Cairns in November, December

I will be in Darwin on 19th November and after two or three days of tours in Kakadu NP I will return to Darwin for a few days. I would like to visit Cairns to see the reef before moving on to the Red Centre. I could be in Cairns around 26th-27th November. I am aware that the wet season will have begun but what type of weather can I expect. I have experienced the monsoon in India in the past and it was often challenging to leave the shelter of the hostel.
I hope to join a boat tour of the reef and would like opinions on whether or not it is the best time to go. Is it a case of quick showers or is the rain relentless, and how would it effect the operation of the tours, if at all.

My second question is regarding the purchase of domestic air tickets. I don't have the time to travel by bus from Darwin to Cairns then from Cairns to Alice Springs so flights are the only option. Is it always best to buy the tickets in advance before arriving in the country or are last minute tickets at good prices still a possibility. I don't as a rule book all of my flights in advance as I like to be flexible and change my plans during my trips.

Welcome to the forum.

We lived in Darwin for over ten years, and I have to say that November is the worst month ... it is unspeakably hot and humid, and not relieved by much rain - if any at all.

Kakadu being inland is more intensely oppressive than Darwin on the coast is. There is hardly a less good time to go - because the dry season hasn't yet been broken, and therefore the Park is looking the worst it can look, to be honest.

Cairns might be entering Wet Season, but something similar to Darwin applies (on a far less aggressive scale). Days can be very hot and humid, and you will get some sharp rain squalls and storms, but definitely not days of monsoon - it's a bit early.

Unstable weather in Cairns can stir up the water, and make it less good for diving and snorkelling, but overall it is still a great place, if you can deal happily with the humidity. It is not extreme like parts of India, but it is still in your face.

October is the beginning of the lethal stinger season, so swimming in-shore is off the agenda. But it doesn't matter a great deal - people generally only swim in the hotel / hostel pool, the city lagoon, or out on the reef, all year round.

The Red Centre will be hot and dry - but it is a different type of oppressiveness to the Tropics. We lived there for years too, and got used to it.

Domestic fares are a very mixed bag ... check www.iwantthatflight.com.au or www.webjet.com.au for fares for all four major carriers. Tiger Air and JetStar are the two budget airlines, while Qantas and Virgin are the full service.

Perhaps experiment and see what prince differences there are for a month or two in advance. There is no science to it - and big discount travel agents like Flight Centre have specials on sale all the time.

Fares should be not unreasonable ... you are not travelling in peak season ... but the Darwin > Cairns > Alice Springs | Yulara triangle is not discounted very much - it can be high cost.

Here you go:

• http://www.visitcairns.com.au/cairns_in_january

In Australia, unlike in China, airfares only ever go up. You will pay more to book at the last minute.

Hi emsec and welcome to TT,
The description by jingili of how the weather will be for you is much as you can expect and certainly not the best time of year to welcome you to Australia's top end.

Dependent on whether rains come earlier or not, there could be some sections of Kakadu closed off and whereas some tour companies do start scaling back operations ( just less visitors and Kakadu conditions ) there are a few that do wet season tours but as stated in post #1 it is more likely that most of Kakadu will be very dry and perhaps very little if any water flowing at waterfalls and doing any hikes could largely be forgotten about because of the heat, exhaustion and rapid dehydration that can occur - whatever you do in the top end, get yourself some electrolyte tablets for adding to your drinking water as water alone does not replace the minerals you sweat out and their loss can make you feel a bit off very quickly.

It is a longish drive into Kakadu and out again on top of what you can get to so also make sure you get on a tour that has airconditioning, I having seen some of the larger 4WD vehicles with forward facing seats and aircon, people probably staying at air conditioned accommodation too as against the roughing it in smaller Toyota troop carrier type 4WDs with side facing benches, no aircon and camping in swags and tents - comfort does cost but in late November, I would pay for it.
You may also want to consider having a look at Litchfield NP as an alternative to Kakadu.

For your flights, I reckon there is a far better option than what you are considering:
. Fly Darwin to Alice Springs or Uluru direct if that is what you want to see.
. Then from Uluru fly to Brisbane.
If your quickie to Cairns is just to see the GBR, a lot of the reef in the northern parts has suffered from Coral Bleaching and you can find some locations as good if not better down towards the southern end, there being Heron Island you can stay overnight at and that is accessed from Gladstone just an hours flight north of Brisbane or for a similar length flight to Bundaberg you can do a day trip out to Lady Musgrave Island from either Bundaberg or Town of 1770 ( so named because that is where Captain Cook first landed in Queensland in 1770 ).

