Amber's Travel Blog - Australia 2023
cairns - Great Barrier Reef
Hotel: Oaks Cairns Hotel
Hotel Review: We mostly liked our hotel. We wish it had laundry facilities - we had to go to a laundromat that was a 10 minute walk away - it cost $15 to do 1 week's worth of laundry! And we sweat the whole time but we did it! Still, I can't emphasize enough - the location couldn't be more perfect. The room was also quite nice, but a bit small and the bathroom is modern and roomy enough. This was the first hotel that didn't provide daily housekeeping, however, upon check-in we were told that breakfast was included - which was a first. BUT, when we went for breakfast, we were told that it was NOT included, so when we returned later that day to find out it was - they gave us a $40 credit to use at the restaurant - so at least they made it right. The location of the hotel could not be any better - it's a 5 minute walk to the reef tours and there are tons of shops and restaurants - all within a 1-block radius. With all that said, I'd still recommend the Oaks for your stay in Cairns. It was $110/night.
Sights Visited: Great Barrier Reef, Green Island, Night Markets, St. Monica's Cathedral, Coral Sea Brewery, Karunda, Koala Gardens
Restaurants we liked: Miss Chief, Hemingway's Brewery, Rendezvous du Vietnam, Just Devine Gelato
What we think of Cairns/Great Barrier Reef: The reef was incredbile, but my favorite part of the Great Barrier Reef was swimming with a turtle who seemed to be playing hide and seek with me - check out the video in the link below to watch the silly guy. On our tour today (Dreamtime Dive & Snorkel), we had Aboriginal tour guides that taught us about didgeridoos (not what the Aboriginals call them - I think he called it an ickerydickery?), native dancing, how they make fires, and other aspects of their culture. It was our first real exposure to this aspect of Australia and hope to have a bit more of it before we head back.
In Kuranda, we got a glimpse of Australia's rainforest. We took the Skyrail and saw Barron's waterfall. We walked through the town of Kuranda and visited Koala Gardens - getting yet another chance to hold a koala - this one was named Rocco. He was very cute, and I loved feeling his tummy breathing against mine. But he didn't look up at me sweetly like Bilby did at Lone Pine - that was pure magic.
Cairns is a pretty and modern coastal city built for tourists. It is very hot and humid though (think summer in Miami) - I definitely wouldn't want to live here, but it was awesome to finally see the Great Barrier Reef - something I've been wanting to do for a very long time. St. Monica's had some unusual stained glass for a Catholic church. Miss Chief was a fun restaurant with exotic cocktails (I got a mango/coconut daquiri that was spicy), shareable plates (we got Korean Fried Cauliflower - they called it KFC - HA!), and it had a great ambiance - we drank and ate on a porch swing. Hemingway's Brewery had a beer/pizza special for $10. The pizza was enough for 2 people and was Neapolitan style. There are also lots of ice cream/gelato places everywhere. Tonight we found Just Devince Gelato that sold a scoop of passion fruit sorbet for $2 - delicious! Cairns is a very cool place to visit - but wouldn't want to live here! Too hot! Too humid! But so pretty! Looking forward to our next stop - Perth! I've heard so many good things - we'll see!!!
Sadly, I reached my limit for pictures and videos on Wix - so you'll just have to access them through this link - send me a chat if it doesn't work (see bottom right)!