Honeymoon in Australia mid-Jan to mid-Feb

Have you thought about flying into Brisbane and travelling up the East coast, say to Cooktown, that would be a nice run for two weeks.

Unfortunately, that time of year its stinking hot and a lot of things are closed as there aren't many tourists around.

The roads being open will be a bit of a roll of the dice too, if a cyclone has spun up anywhere up that way, then the dirt roads will be closed and probably the sealed ones as well.

Perth to Darwin (one way) is a bit over 4000km, and Darwin- Broome 1800km (but then you'll probably have to get back to Darwin), so you could do it in a week, but you wouldn't have time to see much.
My wife grew up in Pt Headland and her take on WA is that it has some nice places joined by a lot of stuff all.

If you're flying in and out of Perth so you can visit your old stamping grounds, then I'd suggest that you still hire the 4WD, but explore down along the coast from Albany to Esperance, up to Kalgoorlie and back to Perth. Still around 2000km, but the country changes quite a bit, there is the option for motels (and air conditioning) or camping and there are things to see, rather than just punching out km to reach the finish.

If you're interested in the East Coast, then flying into Brisbane and catching Sprit of Queensland (train) to Cairns might be worth a look. From there do some exploring around Cairns/Mossman/Pt Douglas/Daintree, or hire a van and make your way back to Brisbane in slow time.

If you want to save some $$, then keep an eye on these 1 way deals to get vehicles back to the main airports.
https://www.transfercar.com.au/
https://www.imoova.com/imoova/relocations

Jacob

You say you once lived in Perth, so you should know what our Australian summers are like.......bloody hot, and then you are talking heading north to the tropics?

The only place in Australia where it would be nice and no where as hot is Tassie.

By the sounds of things, you must have only lived here during our winter periods when it is a lot colder.

I reckon Tassie is the way to go. Lots of national parks, towns are closely spaced and quaint, temperature is good at that time of year. Mind you, they have had their fair share of bush fires lately.

Great idea to do Walpole/Denmark but if arent staying with friends make sure you book. Its very busy over the Jan school holidays everywhere there.

For somewhere diff after that yes fly to Darwin and organise a charter flight to take you over the Kakadu escarpments. I used to live in Darwin and we did this in the wet season.its incredible seeing the waterfalls. But you cant drive/ too unpredictable road closures so just forget about hiring the 4wd for the tropics at that time.

If you do end up on the East coast, mid January and February is a great time to visit Mon Repo at Bundaberg to see the turtles hatching. You would need to book well in advance though, it is a very popular thing for people to see.

IMHO you would be better to stay on the East Coast around Sydney , The Blue Mountains, maybe up to Kosciusko, the South Coast of NSW, the National Parks. NSW has incredible stretches of pristine beaches which are majority patrolled and safe to swim in. The water is usually around 22-24C due to the NSW current.

I am a native of Brisbane and now I find it just too hot and humid in Jan -Feb at say 34-36C and 85-90% humidity. Anywhere North is worse.

Our piece of heaven called Avoca Beach has now become incredibly popular in school holidays which go to usually 26-28th January. After that the terrorists depart and it is very comfortable. By the accents on the beach it has become very popular with Europeans, but with nowhere near the crowding (or cost) of European beaches.
Have a look at air B&Bs but the ones within 5 minutes walk to the beach can be expensive.

If you can, do try to avoid school holidays, especially on the east coast. Here's a link to tell you when they are on in each State:

Australian school holidays 2019-2020

Cabins in caravan parks are also a good bet and are better than motels because you can do some of your own meals if you want and have a lot more space. They are usually cheaper as well. But heavily booked in school holidays.

You could fly into Adelaide and then go up and have a look around Wilpena Pound. Then do the south east coast along the Great Ocean Road and then to Wilsons Promontory. Maybe stop off for a few days in Melbourne on the way. Then perhaps follow the coast all the way up to Sydney and have a few days there, with maybe a day or two in the Blue Mountains.

You won't need a 4WD for that. They key is not to have to rush.

Another option is to fly to the Whitsundays, charter a fully catered luxury boat at Airlie Beach and spend a couple of weeks pottering around the islands, eating pineapples and mangoes and making each other Margaritas. Make sure you select a boat that is big enough to take you to the eastern side of the islands and, if necessary, bone up on your boating knowledge beforehand,

Good luck!
Keith

G'day Jacob Redback,
I live in Cairns and have spent the last 70 years in Queensland and worked in the Kimberleys.
Yes it will be hot and it will be humid however it will not be overrun with millions of tourists. The Daintree is far better in the wetter times because the traffic during the cooler months is ridiculous, the Barron Falls is quite a sight in the wet. We've met Swiss and German people who've thoroughly enjoyed the hotter months, Normanton in summer is quite an experience, the Swiss couple we met there had no problems with the heat and they were just living out of a LandCruiser Troopy. Met a German couple who were in the Sturt National park in January, 40+c they loved it.
As for Tasmania, we really enjoyed travelling there. We were advised to go in February by some Tasmanian poppy farmers we met in Cloncurry. We had ice on our tent most mornings and the day we went to Mt Wellington was blowing a freezing gale.
Don't be frightened of the hot conditions, it's part of the Australian experience.
I must add though we don't like anything below 20c so possibly a bit biased.

Be careful who you rent a 4WD from, there are some unethical operators around in the 4x4 hire business.. Michael

One of the areas not much travelled by tourists is the New England Region which is all 800M+ above sea level to 1,525M. From Bendemeer which is north of Tamworth out to Walcha and up to Stanthorpe. Summers in the New England are magic. Seldom gets to 30C and majority of the time 25C to 28C with low humidity, and importantly very few bities in the way of mosquitoes and other flying wildlife.
Heaps of great national parks with camping, no shortage of things to see and do.
Magic region of Australia and always wonder why more people don't travel this region in summer with such great weather.

Jacob & Catrine - You don't want to be holidaying in the North of Australia during Jan-Feb, unless you're based right on the coastline, and can take advantage of the water regularly to cool off.

In Jan-Feb, the North of Australia endures some exceptional levels of heating, coming from the interior desert, and semi-desert, regions.

This means any time spent more than, say 50kms inland, involves serious preparation and planning against severe dehydration - which can occur rapidly, after any reasonable amount of physical exertion.

Even walking modest distances in Jan and Feb in the North of Australia can be dangerous to your health and wellbeing.

For some reason, Europeans seem to unaware of just how extreme temperatures and solar radiation can be, in this period, in this region.
It is vital that you understand you have a vastly increased need for fluid intake at this time of year, and a need to have adequate replenishment fluids on hand at all times.

However, if you are young and fit, as I presume you are, as honeymooners, you do stand a better chance of withstanding the extremes of the North of Australia during that time of year.
But even so, be very aware of the risks you take, with not only high heat and solar radiation levels, but with a much reduced number of people around, where the heat and radiation is extreme.

That means, if you get into any form of trouble, in an inland region - particularly vehicle breakdown - your chances of someone arriving to assist you, are reduced, from perhaps a couple of hours, to more likely a couple of days.

It is very important that any travel arrangements you make, or attempt to make, during this time of year, are communicated to people such as the local police or contactable friends, who can raise the alarm if you don't show up at expected locations, at expected times.

I have lived and worked in many remote areas of inland Australia, during Summer, in temperatures around 48 to 50 deg C - and many times worked alone, without communication, in the era before satellites and mobile phones.
It is a dangerous and unforgiving environment, if you are careless about risk-taking, and careless in your movement planning and backup arrangements.

Cheers, Ron.