have lunch at Hugos on Manly Wharf ... day five: explore the cafes and bars of Balmain, Newtown, Glebe, Sydney University grounds, have a spectacular meal at Tetsuya’s or Longrain or Aria.) And there’s so much more still to do: get the ferry to Watson’s Bay for a seafood lunch at Doyle’s, Australia’s most iconic restaurant, right on the beach. Just to mention one. www.sydney.com/things-to-do/nature-and-parks/walks/bondi-to-coogee-coastal-walk www.pylonlookout.com.au/Visitor_frs.htm • Two or three nights in Byron Bay or Noosa. (Avoid the Gold Coast. It’s just a tackier, smaller Miami Beach.) Byron is a 1960s hippy surfer community that has turned into a boutique holiday town but retains its super laid-back Aussie vibe. It’s located on three of the most spectacular beaches on the planet, where they converge at the easternmost tip of the continent. It’s worth blowing money on. www.visitnsw.com/destinations/north-coast/byron-bay-area/byron-bay www.visitbyronbay.com • For the final 2-3 days, pick either the desert, the reef, or the “top end” (the Aussie term for the Northern Territory, where the most iconic Crocodile Dundee-style images of rainforests and watering holes are from.) If you want the desert, go to South Australia and do a small tour that goes to Coober Pedy & Lake Eyre, the world’s largest salt flat. If you want the reef, go to Port Douglas or, better still, Cape Tribulation, the northernmost town on the east coast and the only place in the world where two United Nations World Heritage-listed nature sites bump against each other: the Daintree Rainforest, and the Great Barrier Reef. (Avoid Cairns, which is the reef’s commercial hub but is an utterly charmless city, with no beaches.) If you want rainforests and crocs, go to Darwin and take a tour to Kakadu Rainforest. www.visitportdouglasdaintree.com.au/cape-tribulation www.capetribulationsanctuary.com.au/capetrib/Cape_Tribulation_Sanctuary-Home.htm www.capetribbeach.com.au/ www.spiritsafaris.com/lake_eyre_tours_flights www.aridareastours.com/ http://kakadu.com.au/ http://www.parksaustralia.gov.au/kakadu/visual-journey.html For what it’s worth, I stayed at this tiny boutique resort operated by a French couple in the highlands behind Cape Tribulation, and it was one of the best travel experiences of my entire life, bar none: www.cockatoohillretreat.com.au • A final option is Kangaroo Island, where I took a San Franciscan friend last year. There are a few spectacular high-end resorts. The beaches are idyllic. Wild kangaroos bounce around everywhere. It’s rugged and windswept. But there’s nothing to do, other than relax. @Tom also recommended this, so you’ve got two thumbs-up: http://southernoceanlodge.com.au/ In conclusion, I think the most important recommendation is Port Douglas / Cape Tribulation. It's the best mix of Australia’s three things: rainforests, beaches and the great barrier reef. If you do Sydney for 5 nights, Cape Trib for 3 nights, and either the desert or Byron Bay for 3 nights, then your dad will have a life-changing trip. Plus, you’ll have enough time left over for a night or two in HKG. You won't miss Adelaide or Auckland or Dubai. On re-reading the comments, I also think all of @tom911’s suggestions are great, though they’re different from mine. If you have time in Sydney, do go to the Blue Mountains. I’d suggest you drive, if you can pluck up the courage to drive on the left side of the road. But go beyond Katoomba (the largest and most touristy town in the mountains), to the town at the very top of the mountains, Blackheath, about 20 minutes beyond. That’s where you’ll find two of the most mesmerizing lookouts in Australia: Govetts Leap and Evans Lookout. They rival anything I’ve seen at the Grand Canyon. Plus, Blackheath is incredibly cute. Find a café and have Devonshire Tea with warm scones and clotted cream. Adorable. www.visitnsw.com/destinations/blue-mountains/katoomba-area/blackheath www.environment.nsw.gov.au/nationalparks/parkLookouts.aspx www.bradleymerchant.com/evans-lookout-blue-mountains-nsw/ Without wanting to be disagreeable, as an Aussie travel hacker who flies 100k+ miles in premium cabins every year, I must say I disagree with everything @UnitedFlyer says. The idea of hopping to Auckland and Melbourne, seeing only medium-sized cities without seeking out obscure natural beauty, is nuts. @No Fly Zone has a great point: your dad only wants to spend time with you. Park yourself in Sydney, and find a rainforest and a reef in the tropics, and he’ll be delighted. Don’t make him hopscotch hither an thither. The other thing to consider is the weather. September is the most rainless month in Sydney, which is why the 2000 Olympics were held then. But November has a reputation for being rainy. Summer really starts in December, and Sydney is at its most spectacular in January, when the Sydney Festival is underway. There are outdoor concerts and events, harbourside movie screenings under the stars, lots of sailing on the harbour, etc. Must you be there on the date of your dad’s actual birthday? If I were you, I’d schedule his “birthday trip” for sometime in the six weeks post-Christmas. Hope this is helpful Ben. You’ve helped me sooooo much in leading the crazy first-class globe-trotting lifestyle that I do. (I flew Etihad First last week. Holy crap. It sets a whole new bar!) Have fun mate, Josh