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Best Time of Year to Visit Australia

Explore > Travel Planning Articles > Best Time of Year to Visit Australia

Date published:
2023-05-07


Ayers Rock, also known as Uluru
Ayers Rock, photo courtesy Pete Edgeler on Flickr.


Michael Cottam  

About the author, Michael Cottam


Founder of Visual Itineraries, Michael lives in Bend, Oregon. He's an avid traveler, scuba diver, photographer, and a private pilot, and also the founder of Bright Yonder, which offers marketing tools to travel agents. He's been to Fiji, Thailand, Vietnam, Seychelles, Kenya, France, England, New Zealand, Jamaica, Belize, Costa Rica, Turks & Caicos, British Virgin Islands, Mexico, and the major islands in French Polynesia. He's been in Rotary for 23 years, currently on the board of the Greater Bend Rotary Club. Here's his LinkedIn and Pinterest.

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Australia is enormous, with a wide range of climates. The northern states are typically warm year-round, while the southern states have cooler winters. December to February is summer; March to May is autumn; June to August is winter; and September to November is spring.

TRAVEL SPECIAL: Coral Sands Resort


Coral Sands Resort 5 nights from 940 per person
Coral Sands ResortTrinity Beach is everyone's vision of a tropical paradise. A white sand cove marked by twin headlands and fringed with softly swaying coconut palms, it is a special beachside resort suburb situated 15 minutes from Cairns airport.

Close enough to the entertainment, shopping and city casino of Cairns, Trinity Beach is a favourite location to holiday on the Northern Beaches of Cairns due to its own shopping, restaurants, and its very attractive beachside ambience.

Coral Sands Beachfront Resort is your ideal holiday accommodation base at Trinity Beach, located right on the Esplanade facing the beach.

Here, guests enjoy the best of everything. The resort is proud of its immaculate standards, with the beautiful gardens and cleanliness of this property consistently attracting comments from visitors.
Learn more about Coral Sands Resort

42 apartments
Weekly housekeeping
On the beach
Restaurant and bar/lounge
Outdoor pool
Terrace
Air conditioning
Garden
Front-desk safe
Self-serve laundry
Multilingual staff
Picnic area





Typical airfares from LAX to Sydney, Australia




Airfares vary by season, but also day of week, and are definitely affected by holidays. The chart above shows the typical minimum and maximum fares for a economy class ticket from Los Angeles (LAX) to Sydney (SYD), by month.

 
TRAVEL SPECIAL: Cairns Harbor Lights


Cairns Harbor Lights 5 nights from 630 per person
Cairns Harbor LightsCairns Harbour Lights is a luxurious Cairns waterfront hotel offering the ideal Cairns Esplanade accommodation.

Managed by Mirvac Hotels and Resorts, Cairns Harbour Lights offer a unique property combining spacious, serviced, self-contained apartments and modern hotel.

Whether you are an adventurous family, honeymoon couple or jet-setting corporate this Cairns hotel is ideally located for all your needs.

Our spacious and contemporary Cairns apartments have fantastic views of either Cairns Harbour or Parklands. Choose from studio, one or two bedroom apartments or penthouse accommodation.

Learn more about Cairns Harbor Lights

Daily housekeeping
Marina
Outdoor pool
Fitness center
Sauna
Self parking
Room service
Babysitting
UNESCO Sustainable Property
Terrace
24-hour front desk
Air conditioning





Best time of year to go to different parts of Australia



The famous Sydney Opera House
Photo courtesy Jon Haase.


Sydney, in New South Wales, is in Australia's temperate zone. The Great Dividing Range is a major climate factor, as it creates 4 distinct zones: the coastal strip, the highlands, the Western Slopes and the flat countryside to the west.

Sydney typically sees about 340 sunny days a year, with humidity in summer around 65%.

Pictured above is the famous Sydney Opera House.

Cairns, in Queensland, is pretty tropical--summers are hot and humid, and winters are dry and mild.

Along the coast, you can get cyclones from November through May.

Cairns is one of the places from which you can access the Great Barrier Reef, pictured at right.

Ayers Rock, seen at the top of this page, is in the Northern Territory (which isn't actually the northernmost part of Australia--that's referred to as the "Top End"), has a distinctly different climate, with a wet season running from October to April and a dry season May to September. In winter, nighttime temperatures can fall below freezing; in the summer, daytime temperatures can approach 100F, with cool, dry nights.

 

The Great Barrier Reef

Photo courtesy ynwa2005 on Flickr.

Barossa Valley, wine country northeast of Adelaide
Photo courtesy Amanda Slater on Flickr.
 

Adelaide, in South Australia, has mild, wet winters (averaging about 60F) and hot, dry summers (averaging 84F).

June is the wettest month, but still averages only a little over 3 inches of rain. In the summer, it's not uncommon to have months with no rain.

At left is Jacob's Creek vineyard in the Barossa Valley, one of the important wine regions of Australia.


Melbourne, in Victoria, has a reputation for changeable weather, but generally the climate is temperate with warm summers (averaging 77F), mild spring and fall seasons, and cool winters (averaging 57F).

