Extension Trip: Australia

This morning, fly from Auckland, New Zealand to Sydney, Australia Check into hotel Today you will have a Sydney city tour and have a chance to see:

• The Rocks, and hear all about its intriguing history
• Sydney Opera House
• Sydney Harbour Bridge
• Oxford Street

This evening you will take a harbor dinner cruise before retiring for the evening.

Today you will depart on a guided tour of the Blue Mountains – a UNESCO World Heritage Site. On this tour you will:

• View the Jamison Valley
• Join a guided walk to see waterfalls and lookout points
• See the Three Sisters
• Use your Scenic World pass to access three, amazing sightseeing rides and a guided boardwalk journey through the rainforest
• Discover stunning views of the World Heritage-Listed Blue Mountains from The Skyway, see Katoomba Falls and ride on the steepest railway in the world

The next stop on the tour will get you up close and personal with some of Australia’s most famous animals such as koalas, wombats, kangaroos, emus and many more at Featherdale Wildlife Park.

Lastly you will take a Parramatta River cruise that leads into the famous Sydney Harbor.

You will take a flight this morning to Australia’s famous outback, flying from Sydney to Uluru. (3.5hrs)

Once in Uluru you will visit Kata Tjuta Cultural Centre where there is time to purchase some locally made Aboriginal art and learn more about the Western Desert region. Afterward, you will have a guided tour, driving around the base of Uluru. You will have a chance to see the Kuniya Walk, the Mutitjulu Waterhole, view ancient rock art and learn about the Aboriginal and European history of Uluru. You will also visit the Red Centre.

Enjoy a cup of tea or coffee as you watch the sunrise and changing colors over Uluru. You will then have the chance to see the mystical domes of Kata Tjuta and take a walk a walk through Walpa Gorge.

This afternoon, you will travel to the airport for your flight to Cairns. (2.2hrs)

Tonight’s dinner will be at the Cairns Aquarium restaurant, where you will have a chance to enjoy their 46-foot marine exhibit while dining.

Today you will have the experience of a lifetime. You will take a high-speed catamaran and cruise out to the Great Barrier Reef. You will have the chance to go snorkeling to view the reef up close.

You will enjoy morning tea and a lunch buffet aboard the catamaran.

Tonight, you will enjoy the Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park with a night fire dinner. You will meet the indigenous rainforest people and have the opportunity to have your face painted by them as you learn about their traditions and culture. You will join the Rainbow Serpent circle to learn traditional-language songs as well.

Today, you will travel up to Kuranda village via the Skyrail, taking you to the UNESCO World Heritage-listed tropical rainforest canopy and deep into the world’s oldest continually surviving rainforest on earth.

In the village you will have a chance to look through the shops and markets searching for handicrafts and gifts. You can also visit:

• Aviary exhibits at Birdworld
• Visit the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary – home to more than 1,500 tropical butterflies

You will then go to Rainforestation Nature Park, where you will enjoy an Australian BBQ lunch and a Pamagirri Aboriginal Dance performance. You will have a chance to learn how to throw a boomerang, see a spear-throwing demonstration, and learn about aboriginal culture. Afterward, you will visit the Kuranda Koala Garden, where you can cuddle a koala.

Lastly, you will travel on the Scenic Railway, one of the world’s great train journeys, where you will see incredible vistas, passing by the walls of Barron Gorge National Park, through handcarved, solid, granite rock tunnels, waterfalls.

Depart on flight back to the United States.