For as long as I can remember Australia and the Great Barrier Reef have been at the top of my bucket list. I knew when we moved to South Korea, that Australia would be one of my top priority trips while here. Initially, I planned we’d spend two weeks traveling throughout 2-3 major spots in Australia. However, our friends found a 16-day cruise from Holland America that hit several spots in Australia, the Great Barrier Reef, Indonesia, and Singapore for a really great price.

Prior to this cruise, I had only been on one weekend cruise to the Bahamas and honestly wasn’t sure how I would feel about being on a ship for so long. I love traveling, but my idea of a vacation is to explore as much as I can in an area; I want to find all of the best local spots, enjoy meals in pretty restaurants, and watch the sunset by the water every night. So the idea of being on a ship with a very limited timeframe in each location (and very few that stayed till sunset) made me a bit unsure if it was for me. However, the cruise turned out to be a huge success that allowed us to see more places than we could have in that timeframe/budget, and also narrowed down spots we’d like to go back to in the future to spend more time.

Below is the itinerary from our cruise with recommendations of how to best maximize your time in port:

Day 1: Depart Sydney

No trip to Australia is complete without a visit to Sydney, and I was so excited to start our trip off in this beautiful city. If you’re able to, I recommend trying to arrive a few days early to check out some popular landmarks before the cruise. We flew in 4 days early and spent time in Bondi Beach and Sydney Harbor which gave us just enough time to hit the main spots before we left.

Day 2: At Sea

Day 3: Moreton Island

Moreton Island was actually a last minute change, due to rising covid cases at the original port destination. Just off the coast of Brisbane, this pretty island features the famous Tangalooma wrecks, wild dolphins, sand dunes, whale watching, and more. There are also plenty of excursion options you can book with the resort on island such as a helicopter tour, ATV rides, and snorkeling, to name a few.

Although the weather was a bit gloomy during our visit, the island was very beautiful and reminded me of the Caribbean. The colorful wooden villas and palm trees make for a great photo backdrop, and on a sunny day the water is a beautiful turquoise color.

Day 4: At Sea

Day 5: Airlie Beach, Whitsundays

This was the destination I was most excited about seeing, and also unfortunately the shortest port visit on our cruise. Our itinerary only gave us the morning to explore, so we stayed local in Airlie Beach. Airlie Beach is a beautiful island that is known as the gateway to the Whitsunday Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. There are plenty of cafes & restaurants, a local market, and a calm beach that would be great for families.

If you have more time to explore, I would highly recommend taking a tour to the famous Whitehaven Beach or taking a helicopter ride over the Great Barrier Reef . We’ll definitely be taking a trip back to the Whitsundays in the future.

Day 6: Cairns

Cairns is a beautiful city in Northern Queensland that has plenty to offer for a full day of adventures. We opted to take a day trip to Fitzroy Island. Just a 45-min boat ride from Cairns, this island (and National Park) is made up of lush rainforest, coral beaches, and large boulders that reminded me of Seychelles. The island has one resort, with a restaurant, dive shop, and restrooms available. This was a highlight of the entire trip, so I definitely recommend a day trip to Fitzroy.

Cairns is also the only place in the World where two World Heritage sites meet, the Daintree Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef. To visit this spot, just look for a day tour to the Daintree Rainforest and Cape Tribulation.

Some other great options in Cairns are Green Island, Port Douglas, Palm Cove, and the Kuranda Skyrail.

Days 7-9: At Sea

We passed through the Great Barrier Reef and I was honestly shocked with how much we were able to see from the ship. You’ll want to spend the days lounging on your balcony or a pool deck so you can check out patches of turquoise water, sea turtles, dolphins, and more.

Day 10: Darwin

The final cruise stop in Australia was to the capital city of the Northern Territory, Darwin. When I pictured Darwin, I pictured being in the “outback” and expected to see kangaroos and crocodiles out and about. However, we saw neither of these. As it turns out, kangaroos prefer the Southern parts of Australia, as the Northern Territory is HOT, and we thankfully never got close enough to the waters edge to encounter a wild croc.

With the time spent in Darwin, I would recommend visiting one of the nearby National Parks if you have time, OR check out one of the jumping croc river boat tours and then grab lunch at the beautiful Darwin waterfront area near the ship port.

Day 11: At Sea

Day 12: Komodo Island

Komodo Island has been on my radar for awhile and I was ecstatic to see it was included in this cruise. However, this was the one port that required a scheduled excursion in order to leave the ship. The options for the day were very limited and honestly didn’t sound appealing to me, as my husband wanted to see the Komodo dragons and I wanted to swim at a pink beach. Luckily the ship allowed guests to book independent tours as well, and my husband found us a tour that did both (and for a much better price).

Our tour was through Top Komodo Tours, and offered us a guided walk through Komodo Island to see the dragons, a traditional wooden-boat ride with a delicious Indonesian lunch, and an hour at a beautiful beach (with snorkel gear provided). I will mention, the beach was advertised as a pink beach, and while the wet sand did have a slight pink tint, this is not the famous pink beach from Instagram. If you’re hoping to see that pink beach, you’ll need to book a tour to Padar Island. It’s a bit further away and would require a fast boat, and I’m not fully sure if there would be time to see both the dragons and that island during the timeframe provided.

Day 13: Lombok

Lombok is an island I've just recently started to hear more about; it’s an island just east of Bali that has started to see an uptick in tourism as some people search for a less-crowded alternative to Bali. While close in proximity, the two islands are actually quite different in terms of culture, with Bali being predominately Hindu and Lombok being mostly Muslim. While it’s tourism is still growing, there are less accommodations and restaurants available than Bali, however there are plenty of beautiful areas to visit.

We joined our friends on a private boat tour of the Southern Gilli Islands. However, if we were to go back I think I would opt to see some of the areas on Lombok itself. Some great options would be the Tiu Kelep waterfall, the pink Tangsi Beach, see the water buffalo that roam Torok Beach, visit the second tallest volcano in Indonesia (Mt Rinjani), or swim in the turquise waters at Tanjung Aan Beach.

Day 14: Bali

Bali is one of my favorite places I’ve visited and I was so happy that it was on our itinerary for this trip. I envisioned spending the day in Uluwatu at a fun beach club or the beautiful Bingin Beach. Unfortunately though, we didn’t have the greatest weather this day, and with rainclouds over Uluwatu, we opted to grab lunch and check out the local shops in Canggu.

If you’re here for one day, I’d recommend skipping the cruise excursions and instead hire a private driver to take you to either a top-rated beach club in Uluwatu or Canggu, the Monkey Forest in Ubud, or check out the local shops and Instagram-famous cafes in Seminyak and Canggu.

For more recommendations, check out my 8-Day Bali Itinerary for the best places we visited over the Summer.

Days 15-16: At Sea

Day 17: Arrive in Singapore

The cruise disembarked in Singapore which is another popular city I was excited to explore. If you’re able to, I highly recommend staying at least 2 days in order to see the main attractions in the city. We decided to splurge on one night at Marina Bay Sands, which was such a great experience and one of the best views in the city. The famous infinity pool is for hotel guests only, but if the hotel stay is a bit out of budget, you could also visit one of the rooftop restaurants for a drink or meal to still capture that same view of the city.

Some other must-see spots to add to your itinerary are Gardens by the Bay and the Cloud Forest (at MBS), Emerald Hill, Chinatown, Arab Street, Raffles Hotel, and of the popular food stall areas like Lau Pa Sat.

For more Australia and Indonesia content and tips, check out my Instagram and TikTok.

xoxo