TravelingDad guest contributor, Brandi Stanley shares her family travel to Australia. Single Parent family travel reviews on SingleDad

TravelingDad Blog: Australia

Author: TravelingDad Guest Contributor, Brandi Stanley

Posted: 05/23/12

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TravelingDad Blog: Australia

The Land of Oz...
The Stanley Family in Port Douglas, Australia

In early January 2007, our family had the wonderful opportunity to visit the Great Barrier Reef. Upon recommendation of our dear friends from Brisbane, we were delighted that we avoided the big cities and simply enjoyed a peaceful family stay in Port Douglas.

Our first day involved a ferry from Port Douglas across the gorgeous open water to the outer Great Barrier Reef for a full day of diving/snorkeling. The children enjoyed seeing the brightly colored coral and beautiful fish from a semi-submersible boat and from snorkeling just off the deck of the barge. During a morning dive, Bo was fortunate enough to see barracuda, sharks, and enormous grouper. To my three year old daughter's delight, we were able to find Nemo (along with Dory and all of the other celebrity fish!)!

Our second day found us on a large catamaran to the Low Isles. We snorkeled and swam with the sea turtles, toured the reef in a glass bottom boat, and walked around the small island. Fortunately, we were able to avoid the irikanji jellyfish that we rather active this season.

Our trip to Australia would certainly not have been complete without a visit to the Rainforest Habitat, where we found ourselves up close with Australia's best-loved animals.... Kangaroos, Crocs, and Koalas!!! For the children, this was the highlight of their holiday! The kangaroos enjoyed being hand-fed by Scott as much as he loved feeding them. Lauren had been asking the entire trip when she could see the baby koalas and was thrilled when she finally got to pet one! Though the animals are accustomed to such lively human guests, I am sure they were relieved when we were gone!

An exploration of the Daintree National Park- the oldest rainforest in the world- was a highlight not to be missed. At the Discovery Center, the children were able to walk through the forest canopy and search for the cassowaries, snakes, and various scary plants and animals. In addition, a brief stop by Cape Tribulation to see where "the rainforest meets the reef" provided a gorgeous scenic overlook!

Our last evening in Australia, we decided to visit the Tjapukai Aboriginal Tribe at Kuranda. The kids were amazed at the fire ceremony where we were able to participate in the singing and dancing while the aborigines created the fire... I found that my son was really focusing on their technique so that he could later practice his new fire-starting skill! We all enjoyed the traditional Aboriginal dancing & incredible didgeridoo playing.

Kangaroos, Crocodiles, & Koalas, the Rainforest & the Reef, indigenous peoples, and time spent together exploring one of the most amazing countries on Earth.... What a holiday! Though Australia has much more to offer, our family left the country completely fulfilled that we had enjoyed what we considered the best of Oz!