Sounds amazing!!!! I hope you give us all the wonderful details.
I'm not sure I can add much to what other people have said about this
ABD, but to me there were several things that made doing this trip over Christmas special. First off, the weather was perfect! Even Tasmania was a balmy 62-66 which was warmer than expected. A lot of the activities we did were on my bucket list, so it was fun to be able to check off so many in one trip!
There are really no words to explain the Great Barrier Reef. The water was pretty choppy when we went, but it was nice to have our own marine biologist who got in the water with us and retrieved "planted" wildlife(mushroom coral, sea cucumbers, etc.) for us to touch. However, I think the submarine ride, again with our marine biologist, allowed us to really bask in the grandeur of the reef. Most people snorkeled, but some did scuba and we could see them swimming underneath us. They broke us into two groups so one group went first and then ate and the other group ate and then went snorkeling. The second group said that the first group, which I was in, had more time snorkeling. That was probably because it was the advanced group.
Surfing Bondi Beach on Christmas Eve was another highlight. The beach wasn't that crowded due to the holiday, but it was a lot of work fighting the waves to get to where the instructor was so you could get on the board. However, it was still a lot of fun and we even had some people who were able to stand up. I was able to get up on my knees, which I considered a great accomplishment, and everyone had fun cheering each other on.
Zip lining was another highlight for me. It was something I had always wanted to do and I'm glad I did it here. The zip line guides made it safe, fun, and helped us not think about how high up we were. The hardest part was lugging your equipment up the hill at the beginning and end of the course. They let you practice on a low platform before you went to the course, so that allowed those of us who had never done it before to feel comfortable prior to going up high in the trees.
I was really surprised by how much I liked Tasmania. We were pleasantly surprised when we got to Hobart to see that our hotel rooms faced the marina which happened to be the finish line for the Sydney Hobart Yacht race. Some families saw Commanche(USA) finish 1st in the race about 10/10:30pm(I fell asleep). However, I was up the next morning and saw Ragamuffin and Rambler finish the race. The Taste of Tasmania was also at the waterfront, so just about everyone went to that at some point and went to the marina to take pictures of the yachts as they finished the race. Hobart was also the first place where we actually had time to rest.
Of the things I did on my own, the Sydney Bridge Climb and staying for NYE were definite highlights. The Bridge Climb was surprisingly easy. I booked months ahead of time and did the 3 hour one and they stopped at regular intervals for you to admire the view and for the guide to take pictures of you. Midnight at the Oasis for NYE was the perfect viewing spot for the fireworks and I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend NYE!
I don't know if I'll ever get back to Australia, but I can say that ABD did a great job of planning this trip and ensuring that we saw the major things to see. The 15 hour plane ride from LAX to SYD was challenging and I'm not eager to repeat that anytime soon.
