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"Well we don't see that many of you down here compared to other nationalities!"
That's probably because a trip to Australia is pretty expensive for the average American. Between airfare and interior travel costs the journey will cost about as much as a good used car - or in my case, a garage. Last September I decided to fulfill a lifelong dream and plan for a trip to OZ and NZ in 2011 instead of having a garage built on my property.
Yesterday, after shoveling 2 feet of snow off my car and excavating a hole through the icey drift left at the end of my driveway by the snowplow I began to question that decision! I guess it comes down to personal choice - is it more important to have a really fun & interesting 2 month experience that will enhance my understanding of the world, or to build something which would make my life more comfortable 5 months out of the year + add to the value of my property? Ooops!
Well, the decision is made - so I'm going to make the absolute MOST out of my trip to your part of the world - take advantage of everything, enjoy everything, and remember everything.
A practical question: The tour companies don't seem to have West Coast trips from Perth to Darwin until the beginning of April, and the guide books all say that the hot/rainy weather can make travelling difficult in OZ Dec - March. Do you really think I'd have trouble driving North from Perth to Darwin in March due to heat or heavy rains?
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lily0fthevalley
"Well we don't see that many of you down here compared to other nationalities!"
That's probably because a trip to Australia is pretty expensive for the average American. Between airfare and interior travel costs the journey will cost about as much as a good used car - or in my case, a garage. Last September I decided to fulfill a lifelong dream and plan for a trip to OZ and NZ in 2011 instead of having a garage built on my property.
Yesterday, after shoveling 2 feet of snow off my car and excavating a hole through the icey drift left at the end of my driveway by the snowplow I began to question that decision! I guess it comes down to personal choice - is it more important to have a really fun & interesting 2 month experience that will enhance my understanding of the world, or to build something which would make my life more comfortable 5 months out of the year + add to the value of my property? Ooops!
Well, the decision is made - so I'm going to make the absolute MOST out of my trip to your part of the world - take advantage of everything, enjoy everything, and remember everything.
A practical question: The tour companies don't seem to have West Coast trips from Perth to Darwin until the beginning of April, and the guide books all say that the hot/rainy weather can make travelling difficult in OZ Dec - March. Do you really think I'd have trouble driving North from Perth to Darwin in March due to heat or heavy rains?
Thanks!
You can buy that garage anytime.
There's a good reason tour companies don't travel up north during the 'wet' season between November and March. The few sealed roads there are are frequently closed by heavy rains/flooding. It'll be raining up to two days out of three (heavy, pelting rain, it's like being in a shower), nights will be sultry and humid, and all kinds of bugs will be having a field day feeding on you/generally annoying you. The upside is the landscape will be even more spectacular, and the thunderstorms and lightning is really spectacular.
I should add many attractions will be inaccessible by road in the Wet.
"Well we don't see that many of you down here compared to other nationalities!"
That's probably because a trip to Australia is pretty expensive for the average American. Between airfare and interior travel costs the journey will cost about as much as a good used car - or in my case, a garage. Last September I decided to fulfill a lifelong dream and plan for a trip to OZ and NZ in 2011 instead of having a garage built on my property.
Yesterday, after shoveling 2 feet of snow off my car and excavating a hole through the icey drift left at the end of my driveway by the snowplow I began to question that decision! I guess it comes down to personal choice - is it more important to have a really fun & interesting 2 month experience that will enhance my understanding of the world, or to build something which would make my life more comfortable 5 months out of the year + add to the value of my property? Ooops!
Well, the decision is made - so I'm going to make the absolute MOST out of my trip to your part of the world - take advantage of everything, enjoy everything, and remember everything.
A practical question: The tour companies don't seem to have West Coast trips from Perth to Darwin until the beginning of April, and the guide books all say that the hot/rainy weather can make travelling difficult in OZ Dec - March. Do you really think I'd have trouble driving North from Perth to Darwin in March due to heat or heavy rains?
Thanks!
Where you live sounds like Canada.
Not terribly familiar with seasonal road conditions in Australia's North,
I would say March is prime cyclone season; especially the first half of march.
It's common for highways to be submerged and impassible in The Wet.