Pictured are the limestone formations known as the Twelve Apostles, located on the Great Ocean Road about 100 miles west of Melbourne.

Perth, in Western Australia, the rainfall is greatest from May to September. The hottest month is February, averaging 88F; winter temperatures average about 65F. A cooling breeze known as "The Fremantle Doctor" blows in from the sea to keep the city comfortable.

  The Twelve Apostles, about 100 miles west of Melbourne
Photo courtesy Rich Mulvaney on Flickr.

Tasmania, the island southeast of the main continent, the climate is mild and temperate. With no part of the island more than about 75 miles from the water, the ocean has a big effect on the climate. Because it's much farther from the equator than the rest of Australia, the seasons are more distinct. January and February are pretty dry, with temperatures averaging about 70F.

See the Australia tourism website for a detailed description of the seasons in Australia.


TRAVEL SPECIAL: Rendezvous Hotel Melbourne


Rendezvous Hotel Melbourne 5 nights from 1,015 per person
Rendezvous Hotel MelbourneRendezvous Hotel Melbourne is one of the few historic and grand hotels in Australia. Built in 1913 as the Commercial Travellers Club, this upscale heritage listed hotel has been meticulously restored to retain the feel and style of the early 1900's, while at the same time providing you with leading 21st century technology and facilities.

Located in the heart of the city overlooking the Yarra River, you can walk to world class shopping, famous theatres, major sporting venues, premier entertainment, restaurants, Crown Casino, Melbourne Exhibition and Convention Centre and the equally historic Flinders Street Railway Station.

Rendezvous Hotel Melbourne is distinguished by its excellent service, historic significance, elegance and traditional style and is a perfect base, whether you are visiting for a short city break, a leisurely weekend or a business trip.

Winner of Australian Hotels Association Victoria State Awards for Excellence 2010 Superior Accommodation Hotel of the Year
Learn more about Rendezvous Hotel Melbourne

Built in 1913, this heritage-listed hotel is located on Flinders Street overlooking the Yarra River and many of Melbourne's top attractions within easy reach, including Flinders Street Station just 3 minutes away.





 



Storms in Australia

In Cairns, on the coast of Queensland, tropical cyclones can occur sometimes between November and May. Around Alice Springs and Ayers Rock, you can see thunderstorms, hail and dust storms in the spring months. In Western Australia, tropical cyclones can occur between November and April--most commonly though in January and February.




TRAVEL SPECIAL: Oaks Goldsbrough Apartments


Oaks Goldsbrough Apartments 5 nights from 720 per person
Oaks Goldsbrough ApartmentsOaks Goldsbrough Apartments, offer central Sydney accommodation in an architecturally renovated historic landmark building. Situated in the hub of Darling Harbour and combining the charm and elegance of the 1800's, with all the modern amenities for your business or leisure stay.

With a magnificent neo-classical facade, original tallow wood floors and exposed ironbark columns featured throughout the hotel, as well as views from many of the rooms over the skyline of Sydney and one of its major attractions, Darling Harbour, Oaks Goldsbrough Apartments stands out.

Located ideally for conference and event guests, Oaks Goldsbrough combines superior facilities and impeccable service of a luxury hotel with the privacy and spaciousness of self-contained apartments.

Oaks Goldsbrough provides one and two bedroom fully self contained apartments and comfortable studios with full kitchen facilities, most with harbour views.

Guests can enjoy the sauna, pool area, spa and gym, and there are secretarial services including photocopying and facsimile, coffee shop, covered walkway to the Convention & Exhibition Centre and light rail and mono rail stations at door.
Learn more about Oaks Goldsbrough Apartments

205 smoke-free apartments
Daily housekeeping
Indoor pool
Fitness center
Sauna
Self parking
Spa tub
24-hour front desk
Air conditioning
Laundry service
Self-serve laundry
Conference space





Airfare and Resort Prices

High season is from about Christmas through the end of January, when children are on their summer holidays, and the popular resorts fill up with the locals. In the north, June through August is peak season as Australians from the southern areas travel north to escape winter. Typically the airlines will discount airfares April through June.

Water temperature, SCUBA diving and surfing in Australia

On the Great Barrier Reef, you can dive year-round, although the best conditions for diving are from late August to early December. For liveaboard diving, the best time to go is July through November. In the Coral Sea, the visibility is best in June and in September. If you want to see the Minke whales, they're seen mostly from June to August. From April through June, the whale sharks can be seen near Ningaloo, in Western Australia. Australia Tourism has an excellent reference on dive locations and regions here.




How we work with you to plan the perfect trip:

  • We'll talk with you to find out what you're looking for, what you like/don't like, etc.
  • We'll use our first-hand knowledge of the destination to pick out a handful of resorts we think you'd like
  • We'll create a custom mini website for you, with photos, videos, maps, etc. of the resorts we are recommending
  • We'll follow up with you to help you make your decision
  • We'll go to work with our suppliers to get you the best deal available on what you've decided on.
 

Map of all resorts in Australia



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