Alternately and for a not insignificant additional expense, you could fly to Hervey Bay and and do a trip to Lady Elliot Island, they having a combination package available for a couple of days there as well as a couple on Fraser Island.
It can be considered expensive but with what you would save on airfares flying Darwin to Cairns, Cairns to Alice Springs and then to wherever, perhaps you could accommodate it in your budget.

The bonuses you will have being:
. You get to the centre before it really gets red hot.
. Better weather and reef conditions
. With a bit of luck, there may still even be the odd stragglers of Whales heading back south for the summer.
( I have seen a mother whale with calf in the southern GBR area as late as the first week of December ).

And yes, on the legs where there are cheaper seats, cheaper seats always get booked rather quick ( just our human TA nature ), so once you have settled on a plan, get your flights booked ASAP if you want to save a bit.

As for flexibility, that can be OK but for the time of the year you are considering, you will not want to be hanging around too long in the top end or the centre.

Also make sure you have some lightweight loose fitting long sleeved/legged cottony type garments and a broad brim hat ( maybe bought in Darwin to avoid travel crushing ) to protect you from the sun, plenty of sun cream and insect repellant ( also available in Darwin ), Bushmans a good brand for the latter and to save yourself from not liking the attempt to acquire a taste of flies, get yourself a fly mesh to hang off your broad brim hat and you will soon enough acquire the skill of eating a sanga inside the mesh.

Jingili, Emmeff and Travoyageur.

Thanks for the good advice. I have contacted the Tourist Information in Cairns, a Reef Information Organisation and also Australia.com but haven't received any replies so I really appreciate the time that you have taken.
I don't mind the oppressive temperature, it makes a change from the UK summer (it's raining again today). I was in Malaysia, Borneo and Penang four years ago during the month of June and my glasses steamed up whenever I stepped out of buildings. The hot humid weather was hardly interrupted by rain apart from the climb and descent of the rainforest section of Mt Kinabalu. There were some evening showers in Kota Kinabalu and also in Kuching. I remember walking to the east of Kuching centre looking for a restaurant near the Cat Statue when a torrential downpour started. I didn't have any raingear so had to stay put in a doorway for over an hour. I was a little early for the restaurant that I wanted to visit so I tried the Top Spot Food Court on the roof of a car park. I popped my head in then came straight out as it was complete bedlam. I eventually returned to my favourite James Brooke Restaurant near the waterfront; the laksas were spot on.
Regarding Kakadu, is it better to book a two or three day tour from Darwin or to travel by bus to Jabiru. Normally it is not good practice to book from cities at a distance. I would like to visit Nourlangie Rock and maybe Ubirr and then a trip on the river, but I will take whatever is still operational at the time. During 2002 I did something similar in Namibia making four separate trips from Windhoek with small groups in Landcruisers and trailer. We camped each night and cooked on the braais.
On the subject of flights, I will arrive in Perth then after two days will fly to Darwin. I have already booked the flight for 119GBP which may or may not be a bargain. I will return to the UK from Auckland on 17th January so thought it would be a good idea to book the flight from Melbourne to Queenstown on 20th December. The flight is with Jetstar and was initially 210GBP but there were add-ons for luggage and window seat for the scenic descent over Milford Sound. It was too late to book the Milford Track but will visit anyway.
If the water is clear in Cairns then a shared boat trip will be fine. I am not a strong swimmer but people have said that snorkelling is quite safe. The only reservation that I have is the chance of damaging my feet on the coral as I have hereditary Type 2 diabetes and must be careful to avoid infection. I manage my blood sugar without medication by visits to the gym, hiking and diet control so there is no immediate danger of foot infections. I hoped that the Reef Information organisation would have confirmed that flippers are available but I suppose that it was a silly question.
The guidebook says that the reef at Townsville is further from the shore and that is what I have taken into consideration. I will research the Gladstone area that you have mentioned.