I wouldn't recommend planning to drive all along the coast to Darwin from perth in march for those reasons, but....
Perhaps you might like a more "scenic" route in March:
Perth to Alice Springs, then north to Darwin if the weather still isn't too stormy?
Unfortunately, I don't think the highways connect from eastern WA to southwestern NT,
(it would be nice to have a direct road from Eucla or Kalgoorlie to Uluru/Olgas)
so you'd probably have to drive all the way to Coober Pedy SA before you can turn north again.
There's a good reason tour companies don't travel up north during the 'wet' season between November and March. The few sealed roads there are are frequently closed by heavy rains/flooding. It'll be raining up to two days out of three (heavy, pelting rain, it's like being in a shower), nights will be sultry and humid, and all kinds of bugs will be having a field day feeding on you/generally annoying you. The upside is the landscape will be even more spectacular, and the thunderstorms and lightning is really spectacular.
I should add many attractions will be inaccessible by road in the Wet.
Agreed, yes I think the country side will be even more spectacular at this time. But it really is a lucky dip on whether you can travel. I'm not saying the OP can't do it, just saying be prepared to sometimes be making some major detours
Quote:
Originally Posted by ColdCanadian
Where you live sounds like Canada.
Not terribly familiar with seasonal road conditions in Australia's North,
I would say March is prime cyclone season; especially the first half of march.
It's common for highways to be submerged and impassible in The Wet.
I wouldn't recommend planning to drive all along the coast to Darwin from Perth in march for those reasons, but....
Perhaps you might like a more "scenic" route in March:
Perth to Alice Springs, then north to Darwin if the weather still isn't too stormy? Unfortunately, I don't think the highways connect from eastern WA to southwestern NT,
(it would be nice to have a direct road from Eucla or Kalgoorlie to Uluru/Olgas)
so you'd probably have to drive all the way to Coober Pedy SA before you can turn north again.
Yes I think they need to build a highway connecting Kalgoorlie to Alice Springs Coldy. Hopefully one day there will be enough trade between Perth and Darwin to warrant investing in a More direct route
I'm so happy to have discovered this great thread, as I'm planning a trip to Australia/NZ in February and March of 2011 - just a few months from now. ("Planning" would be exaggerating. I kind of thought I'd just get there and then see what happens.) I have 7 weeks between flying into and out of Aukland NZ.
I kind of thought the same thing as OP - to avoid touristy areas in OZ I'd like to do south, west and maybe central.
You might like to attend this:
Boyup Brook, WA is having a country music festival and "ute muster" on Feb 16-20th, 2011
Hi you guys. I`ve lived in Perth all my life,and I think there`s A few things you should know .(1) THE ROCK is not in W.A. (2) Duration of trip, Lets see. Say you were touring around the U.S. and wanted to see all the sights in UTAH, ARIZONA,NEW MEXICO,TEXAS,OKLAHOMA,KASAS and COLORADO. How long would you need? Now add a bit more time,because WA is bigger than those 7 put together. Also our road network is no where nere as good as yours. If you were to drive south to north in daylight hours and you didn`t break down in the middle of nowhere, it would take about five days on A narrow little road. Now if you want to see some sights along the way you may have to do a 600km turn around trip. Not very much of interest is on the only road up. Please don`t let me put you off. There are some great sights to see,but it is very dangerous. You may not see another car for days and if you have`nt rung ahead your arrival time you may not be missed. We only have 2,100,00 people in the state and over half of them are in PERTH,so there`s not a lot of people to go round It`s rugged and Beautiful,so please come on down we`d love to see yu!!
To cold Canadian, The heat in march up north is soo hot,well over 100 everyday. Tourest season is from late April to Septemer in the north due to the heat. You could book A round the world trip for two for the cost of coming to WA and travelling around.
I've lived in Perth my whole life, and still do. I hate it here but I guess I'm pretty lucky. Australia is not interesting to me. America, on the other hand... I dream of life there every single day!
To cold Canadian, The heat in march up north is soo hot,well over 100 everyday. Tourest season is from late April to Septemer in the north due to the heat.
With working A/C and enough water, no worries.
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Western Australia and Perth
