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Australia: Sydney, Great Barrier Reef and Daintree

8 days • 7 nights
No departure dates available for booking

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Party and nightlife
Relax
Nature and adventure
City and cultures
Monuments and history
Physical effort
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Itinerary

Australia is the trip you keep putting off because it sounds too far and too long. Eight days are enough for the part everyone actually pictures. We will start in Sydney, walking the harbour from the Royal Botanic Garden to the point where that photograph of the Opera House is actually taken, swimming at Bondi between the ocean pools, and climbing into the eucalyptus haze of the Blue Mountains to stand in front of the Three Sisters.

Then we will fly north to Cairns and the trip will change colour. We will sail out to the Great Barrier Reef on a catamaran and spend a whole day snorkelling two outer reef sites with a marine biologist who will name every fish we point at. The day after we will go into the Daintree, the oldest rainforest on the planet, cruise the river looking for crocodiles and reach the sand at Cape Tribulation, the one place where the reef and the rainforest meet. We will be fifteen at most, which is the difference between seeing Australia and queueing to see it. Shall we?

The white sails of the Sydney Opera House lit up at dusk, with the steel arch of the Harbour Bridge behind them.

Circular Quay and The Rocks

Roundtrip flights are not included in the package, so you can choose where and when you want to fly from.

We will drop the bags and go straight out on foot. The harbour is the shortest possible introduction to this city: the ferries, the bridge overhead, the sandstone lanes of The Rocks behind us. In the evening we will sit down together for the first time over dinner, and someone will already be saying they want to stay.

Sydney harbour at sunset seen from above, with the Opera House in the foreground and the downtown skyline behind it.
Bondi Beach from the coastal path, a crescent of pale sand and turquoise surf lined with houses.

The harbour on foot

Your Coordinator will walk the group through the Royal Botanic Garden to Mrs Macquarie’s Chair, which is where that photograph of the Opera House and the bridge together is actually taken. Whoever wants to go inside the sails can add the guided tour on the spot.

Bondi Beach

In the afternoon we will take the bus out to Bondi and walk the coastal path to Tamarama and Bronte, past the ocean pools cut into the rock. There is a group surf lesson available for anyone who wants one, five people per instructor, boards and wetsuits included: nobody has to be able to surf, and nobody has to be able to swim far.

Sandstone cliffs above a eucalyptus valley in the Blue Mountains, under a sky of scattered cloud.
A long sandstone escarpment dropping into a forested valley in the Blue Mountains, seen from the rim.

Katoomba and Echo Point

We will leave the city early and drive into the mountains that gave off so much eucalyptus oil the first colonists saw them as blue. At Echo Point the Three Sisters stand out of the valley, and the story the Gundungurra tell about them is better than the geology.

A guided walk down into the valley

Then we will walk. A guided trail through the rainforest below the escarpment, past waterfalls, at a pace that lets us stop. We will be back in Sydney for dinner, with the evening free.

The town of Cairns from above, low buildings along the waterfront with the tropical coast and the hills behind.

Sydney to Cairns

A three hour flight, included in the package, takes us two thousand kilometres north and into a different climate. We will land in shorts weather.

The Esplanade

The afternoon is free: the lagoon on the waterfront, the boardwalk, the mudflats where the birds work at low tide. In the evening we will eat properly, at a table your Coordinator has booked for the group, because tomorrow starts early.

Coral formations of the Great Barrier Reef seen from above, pale rings set in clear turquoise water.
Coral gardens of the outer Great Barrier Reef from above, dark reef shapes scattered across bright turquoise shallows.

Out to the outer reef under sail

We will leave the Reef Fleet Terminal on a sailing catamaran, not a pontoon shuttle, and spend the whole day on two sites of the outer reef. A marine biologist will come in the water with us and name what we point at, which is the difference between seeing fish and understanding a reef. Snorkelling gear, the guided snorkel and lunch on board are included.

Back in the afternoon

We will sail back into Cairns late in the afternoon, salt on our skin, entirely unable to talk about anything else. Whoever wants to go under properly can add an introductory dive on board.

A wide, still river running between banks of dense tropical rainforest.

The oldest rainforest on Earth

North along the coast road, then into the Daintree. This forest has been standing for a hundred and eighty million years, which makes the Amazon look recent. We will cruise the Daintree River watching for estuarine crocodiles on the banks, and the guide will point out the fan palms and the cassowary tracks we would have walked straight past.

Cape Tribulation

Then the beach at Cape Tribulation, the only coastline in the world where two World Heritage sites touch: the rainforest comes down to the sand and the reef starts offshore. Park fees, the river cruise and a picnic lunch are included.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge and the city rooftops under a pink and orange sunset sky.

