Travel Review: Australia Birthday Vacation, Melbourne, Sydney, Whitsundays, Cairns, Uluru, Snorkeling Tour

There were so many, this is really a tough question. We loved every city we went to: Sydney, Hamilton Island, Cairns, Ayres Rock and Melbourne. Hamilton Island was definitely a highlight. The hotel was beyond amazing.The hotel was like an excursion on its own. The view was breathtaking. The room had a great layout. The service was impeccable and the food was fantastic. Even with a couple days of not-so-terrific weather, we can not say enough about this experience.  

Another surprise highlight was the Tali Waru dinner planned in Ayres Rock. These seemed like a fine tour when we read through the itinerary. Then when we got to hotel and were looking at all the hand outs for available tours, we saw the one for this tour compared to the others and were thinking, oh no, this isn't for us. We are quite picky eaters and the menu didn't seem to have anything we would eat. It seemed a little more high end than really fit us. But we were so wrong. This stands out as one of the best experiences on the trip. The food was so delicious we could not stop talking about it. The whole environment, vibe, location and overall night was the best night we had on the trip.

The snorkeling cruise in Hamilton Island was another really great excursion. The entire crew was so nice and helpful. The skipper was clearing our plates after lunch! The next day we went on a cruise with Cruise Whitsundays, which was fine, but really made this one stand out even more.