We stayed at the Cairns Colonial Club many years ago and loved it. We were only there 2 nights and were out and about most of the time so didn't really get the benefit of the hotel, but we wished we had been able to stay there longer.

I remember the restaurant being very good and the dessert, Death By Chocolate or similar, was so huge I had to get a doggie bag.

luci

I stayed at the Colonial Club last October for 5nights some of the rooms are a bit dark due to the trees in the grounds but these trees do give nice shade in the heat. We had a good sized room that had a partition which made it into a bedroom and living room (with two sofa beds) and the room also had cooking facilities.There are quite a few different grades of rooms. We found the food in the restaurants OK but preferred to eat at one of the numerous restaurants in Cairns. If you have a car the Colonial Club is great but the hotel is about 5km out of town and the last shuttle bus leaves at 6pm, so you need to get Taxis in the evenings. We visited Port Douglas which is much smaller and I really liked the town(preferred it to Cairns) but could not comment on any hotels. I talked to someone who had stayed at both Palm Cove and Cairns and she said Palm Cove was her favourite. You might like to look on the Trip Advisor forum they have lots of posts on the area.

Hi Judith
I wonder if you will be able to do our first review for the Cairns Colonial Club please?

Hi Fiona
have posted reviews, could do some more on other Australian hotels that I
stayed in.

thanks Judith! If you tell me which ones I can ask for them to be added!

Fiona
Desert Gardens Hotel, Ayers Rock
Aurora Hotel, Alice Springs
Summit Central Apt. Hotel, Brisbane
Desert Cave Hotel, Coober Pedy

Judith
I have requested them to be added. The Desert Cave hotel looks interesting! Did you stay underground?
Thanks for the reviews!!

Fiona

All done. Yes we did stay underground, really cool and pleasant. The most fascinating thing is to see the homes of people living underground. They have everything down there and are really comfortable.

Judith's reviews can be seen here. I must keep that hotel in mind for when we eventually get to Australia Judith!
Thanks for the reviews. Does anyone else have hotels they can review? I do know that the reviews really help others.

Hi

Cairnes is a city that is set as more of place that you can leave to go to the Barrier reef from there is no beach there if you go to Palm Cove it is about 25KLS north you will get a beach there Port Douglas is about 70 KLS north of Cairnes it is also good to stay at lot quieter than Cairnes if that is what you want
We have stayed at the Sanctuary Palm Cove it was very good but it is out of Cairne and you would need to hire a car to get the best of the area if you look up
http://www.hotelclub.net
They will give some info on accommodation in Cairns and prices and you can book out ahead
If you go to the area go on the train to Kuranda and then down on the chair lift but do make shore you go up on the train as coming down the squeel of the brakes will drive you mad the reef trip is a must see and a trip to the Daintree National park is also very good
You will find lots good accommodation in Cairnes most resorts are set in palm trees and lots of green under groth for shade there is all prices and types to choose from
If I can help more just ask have good time down under.

hi

thanks for the information so far - if we stay at Palm Cove, does that have a few bars / restaurants or do you need to travel into Cairns? Also, one of the objectives whilst there will be to do some snorkeling along the Barrier Reff - again, do the trips leave from Palm Cove or would we need to travel up to Cairns.

The Colonial Club looks great and I tthink we would prefer a beach type resort.

If you had the choice again - woud you stay in Cairns or outside?

Thansk in advance
Robert

Hi again

we have just heard on the news that a cyclone has hit Cairns and a lot of damage in the area so I will get back to you as my brother is holidaying there at the moment it is said it is the biggest cyclone ever to hit the coast and another is forming and going to hit the coast some were in a few days what we see on the tv is not good for the area

http://www.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30000-1215835,00.html
Hope your brother is ok chubby! Are cyclones common in Australia? It's just that I can't remember seeing news items on these. Keep in touch.

Hi Fiona and Robert

Yes my brother is ok Cairns did not get the eye of the cyclone it went down a bit south and hit the town of Innisfail it is 90KLS south
Theres lots of houses flooded lots of houses damaged too with the wind and all power is down too we see on the tv lots of trees over the roads I have not herd of any loss of lives yet but it will come we live in the south of the country thank god
About cyclones do happen from Nov. to March is the season all over the top end of the country from the Brisbane line up there is another one on the go now only hope it does not come on the same towns
Cairns has had a lot of tree damage not a lot of buildings only some houses had damage but they still had big wind blow and rain.

Robert

Palm cove it is a small coastal town with resorts and a beach there is not much wave action as the reef out to sea is a buffer you might say eating places we ate at the Sebel Reef house and the Horizons restaurant both good there are 4 or 5 other places to ( my you are making me think hard on that one )
The best place to get reef trips is at the marina in Cairns or at Port Douglas some boats cater for just divers and some cater for the scubar guy like me and also the have the glass bottom boats out there there is or was a submarine type thing the last time we was there but the scubar is as good to see it as any thing the boat that go out are twin hull fast cats and get you there in about two hours and they take you to two or three places ask at the marina before you book at what type trip they take.
Where else are you going when out here there is lots to see the best way is to pick parts you want to see and fligh to them

I noticed there was another cyclone. Glad to hear your brother is ok!

Any suggestions on what to do and where to stay in the Blue Mountains? We hope to catch the train from Sydney but that's as far as I have got with planning!

We went to FNQ last summer and based ourselves at Trinity Beach, which is about half way between Palm Cove and Cairns. There is a regular bus service between all three and there is a fast service to Palm Cove which runs all night. We went to PC a couple if times and it is quite a pleasant resort, more suitable for a slower pace of life than Cairns, which is backpack city. There is a resort and Spa in PC called The Sea Temple which was really very nice. We took our daughter there for her 15th Birthday celebs and they made it very special.

We took some time away and went above The Daintree River to stay in the Rainforest. We found a B&B called the Epiphyte. The guy that runs it leads a very simple existence and you would have to accept that luxuries are things that you have somewhere else, but for all that it was a wonderfully peaceful place.
It is as close as you can get to the tip of Queensland on tarmac roads. It is also as far as your car insurance will let you go as well. We saw a 2 metre python sliding across the road in front of one us one night, truly memorable. I still have the details of some of the places we went to and stayed if you wish I can pass them on to you.

regards

jr

I can't speak for Robert but I was finding that very interesting! I would love to hear more.

hi everyone

thanks again for the info ... my wife and I are basically travelling up from Sydney and will only be in teh area for 4/5 days. We are not serious divers or anything but I just want to do a bit of swimming and snorkeling and basically just enjoy the scenery. We are not into clubbing or wild nights but just looking fro a nice place to stay, some good food and company and a few pleasant bars to spend teh evenings.

By the sounds of it PC or Trinity beach seem more our kind of places than Cairns itslef.

Chubby - thansk for taking the time to reply whilst concerned over your brother - glad he is ok

Robert