Australian fabbers, help me plan our trip?!

Helena

Hi there - we are very excited to have FINALLY booked a family vacation back to DH's homeland, Australia, for this Christmas! I'd love the Australian fabbers, or anyone in the know, to help me plan it out a little!

The broad strokes:

flying into Brisbane
travelling down to Byron Bay area to stay with SIL for Christmas - about a week or a little over in that area
flying to Sydney to stay with BIL for about a week

What's planned:

We don't have anything planned for Brisbane - is there anything worth doing there where we should stay for a night or two on arrival to check out?
Bryron Bay will be a lot of family stuff - Christmas obviously, plus BIL and his family will be in a holiday home, so it will be a full family reunion, with all the nieces and nephews too. I don't imagine it will be hard to fill up this time with beach visits, walks around town, etc. Plus DH is super-excited to go to every grocery store in town to buy all his favourite products
BIL has already wound up my kids about surfing lessons :O ... he's very "adventurous" (scary!) so hopefully he doesn't land us all in the ER
Are there any must-do's while we are in this area?
Sydney - the only plan so far is a boat into the harbour for NYE which will be amazing! We'll be staying with BIL but I wouldn't mind having a couple of nights elsewhere to give them a break from us - DH mentioned the Blue Mountains as a potential. Or are there any fun areas of the city we should stay at to explore for a night or two? What would you put on a Sydney bucket list?
Other questions: What Australians stores should DD and I be checking out? Are there any good museums or art galleries spotlighting the Indigenous peoples that we should explore?

Any and all suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated! Thank you so much! xoxo

3 years ago

Off Topic

21 replies

Latest reply was from Helena

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

Buy all the Roxy/Billabong/Quicksilver, obviously. And have a great time!

3 years ago

Jenni NZ

Veteran

Helena, I can’t advise on the tourist part of it, but re clothes shopping, Angie wrote a forum post a month or two back ( sorry am on phone so can’t link) entitled “Saw FAB Aussie stores in person!” which I found easily by searching her forum posts. That had hers and several Aussie/Kiwi Fabbers’ thoughts on a number of different brands. It might help your advance research. Cheers Jenni

3 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

OH WOW!! So happy for you! I have zero advice, except have a fantastic time!

3 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

OOOOH! You are going to have a HOT Christmas for a change

Sounds like a wonderful trip, and fun to plan!

3 years ago

Sal

Veteran

How exciting Helena. What a wonderful trip!!

Here’s my suggestions.

Brisbane- Southbank is worth checking out. It’s pretty and central so I am sure you will do this. You may want to head to the Gold Coast to the beaches and theme parks. I believe your children would love Wet and Wild or Movieworld or SeaWorld. It’s a bit of a drive from Brisbane and sort of on the way to Byron Bay. I expect it would be busy, the beaches are wide city beaches - Surfers Paradise, Broadbeach etc

In Sydney the coastal walks in both the North Shore and Bondi are spectacular. The zoo is wonderful. Walking around the harbour is great. Darling Harbour is touristy but buskers can be entertaining.

Shops- My favourite Aussie shops are Veronika Maine and Witcher. Target is a good cheaper shop. Myer and David Jones are great dept stores. Lots of designers too and shoes are good!!

Eating- Australian mangos are divine!! Yum yum yum. They do great coffee now and wonderful ethic Asian fusion, Italian, Greek, - you name it!! We did an awesome food tour years ago of ethnic eateries.

I am not sure about the Blue Mountains. They are pretty but depends what you want. We have stayed there and also in the Hunter Valley - which I didn’t especially like.

3 years ago

Helena

Veteran

Thanks so much everyone! Sal, I've got all your suggestions on my planning list now, thank you so much! *Runs off to Google Veronika Maine* ...

3 years ago

Brooklyn

Veteran

Fantastic! I’m excited for you.

I can help with some Sydney suggestions:

* for a day trip take the ferry to Manly from the CBD and wander around the shops and beaches (or do your 2 day stay there)

* do the Sydney Harbour Bridge climb at dusk for magnificent views of the city

* see a concert at the Opera House, walk around the adjoining Botanic Gardens (beautiful harbour views), have lunch or a coffee at Opera Bar, right next to the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge

https://www.operabar.com.au/

* book a swanky dinner with hubs at Cafe Sydney (ask for outside seating for amazing harbour views, food and service)

https://cafesydney.com/

* walk around the historic rocks area in the city, have lunch at an Aussie pub

https://australianheritagehotel.com/

* do a day trip to Paddington (posh Sydney suburb) for a walk around great shops and restaurants

* hire a bike in Centennial Park (near Paddington)

https://www.centennialparkland.....see-and-do

* go to Bondi Beach

* enjoy an outdoor cinema experience or concert on the harbour

https://www.westpacopenair.com.au/

* go sailing on Sydney Harbour or take a harbour cruise (I think sailing is the better experience)

* take a day trip to Watsons Bay, do the cliff walk, have lunch at Doyles (iconic Sydney seafood restaurant) or get takeaway fish and chips and enjoy it in one of the adjoining parks

https://www.sydney.com/destina.....cliff-walk

https://www.doyles.com.au/

I’ll come back with more later.

3 years ago

Helena

Veteran

Brooklyn, this is amazing thank you!! Putting it all on the list ... Except the bridge climb as I am petrified of heights haha ... I'll leave that to DH Appreciate the suggestions so much!!

