3-4month trip in June...which way should we go?

You should go west and she south.
Will save arguments later on.

Hi Ado. Leaving from Cairns in July, I would go west first as Victoria will be very cold at that time of year for banana benders. We are finding it cold now at Hawker in South Oz. Whichever way you go enjoy your trip.

Ado84, previous comment not really helpful but in the Ex Oz tradition was funny!! On a more serious note we southerners are all heading north in June, if we can, to avoid the cold. If you have 4 months you could easily do 25,000 km and you both could see what you mentioned. You may not care for more heat if you live in Cairns but I would stay in the north and do Kakadu then the GRR and Bungles. Is the Swan an off -roader?
Two days down the Tanami - even though it's as boring as - and you hit the Alice late July so it's frosty in the mornng. So the Great Ocean Rd in August could have freezing winds and rain but then you could hit the Vic or NSW snowfields mid August. Then go to the coast and drive north. We took a month Sydney to Daintree on a Qld beach hop - fabulous in August....... W

Perhaps head west over the Savannah Way - Darwin, then around the Kimberley Coast and then down to Perth via Broome, Cape Leveque and then back along the Great Central Road...at least you avoid the coldest months down south!

Some really nice (& warm) places if you go west first...

Chris

Hi Ado

Be aware of the seasons to go at times of optimum climate. Other than that, direction of travel will be the consensus of where you both want to go the most; highest priorities. Best idea is to get a map of Australia and each put a circle around half a dozen high priority places. See which ones coincide, and choose those in roughly the same area. Then you can look at other places that interest you nearby. Travelling with little ones you will not want to travel too far each day, and allow plenty of time for the four year old to run around.

My best advice for shorter holidays (and two to three months with the size of Australia is a short time frame) is to travel to the first priorities in a leisurely and relaxing way, then when half way through the time frame try and find different roads home. There will often be some double up, particularly for us when getting to the other side often means crossing the Nullarbor. For advice about this sort of trip planning google "Travel time frames. See more with less driving and less cost".

I also have Blogs in My Blogs here of places such as the Kimberley and Central Australia (2008 and 2009), and the northern half of the Northern Territory (2009). The Great Ocean Road was in 2006, and the blogs from then are briefer.

Motherhen

Hi ado

Definitely go west for the winter. It will be pretty hot in the swan later in the year. It is beautiful up in the north west during July sept. It's a great trip from cairns across to the gulf then from the gulf right across to Broome. There is some fantastic country side to see. Save the great ocean road for closer to October. We are in port Hedland and spend most winters out in our swan outback. Get across to the territory and spend some time exploring there. Then kunnanurra through to derby along the gibb river road is a trip of a life time. After that across to cape levique and off to Broome. It's a long way to then head south with lots of country in between. From broom you could make your way across the tanami to the center then race down through Sa to Vic if you really want to. Big trip for four months.

Rob

A happy wife is a happy life. Go south young man.

Hi Ado,
Yes you are in the right place. I suggest that heading west and exploring the Gulf, Kakadu, Gibb River Road and the rest of the Kimberley, Pilbara, then south along the coast to about Geraldton, then inland to Leonora and home via Great Central Road, Alice Springs and all the great places around there. Home via the Plenty Highway or Barkly Highway if you have had enough of gravel and corrugations by then. That route would more than fill 4 months, especially travelling with small children - and you still would not see everything. The country that you pass through will be very different to what you have around Cairns and will actually give you much more variety than going down the east coast.

If you go any further south than about Geraldton you will risk running into cold weather, with a good chance of wind and rain as well, as the winter fronts sweep up from the Southern Ocean. Certainly too cold for swimming down there at that time of year, and quite uncomfortable if you do happen to get caught in a really strong weather system. Even around Geraldton it can be very windy, and Alice can also have heavy frosts in winter.

The GOR is a long way from this area and best kept for another time, preferably during the warmer months.

We have written blogs from our trips in some of those northern areas (and the GOR) which might help with deciding which way to go.

Cheers,

Val.

Hi Ado
Going west stay warm south ofcourse cold thats a given. Daughter 4 means school soon and young bloke 12mths gives you approx 17 years of being tied to the holiday periods. I would suggest you take the route that is NEW country not similar to what you can see in the Kimberleys and central Australia which you have west of Cairns and can be done during the school holiday it,s a lot harder doing the GOR ,bottom NSW and Vic in 2 weeks.

