Sep 10 2010
My Family’s Week Vacation In Cairns
Here’s a daily retelling of my family’s recent vacation in Cairns Australia.
Monday
For the first day of our family adventure we thought we would get the adrenaline rushing by going white water rafting on the Tully River. It’s a long day activity, they collected us from our accommodation at 6.30am and we didn’t get back until about 7.00pm. They split you into 6 man rafts for the descent of the river. Surprisingly, for Cairns the water is a little chilly, but you soon forget about the water temp as you get to the first rapid. What a rush! The river tries to send the raft everywhere. Don’t fear though, the guides are all fully trained and certified.
Tuesday
On Tuesday we thought we might have a bit of a lay day. So the tribe went their own way.
Wednesday
On Wednesday we finally got to go to the Cairns Great Barrier Reef. We went out with Quicksilver Cruises. They have a platform permanently anchored at the outer reef. The snorkelling was incredible with literally 1000′s of fish of all colours all around you. The coral was incredible and was so close you could almost touch it.
Wednesday night we went out for a meal and a few drinks and watched some Cane Toad racing. They are disgusting warty creatures.
Thursday
On Thursday we went to Kuranda. Kuranda is a quiet little village in the rainforest behind Cairns. You can drive there, but we went on the Kuranda Skyrail. The Skyrail took approximately forty five minutes with 2 stations on the route. Kuranda’s a cute village but a little too touristy for my liking. Every second shop is selling boomerangs and the ones in between are selling souveneirs. A must do is the Kuranda Village Markets, with more boomerangs for sale as well as lots of local homemade knick knacks, as well as more Tshirts. We came back by the Kuranda Scenic Railway with more beautiful scenery.
Friday
Today was another day off of sorts. We took the chance to spend the day at the esplanade lagoon. For a place with crocodiles and killer jellyfish, this place is a perfect idea.
That night we visited the Cairns Zoo for an Aussie Animals show. It was entertaining, but it is suited to visitors from overseas more than travellers. The food was OK.
Saturday
Saturday we visited the Great Barrier Reef again. Today we went with Ocean Quest on a diving cruise. Although we only tried snorkelling, as none of us are qualified scuba divers. The reef was even more impressive than the first day. The lack or crowds makes it a much different experience than on the big boat trips.
Sunday
For our last day we took a 4WD tour to Cape Tribulation and the Daintree Rainforest . The Daintree is the worlds oldest rainforest, and it’s pretty spectacular. They say it’s “where the rainforest meets the reef” and thats about it. The rainforest goes right down to the white sandy beaches.
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