I contacted Voyages at the Ayres Rock Resort and they informed me that there are dorms for 38$A so I will book my nights as soon as I have sorted the Darwin, Cairns stage and the flights. I visited the website of the Ayres Rock-Olgas shuttle bus and though a tad expensive it seems to be the only option. I will check your flight websites; I normally use Skyscanner.

I'm down to my last four minutes here at the local library so I'll have to finish off, hoping that I haven't overlooked any of your advice in my reply.

Thanks again to the three of you.

Kind regards

Hi emsec and yep 119GBP seems to be a pretty good price for Perth to Darwin and 210+ for Melbourne to Queenstown is reasonable enough.
Re booking a tour for Kakadu, some like it hot and humid and so be it and there should not be a problem in booking a tour as I expect most are reasonably reliable ( I booked one once from southern Australia and everything was fine ), there being a couple of three dayers for Kakadu and Litchfield (cheaper one showing 17 seats so it is likely one of the larger 4wds.and deluxe one having better accommodation ) on and you'll find more - you just needing to get dates required and hopefully Nourlangie and Ubirr.
http://www.kakadu.travel/tours/kakadu-tours/?gclid=Cj0KCQjw--DLBRCNARIsAFIwR27p0oAh1TDvUaqvxLFbYlaVsOWaI5KP6WcXmQc3QncIJDpY6lG2O3IaAk51EALw_wcB

I reckon you will still find it a bit better doing Darwin - Uluru - Brisbane for snorkelling and then Melbourne but I'll leave that to you and with the snorkelling, coral might look close but is usually further away and you will find in lagoon areas like at the islands you have not got endless coral but outcrops, clam shells etc. interpersed with sand so depending on depth you can stand for a bit.
Seems you are controlling the diabetes well ( have had D2 myself for a few years now and just gone on to insulin but still also controlled well enough ).
Just make sure you get some of the electrolyte tablets.

PS. The story you might get from most tourism people is " No problems, it's all great and a great time to come " - most people will say anything to get paying customers in the door.

Hi Travoyageur

The flight to Darwin is with a subsidiary of Virgin. I also got a real bargain for the main flight with Emirates which is 675GPP. When I worked for a living I had to split my annual leave so I could never justify travelling the distance for two to three weeks and at Christmas the flights were always expensive. I happened to be checking prices of several destinations for this trip and out of curiosity checked the Australia-New Zealand flights. There were a few at 659GPB but when transferred to the website from Skyscanner the flights were no longer available at that price. The next best was the 675GBP so I was in there straight away.

I think I will take your advice and travel Darwin-Ayres Rock-Alice Springs- Brisbane. One of my guidebooks has a photo of Cathedral Rocks on Fraser Island and also aerial views of the lakes inside the forests. I wouldn't mind some of that. The 4WD tours sound similar to those in Namibia. The only thing that concerns me is the time of year and that the tours may be fully booked when I arrive near the island. I don't like booking too much in advance.
It was my intention to visit Sydney before Melbourne so your plan seems more efficient. I could travel down the coast by bus or train.
Just one more question: I don't own a mobile phone but on previous trips one would have come in handy for phoning ahead for accommodation or for reserving a taxi to the airport for an early flight. In some African countries the guys at the hotel desk would only phone if I bought a credit for their mobile phones. I then had to go outside and look for the guys selling the slips of paper, invariably getting mobbed by up to ten sellers. The minimum credit wasn't expensive and it always made me smile. There was also an occasion in Vietnam where I got off a sleeper bus at 04:30 and had some accommodation from the guidebook in mind but I had no idea which part of the city I was in. I was the only one on the street and the bus had continued to the final destination. I am aware that some phones have a GPS system that can display current position and location of the hostel.
Would such a phone be expensive if bought in Australia; what is the most basic phone that would provide this service and also to search websites that provide hostel accommodation. There are outlets here such as Tescos and Carphone Warehouse that sell 'pay as you go' phones and cards. I am considering buying one anyway as my sisters and relatives have convinced me that now I have retired I am more vulnerable when hiking on the high moorland next to my home. I have a 15 mile route and some days I don't see any humans especially when there is bad weather.

Down to my last minutes again here at the library.

Best regards.

