Hi!
First of all, thank you for taking time to write these comments!
I have a lot of time for preparations, because in 2012, although we did consider buying a package tour to Australia/NZ, we finally abandonned this idea, and I have already made other plans: I do not think I have enough annual leave, let alone budget, to go to Australia in 2012. However I typically make plans a lot of time ahead (even several years), and final bookings I make up to 1 year ahead.
For a while, the only guide book I have is Lonely Planet. I have looked into it and it seems that they are concentrating too much on backpackers. I am an (obese) woman in my 40s and to put it straight, my fitness level is low, and also I don't enjoy anymore things like carrying a backpack or sleeping in dorms or a tent. Hiking, especially in mountains, is out of question. However I have no problems sightseeing European cities by public transport, transporting my suitcases by public transport, keeping with the group on typical package tours. I am travelling with my stepmum. She is 60 but more fit than me.
As for accomodation, we want a minimum of a room with private shower/wc. If staying in one place for a longer time, we try to have a holiday appartment - room+kitchenette+private bathroom. Nothing more is necessary - it can be a very basic place.
We do not have any specific interests - we would like to see the highlights and what is typical to Australia, and a mixture of things - I mean not "mountains only" or "nature only" or "cities only". The best holidays I have is when I can admire nice landscapes, see a bit of nature (Australia has some animals and plants distinct from any other continents - so in this case this would be definitely worth seeing), cities/monuments (but I do realize that there are no such things as old towns or middle-age royal palaces in Australia). I think it could be worth seeing Uluru and the Aboriginal culture (I mean a show and/or a museum).
I have noticed there are different specific fora, but before I dip into them, I first want to see if there are any companies that would "cover" all Australia (in the sense of "several places spread in all Australia"). If an American wants to see Europe in 2 weeks and considers using a package tour, he would not start from reading about Montenegro, Finland or Romania. The first step is to see if there are companies who showed us the selection ("London, Paris, Rome, Berlin and Moscow") and for how much. If none exist or are too expensive, the next step is to see which places to choose for a trip of a given length and within the given budget. Reading about these specific places is step 3.
I will have to choose the season. I usually like travelling when the weather is between about 18 and 25 centigrades during the day (around). I suffer if it is above 35. If lower than 18, not a big deal, just more clothes to put on. When I come to this point, I will just study Australia climate (mean temperatures in the places I plan to visit) on one of the weather websites.
Regarding the budget, well...The Polish company I mean, offers trips for at least 7500 US $ per person. This includes all flights and transport, accomodation, and I think guide services/entry tickets. Not all meals are included. The trip lasts 19 days and includes Australia and New Zealand. There are several travel offices but the prices are on about the same level. I just wonder if I can make it cheaper. With all trouble it involves it would need to be significantly cheaper, but I know no miracles can be expected. The cheapest flights Warsaw-Sydney (not direct) are about 1800 US $. Also, I am a frequent flyer (business trips - but usually domestic and in economy class; I am also collecting additional miles for hotels, using my credit card etc, so it might happen that within 1 year I have enough miles to cover at least 1 ticket (however, it does not mean it will be worth it, because I fly by Star Alliance and they have very expensive tickets to Australia. Of course we would prefer to be on the same flight with my mum). In other words, it may happen that I would be able to save some money on the flight from Europe to Australia, but it is not sure.
I would like to have a trip of 2 to 3 weeks. If there are no all-Oz tours or they are very expensive, then I would think about organizing everything myself, using two to four "starting points" for day trips, and I would calculate how much this would cost us (hotels, domestic flights, trips). My mum mentioned we could take a train within Oz, but I am afraid this would be too long and not as much fun as one can imagine.
Perhaps the end of all considerations will be that we just cannot afford this journey :-(. It would yet be a pity.
