About Ralph Robinson Expertise I have traveled throughout much of Australia over the past 19 years. I
have a large collection of books, guides, brochures, magazines and maps of
the
country. WHAT TO DO/SEE in Queensland, New
South Wales, Victoria, the Northern Territory and major cities (except
Perth). I am
especially familiar with Sydney (my wife`s hometown), Canberra (we lived
there for 3 years), Brisbane, and the Gold Coast. THE GREAT BARRIER REEF
(especially Heron Island). NATIONAL PARKS including Uluru (Ayers Rock),
Kings Canyon, Kakadu, Daintree, Undarra, Carnarvon Gorge, Fraser Island,
Lamington, Blue Mts, Bungle Bungles. TRAVEL ITINERARIES - general
questions.
BUSHWALKING (HIKING) especially in New South Wales and Queensland. OTHER:
Geography, seasons and climate. Time zones, flight and driving times.
Plants, animals and birds.
Question I am trying to plan a vacation to Australia for next year. I have been told that the summer months are our winter months (I live in the U.S. - South Carolina). I also know that the summers have lots of rain in Australia at times. What timeframe is best to visit the touristic cities of Australia (i.e Sydney, Victoria, etc)? I will spend ~2 weeks there. Please consider climate, crowds, etc.
Thanks for your help.
Liz
Answer Hi Liz, Yes the seasons are reversed in the Southern Hemisphere, Australia included. A USA winter is an Australian summer and vice-versa. Like the USA, there is a big difference in climate between the north and south of the country (Aus. is about the size of the US lower 48). However, Australia lies quite a bit closer to the equator than the USA and so has a generally warmer climate. The northern third of the country lies in the tropics and therefore gets a lot of rain in the summer (the Wet Season).
The best time to visit the north of the country, including most of the outback and much of the Great Barrier Reef is in the "winter" - Jun-Sept. Temps. in the 70s and 80s, typically clear and dry. This would include the cities Cairns, Darwin, and Alice Springs.
Weather-wise, the best time to visit Tasmania, in the extreme south is the summer (Dec-Feb). At that time, most of the rest of the country is hot to very hot: the outback is scorched and the North is rainy, sticky and humid. The southeastern cities (Sydney and Melbourne) typically enjoy nice hot summer weather, but it can get oppressively hot in those places from time to time. Late spring - (Nov, early Dec) and early autumn (Mar-Apr) are probably the best times for Sydney and Melbourne.
Winters (Jun-Aug) are relatively mild in Austalia by N. American standards. Sydney often sees 70 degree weather July/Aug. but it does get chilly at night. Melbourne is cooler and a bit more dreary at that time of year. Snow only occurs in the mountains of the SE and is never seen in any of the major cities, except Canberra and maybe Hobart.
Brisbane and the Gold Coast enjoy perhaps the best year round climate of anywhere in the country, though like anywhere, summers are hot.
As far as crowds go, the time to most avoid is the summer/Xmas holdays Dec-Jan. There are minor school holiday periods at other times (e.g. mid July), but I don't think these are of too much concern.
SO...the best time to go depends on where you plan to go. If you stick to the SE (Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide)I'd say late spring or early autumn. If you want to spend most of your time in the north and in the outback, then it's Jun-Sept for sure. For the country as a whole, then a compromise is necessary - April/May or Oct/Nov.