A free morning in Cairns

Time for the market, a last swim in the lagoon, or the coffee we have been meaning to sit down with. Then the flight south.

Manly, and the last dinner

Back in Sydney we will take the Manly ferry, which is the cheapest good idea in the city: thirty minutes across the harbour past the Opera House and the bridge, with the skyline behind us going gold. Dinner together afterwards, and the photos start circulating.

Sydney harbour on a clear day, with the Opera House in the foreground and the Harbour Bridge behind it.

Departure

Breakfast, bags, and whatever time the flight leaves us. Flying east across the date line, most routes home land on the same calendar day they leave, so the trip gives you back the day it took on the way out.

End of WeRoad services. N.B. The programme may be subject to changes due to weather, local operating conditions or the availability of the services described.

What's included

  • 7 nights accommodation in twin rooms with private bathroom

  • Internal flights Sydney to Cairns and Cairns to Sydney

  • All breakfasts

  • Full day Great Barrier Reef sailing cruise with guided snorkelling, marine biologist and lunch on board

  • Full day Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation tour with river cruise, park fees and picnic lunch

  • Medical and baggage insurance - (coverage limits by destination country/region - €10,000 Italy, €20,000 Europe, €30,000 World, €50,000 USA/Canada)

What's not included

Roundtrip flight to/from destination
  • Airport transfers in Sydney
  • Meals and drinks where not indicated
  • All the extras you want to buy and be able to fit in your backpack :)
  • Anything not mentioned in the "What’s included" section

Optional activities

The amount to hand over to your Travel Coordinator will be approximately USD 290, and it covers the group dinners on the first, fourth and last evening, the lunches and the local transport that are not listed as included, plus any shared costs that come up along the way. Whatever is not used is always given back.
  • Sydney Opera House guided tour - approx. USD 35
  • Two hour group surf lesson at Bondi Beach, boards and wetsuits included - approx. USD 68
  • Introductory scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef, on the boat on Day 5 - approx. USD 65
  • Skyrail Rainforest Cableway and Kuranda Scenic Railway, Cairns - approx. USD 105
  • BridgeClimb Sydney, Summit climb over the Harbour Bridge - approx. USD 270
  • Underwater camera rental for the reef day - approx. USD 45
  • Sydney Harbour sunset cruise - approx. USD 70

Additional info

Learn more about accommodation, transport, and other useful travel information.
  • Accommodation

    Centrally located 3 star hotels, clean rooms with a private bathroom, twin as standard, two travellers per room. In Sydney we stay four nights in the CBD, in Cairns three nights a short walk from the Esplanade and the Reef Fleet Terminal. The Private Room Option is available for this trip.

  • Transport

    Two internal flights, included. Scheduled coach and minibus for the day trips, with air conditioning. Public transport and ferries in Sydney, with an Opal card included. The reef day is on a licensed sailing catamaran.

  • Passport, visa and vaccinations

    A passport valid for the whole stay is required. US citizens need an ETA, the Australian electronic travel authority, applied for through the official Australian Government app before departure. No compulsory vaccinations.

  • Physical effort

    Dynamic. Expect a guided walk of two to three hours in the Blue Mountains, a full day in and out of the water on the reef, and a long day on the road to the Daintree. No technical difficulty and no altitude, but two early starts.

  • Meeting and saying goodbye

    We meet in Sydney on Day 1, in the afternoon; your Travel Coordinator sends the meeting point a few days before departure. The trip ends in Sydney on Day 8 after breakfast. Airport transfers in Sydney are not included, because flight delays make a group pickup unreliable.

  • Season and local conditions

    The best window is April to June and October: dry season in the tropical north, mild in Sydney, and the calmest sea on the reef. July and August are the busiest and most expensive weeks on the whole east coast. Marine stinger season runs roughly November to May on the coast, and the outer reef sites we visit are outside the affected zone; stinger suits are provided on board. The Daintree tour does not operate on Saturdays.

  • Info on private roomsShow all details

Why WeRoad

  • Small groups, on average 11 people

  • Move or change your trip for free up to 31 days before departure

  • Book with $ 0. Pay the $ 100 deposit only once the trip is confirmed

The Group Leaders

Our Group Leaders are chosen because they’re people just like you: passionate travelers who share the experience authentically, while having the skills to take care of the organisation, and help you get the most out of every moment of the trip.
Discover more about our Travel Group Leader

Find your flight

For this trip, we recommend arriving and departing from these airports.

ArrivalSydney (SYD)
ReturnSydney (SYD)
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About this trip

About WeRoad

About Australia