"guys at the hotel desk would only phone if I bought a credit for their mobile phones. I then had to go outside and look for the guys selling the slips of paper, invariably getting mobbed by up to ten sellers. The minimum credit wasn't expensive and it always made me smile. "
Made me smile too, kind of what travelling is about sometimes and though I had some interesting experiences in Vietnam, Hanoi in particular, I was there for a few weeks and so became familiar enough with the layout. At least in Australia, it'll be a lot easier, plenty of free city and regional maps around just about anywhere you go and use of computers in libraries is generally free too.

Yep Fraser Island is a lovely place and there shouldn't be too much of a problem getting a tour, there being different types, 1. smaller 4WDs which are usually run by backpacker hostels out of mainly Hervey Bay, some also from Noosa on the Sunshine Coast which is pretty easily reached from Brisbane by bus, they are usually for three days/two nights with camping and you get to be squeezed in with up to 8 usually young and sometimes too yahoo type of characters - young brits especially seen to go a bit wild out here! ( probably somewhere about $300 + food kitty ~ $50 ) Or...
2. There are one or two, maybe even three day tours that are done in larger bus style 4 WDs and accommodation could be either camping or staying in some fixed accommodation and you are probably looking at somewhere around $200/d plus say $100+/n + meals.
You can see some of what is on offer at http://www.fraserexplorertours.com.au/ and https://www.getyourguide.com/hervey-bay-l32188/hervey-bay-whale-watch-encounter-t97434/?referrer_view_id=369eb9b4a00c5a77c503348a5ed6ef26&referrer_view_position=1 or http://www.cooldingotour.com/ is the type of one run from a hostel though they're not showing their smaller 4wd in the shots - it might have even changed a bit since I was last there ( DIY ) as tere had been a few accidents over the years including some deaths ( young people not used to 4WDing in sandy conditions etc, too much speed on the beach or just general yahoo driving ) so they were introducing guided tours as in a follow the leader style of thing but maybe they are just all going for bigger vehicles.
Anyway, you can see plenty more options by just googling Fraser Island Tours and sometimes later bookings do get discounted if they have seats to fill - https://www.bookme.com.au/bookings/fraser-island-hervey-bay-1770/home?gclid=Cj0KCQjwnubLBRC_ARIsAASsNNk_GAtAcDTEQUEFPkbA4Dkf8bgnR-UPKi7T67-Vt3j6q8jnvPcer0YaAnlJEALw_wcB

With the phones, even our Australia Post shops ( most now franchised ) have various phones available, our networks now 3G and 4G ( 2G being turned off ) but just looking at an AP flyer ( I need to upgrade myself ) you can get an Optus 3G Alcatel20.45X for as little as $19 when on sale or a Telstra 4G with bigger screen and technics for as low as $49.
Those phones will be locked into either Optus or Telstra but you can get a PAYG plan.
To buy a similar smart phone unlocked so you can go with any network by buying a SIM card, you can probably get one for under a $100.
If you buy a Smart Phone before you leave, best to buy an unlocked one that is compatible for 3G/4G.
Just recently, I saw a report where ALDI ( the store ) allegedly had best PAYG deal about $20/m but there are other ones at much the same, Amaysim being one I use and just for calls, I just top up as I require at $10/time and it lasts for 3 months so if not making many calls it might just be $10/3 months, do another top up before expiry and unused call $$$ rolls over.
For most PAYG with data provision, it is about $20/m minimum but I've not checked too thoroughly of late and there could be some cheaper deals.

Cheers

That's really good info on the Fraser Island tours; I will sort out the northern and central part of the trip first then decide if I will risk trying to book on arrival at Hervey Bay. I have also researched the other islands that you mentioned so there is still potential there.
I will compare the phone deals here in the UK. I have an entry level Garmin eTrex 10 that I use as a last resort but it is not possible to download maps so I wouldn't be able to use it in cities. On a six day hike in Iceland I entered the coordinates of the huts and hoped that I wouldn't need to use it as the map shows 'as the crow flies' routes between each hut. Fortunately when there were whiteouts I could follow the footprints in the snow between regular markers. They usually passed quickly so I never encountered serious problems.

Looking forward to the trip and will relax a little after the first stage is booked. Hope your D2 goes smoothly in the future. I treat it as a challenge and don't let it get me down. The food portions are more sensible now and the info on Diabetes UK website is very useful. My Diabetes Specialist GP is always pleased when my annual test results arrive and the podiatrist congratulates me on the powerful pulse in my feet. Digital eye examinations are always positive. Life is good.....

Kind regards

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