3 years ago

kkards

Veteran

Have no advice, but I’m so excited for you and your family!

3 years ago

Brooklyn

Veteran

Helena, on the bridge climb. I’ve been told there is now an option to climb one of the pylons of the Harbour Bridge. It’s totally enclosed until you get to a viewing area at the top. Not as open as the Bridge climb. I think it’s being spruiked as an alternative experience for those who don’t like heights.

A few more attractions:

Go kayaking in Middle Harbour (Middle Harbour is beautiful and much less busy than Sydney Harbour)

https://www.sydneyharbourkayak.....rbour-maps

The Art Gallery of NSW is worth a visit (I think it’s still free). Lots of Indigenous art. You can combine this with a trip to the Botanic Gardens or an easy walk down to the jetty at Woolloomooloo. There are lots of great restaurants there (Otto is particularly well regarded) and some pretty amazing houses. I think Russell Crowe has a pad there.

https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/about-us/

https://ottoristorante.com.au/sydney

Darling Harbour is touristy, as Sally mentions, but still pleasant for a walk around. There’s an aquarium there, a Maritime Museum and the Powerhouse Museum (which focuses on engineering and design) is nearby.

https://www.maas.museum/powerhouse-museum/

For First Nations history and Sydney history, the Museum of Sydney and the Australian Museum (a natural history museum). Both are in the CBD.

https://sydneylivingmuseums.co.....-of-sydney

https://australian.museum/

I’ll come back with some shopping suggestions

3 years ago

Brooklyn

Veteran

Here are the details on the pylon lookout.

https://pylonlookout.com.au/

3 years ago

Ginkgo

Veteran

My husband and I spent a few years in Australia and loved it! I think a day or two in Brisbane would be great. As Sally mentioned there's Southbank -- tropical vegetation, beautiful walks along the river, lots of cafes, the Queensland Art Museum is just past the park, you can hop on a Citycat ferry and zoom along the river. You can also take a ferry up the river to visit the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary (get to hold a koala and have your photo taken (I loved it!). The main shopping area is across the river and a short walk.

Enjoy your trip!

3 years ago

nemosmom

Veteran

So excited for you! I have never been, so have no advice. Have an amazing time!!

3 years ago

Sal

Veteran

What a great list Brooklyn! I am going to use that.

I just wanted to clarify - the Blue Mountains are very pretty. There are great lookouts. I bet there are some wonderful walks. I just am not sure if the children would be excited.

3 years ago

Bijou

Veteran

So glad Brooklyn has you sorted for Sydney. I must say Sydney harbour is beautiful, ferry trips from Circular Key are a must, with the Manly ferry being my personal favourite. I will check with a Brisbane friend for top tips for Brisbane and report back!

3 years ago

anne

Veteran

Sydney is a wonderful place to go to sightsee! Byron Bay is famous for celebrities, influencers and hippies (not that I have been there for 30plus years!)

I liked the blue mountains for hiking etc. I believe there are cable cars and caves.

Brisbane has some historic sites and is lush. It is hot and humid in summer and I found it rather energy sapping so perhaps don't attempt to fit too much in (which would be my temptation)

3 years ago

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

A request for Australian and New Zealand fabbers: if you don’t have your cities in your profile, would you please add them? I know most of you have mentioned them, but they are unfamiliar enough that it’s hard for my brain to latch onto them, so when you mention going someplace, I don’t really know how much of a big deal that is, because I don’t know where you started.

Helena, thanks for tolerating the interruption.

3 years ago

Brooklyn

Veteran

Hi Helena

Here is a list of some Australian fashion stores. Bijou or others might want to add to it.

These are the stores I tend to take an interest in. I don’t have items from all of them. I just like to look! My favourites are Witchery, Sass & Bide, Veronika Maine and Cue. I get my jeans from Trenery. But I have items from some of the others too.

For you, I would recommend Trenery, Country Road and Sportscraft as a good starting point.

The $ sign is some indication of relative cost (just my subjective impression).

If you visit department store David Jones in the Sydney CBD, many of these brands are represented there. So that would be a good way of sampling them. Oxford St, Paddington is another good shopping strip. And the Strand Arcade in the Sydney CBD is also a lovely place to shop, with many independent retailers.

Chain stores:
Trenery $$
Country Road $$
Sportscraft $$
Saba $$
Witchery $$
Jag $
Portmans $
Marcs $$
Seed Heritage $$
David Lawrence $$
Cue $$$
Veronika Maine $$$

Boutiques:
Sass & Bide $$$
Shona Joy $$$
Ministry of Style (or MOS) $$$
Apartment Clothing $$$
Bec + Bridge $$$
Kitx $$$
Dogstar $$
Dinosaur Designs (homewares and accessories) $$$
AJE $$$
Ginger and Smart $$$$
Camilla and Marc $$$$
Bassike $$$$
Bianca Spender $$$$
Carla Zampatti $$$$
Zimmerman $$$$$

3 years ago

Brooklyn

Veteran

Oh, and your daughter (or you!) might also like these:

Sportsgirl
Dotti
Mink pink
Cotton On
City Beach
Ghanda
Review
Forever New

3 years ago

Sal

Veteran

What a great list!! I agree on Brooklyn’s recommendations for you.

3 years ago

Helena

Veteran

You guys are the absolute best!!!! I think we have the whole thing sorted thanks to you guys!! Can't thank you enough Fabbers xoxoxo

3 years ago

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