Hi Ado

Sometimes I find it useful to ask myself what do I want to get out of this trip. What types of things do I want to see and experience. That will often help answer the “where do I go” question.

You have plenty of time, but despite that, don’t try and squeeze every possible thing in. Take the time to explore and relax, especially given you are travelling with younger children.

The scourge of younger children is long travelling hours in a car. So make it interesting for them, stop often!

For sure, the southern areas might be colder at that time of the year, but that brings with it landscapes that you may not always see living in the north, so don’t rule it out.

Like most things, it ends up being a compromise along the way, just make sure enjoying yourselves is at the top of the priority list!

Cheers…The Landy

Hi Ado84,
I guess it depends on what you are trying to achieve, are you trying to decide between...
[a] a trip to the west
[b] a trip down south
[c] a trip that covers both

If you want to do both, I would leave Cairns as late in June as possible (even early July) and head across the top to Kakadu, down to the Kimberley, Gibb River Rd to Derby/Broome. There's plenty to see and do in 8 weeks (July/Aug) in these areas!

Sept generally sees the weather begin to warm up a little down south, you have the choice of going Broome to Pt Hedland and down the coast to Perth and across the Nullabor, or Pt Hedland and go inland to Newman and down to Kalgoorlie and across the Nullabor, or Newman to Leonora and across the Great Central Rd and down the Stuart Hwy.

Check out the Flinders Ranges, Wilpena Pound is a very nice spot.
Your choice on which way you take to Mt Gambier (check out the Blue Lake) then on to Portland.
Follow the coastal route (Princes Hwy) through Port Fairy/Warrnambool to link up with the Great Ocean Rd.

Re your wife's thoughts on doing the east/south coast at that time of year is not a good one, unless she is planning on seeing the snow fields, as mentioned by someone else, Victorians head North for the winter...as I do!!

Cheers, John

3-4 months is not enough time to see much of Oz.
Select 3 or 4 places and plan to see them "properly", then 'join the dots' between.
Me? The Kimberley is without peer, followed by the Pilbara and the Cape. Chuck in a few deserts along the way and I am happy.

Cheers,
Peter
OKA106 Motorhome

G'day Ado84,

First up - good on you for getting out while the kids are young! Our kids are a bit older now (girl 6 and boy 3 1/2) but I can really relate to your situation. Only difference perhaps is that we spent a lot of time travelling/camping in remote areas pre-kids so I'll try and take your "new-ness" and your wife's concern about critters into account in any suggestions I make. :)

We did one 2.5 month trip 2 years ago with kids just the same age and stage as yours and had a fantastic time. It really cemented their friendship as he was just getting big enough to join in with her in playing and exploring. They are best mates now and we reckon that 10 weeks on the road together was a big contributing factor.

Lot's of different things for you to consider. The 2 main things to take into account I reckon are:
1. When you look back on this trip you'll recognise it was as much about the family experience as it was about the destinations, so plan to experience things you will enjoy as a family (swimming, walking, campfires, seeing animals, exploring the bush, etc) as well as checking out the great destinations Australia has to offer. eg. Our kids weren't "amazed" by Wilpena Pound but they loved following the baby emus along the track and "rock climbing" while we had lunch (our 4 year old walked 6.5 of the 7km!).
2. As others have recommended there is definitely a "best" time to visit most places, so you should either lock in your time before choosing a route, or choose your route then go at the right time. For example, there's a big difference between leaving in early June for 3 months, or leaving in late June for 4 months if you want to get down south for a while.

My initial thought would be (3 months from early June) stay north and check out the top end, Kimberley and home via the centre (maybe back across the Plenty Hwy to Fraser Is and home up the coast). Or ideally, for 4 months from the end of June - Top of NT, down through the centre, explore SA (the hidden gem of Australia I reckon - Flinders, Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula, Kangaroo Island) and home via Great Ocean Rd, Vic High Country and up the coast.

I'd better get some work done now, but feel free to ask any questions. There's definitely some good tricks to travelling with young kids (we don't have dvd's in the car!) and you will find your own rhythm, but happy to let you know what works for us.

Good luck,
Richard.
rehillhouse (at) yahoo.com.au

P.S. We're currently thinking about a trip to the Kimberley (from NSW) at the same time so we may cross paths.