Country Guide

With 2 weeks, your visit to Australia will be much more relaxed and you will get a greater sense of the diversity of Australia, its landscape, and its people. You will get to see all three icons -- Sydney, the Great Barrier Reef, and Uluru -- in more depth, and maybe even have time to go outside those areas, especially if you limit your icons to two instead of three.

Days 1 through 6: Follow itineraries as outlined under "In One Week".

Day 7: Cairns to Uluru

On Day 7, leave Cairns as early as you can (this will probably mean spending the night in Cairns rather than Port Douglas). Your flight to Ayers Rock Airport will take around 3 hours, sometimes more, depending on the type of aircraft you are on. Make sure you book a direct flight, and not one that goes via Sydney! Try to get a window seat for the spectacular views as you fly over the Outback.

If you take the early flight, you can be in Uluru by around 9am, which gives you the whole day to take in the enormity of this fabulous monolith. Take the shuttle from Ayers Rock Resort (which is the only place to stay, but offers many accommodations choices) to the Rock. If you decide to climb Uluru (remembering that the Aboriginal traditional owners would prefer you didn't), make sure you don't do it at the hottest time of day. A climb will take you between 2 and 4 hours, depending on your fitness. An alternative is to join Anangu Tours for a walk around it; one of the best is the late-afternoon Kuniya walk, which concludes with watching sunset over Uluru -- an unforgettable sight. Spend some time in the impressive and interesting Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Centre near the base of Uluru. And after doing all that in a day, you'll be ready for a quiet dinner at whatever hotel you've chosen.

Day 8: Exploring Uluru

Sunrise is one of the magic times at Uluru, so make the effort to get up early on Day 8. This is also a great time to do the 9.6km (6-mile) Base Walk circumnavigating Uluru, which takes 2 to 3 hours. There are a range of other ways to experience Uluru, including camel rides, Harley-Davidson tours, and helicopter joy-flights, but walking up close to the Rock beats them all, in my opinion.

You will also have time today to head to Kata Tjuta (also called The Olgas) where you will see there is much more to the Red Centre than just one Rock. Kata Tjuta is about 48km (30 miles) west of Uluru, but plenty of tours go there if you do not have your own wheels.

End your day in the desert with the Sounds of Silence dinner, run by Ayers Rock Resort. Sip champagne as the sun sets over Uluru, to the eerie music of the didgeridoo, then tuck into kangaroo, barramundi, and other native foods. But it's not the food you're here for -- it's the silence and the stars. A short stargazing session with an astronomer ends a memorable evening.

Day 9: Uluru to Kings Canyon

Hire a 4WD and tackle the long Outback drive from Uluru to Alice Springs, stopping for a night at Kings Canyon. It is 306km (190 miles) from Uluru to Kings Canyon (also known as Watarrka National Park), which offers another unbeatable look at Outback Australia. You can spend the afternoon walking up the side of the canyon and around the rim. It is very steep, and will take you around 4 hours. A gentler walk is the short and shady canyon floor walk. Stay overnight at Kings Canyon Resort.

Day 10: Kings Canyon to Alice Springs

Get an early start for Alice Springs, and take the unpaved but interesting Mereenie Loop Road, which will take you through the Glen Helen Gorge or the historic Hermannsburg mission settlement. Whichever road you take, the scenery is like nowhere else in Australia. You will probably spend most of the day driving to Alice, making a few stops along the way.

On arrival check into a hotel and head out to one of the local restaurants, several of which offer sophisticated versions of "bush tucker" including kangaroo, emu, and crocodile dishes.

Day 11: Alice Springs

If you can stand another early start, take a dawn balloon flight over the desert, usually followed by a champagne breakfast. If you don't head back to bed immediately for a few hours catch-up sleep, there are plenty of attractions to discover, including the Alice Springs Desert Park for a look at some unusual Australian creatures, the School of the Air, and the Royal Flying Doctor Service base. In the afternoon, take a half-day tour with an Aboriginal guide at the Aboriginal Art & Culture Centre. Alternatively, visit the Alice Springs Telegraph Station historical reserve set in an oasis just outside town for a look at early settler life. Finish the day with a sunset camel ride down the dry Todd River bed and have dinner at the camel farm.

Day 12: Alice Springs to Sydney

Direct flights from Alice Springs to Sydney leave in the early afternoon, so you have all morning to explore more of the town and perhaps buy some Aboriginal art (this is one of the best places to get it).

On arrival in Sydney after an almost 3-hour flight, book into your hotel and spend the night discovering some of the city's nightlife.

Day 13: A day at Bondi Beach

For sands of a different kind to those you've experienced in recent days, take the bus to Sydney's most famous beach, Bondi, and spend it lazing on the sand or -- in summer, at least -- taking a dip in the surf. Take the Bondi Explorer bus from Circular Quay, which gives you a choice of harborside bays and coastal beaches, or take the train to Bondi Junction and then a bus to the beach. The scenic cliff-top walk to Bronte Beach is worth doing, or you can continue farther to Coogee.

Day 14: Sydney

Your final day in Australia can be spent on last-minute shopping and seeing those Sydney sights that you haven't had time for so far. Cap it all off with a slap-up seafood dinner somewhere with a fantastic view of the Harbour Bridge.

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