Break the journey in Singapore, then work your way down the Queensland coast — reef, rainforest and the Whitsundays.
The trip in a nutshell
The smartest way to fly to Australia is to stop halfway, and Singapore is the best place on Earth to do it: two nights at lyf Funan right in the civic district, long enough for Gardens by the Bay, hawker centre dinners and a proper sleep before the second leg.
Then it's tropical north Queensland at a genuinely relaxed pace. You get two separate Great Barrier Reef experiences — the outer reef from Cairns with the Kuranda railway and Skyrail thrown in, and a second full-day reef cruise from Hamilton Island through the Whitsundays. In between: the Daintree, the oldest rainforest on the planet, and Cape Tribulation where it runs straight into the sea.
Four nights on Hamilton Island at the Reef View Hotel is the part people don't expect at this price.
“Everything is arranged. Every flight, every transfer, every hotel, every big-ticket experience. All you have to do is turn up at the airport.”
lyf Funan Singapore (2 nights, B&B) · Park Regis City Quays Cairns (3+1 nights) · Ramada Resort by Wyndham Port Douglas (3 nights) · Reef View Hotel, Hamilton Island (4 nights, B&B) · Adina Brisbane (2 nights)
Live availability on Travelodeal's site · low deposit · ABTA & ATOL protected
Our signature calculation
The brochure tells you what this trip costs to book. This is what it costs to take — the price plus every meal the package doesn't cover, per person.
A reasonable gap. Budget for the meals and there should be no nasty surprises.
Meals priced at mid-range Australian rates: breakfast £14, lunch £20, dinner £38. We don't count the 2 days you spend in the air. How we calculate it · See every trip ranked
vs £251/day on the brochure · +21%
The moments you'll remember
Two outer reef sites, the Skyrail cableway over the canopy and the Kuranda scenic railway through Barron Gorge.
A crocodile-spotting cruise on the Daintree River, a walk through UNESCO-listed rainforest and a swim in a rainforest swimming hole.
A second, completely different reef day — semi-submersible, underwater observatory and a huge sun deck.
Reef View Hotel, in the middle of the Whitsundays. Optional Heart Reef scenic flights if you want the photograph.
A civilised way to break a 20-hour journey, and a genuinely great city in its own right.
Four Mile Beach, the Sunday markets and the most relaxed base in tropical Queensland.
Along with all transfers, the internal flight and checked baggage.
Two nights on the river before the flight home — South Bank, the Story Bridge and a last flat white.
Currently £4,019 against a brochure price of £5,825.
Where you'll go
Every stop below is included — with all internal flights, transfers and ground travel arranged for you.
4 stops, with every internal flight and transfer between them arranged for you.
CairnsPort DouglasHamilton IslandBrisbane
Two nights on the way out — Gardens by the Bay, Marina Bay and the hawker centres, roughly halfway between London and Cairns.
Two nights on the way out — Gardens by the Bay, Marina Bay and the hawker centres, roughly halfway between London and Cairns.
Day by day
Tap any stage to open it. Meals included at each stage are marked in green.
Overnight flight from Heathrow, arriving into Singapore for a two-night stop at lyf Funan. Time for Gardens by the Bay and the Supertree light show, Marina Bay after dark and dinner at a hawker centre.
2 breakfastsOn to tropical north Queensland and Park Regis City Quays. Your two-day reef experience takes in two outer reef sites, the Skyrail Rainforest Cableway and the Kuranda Scenic Railway through the Barron Gorge.
3 breakfasts, lunchNorth to Port Douglas and Four Mile Beach. The full-day guided tour heads into the Daintree and Cape Tribulation — river cruise, crocodiles, a rainforest walk and a swim in crystal-clear water.
One night back at Park Regis before the flight south.
Four nights at the Reef View Hotel. A full-day Great Barrier Reef adventure cruise runs out through the islands to the outer reef, with a semi-submersible and underwater observatory. Scuba and Heart Reef helicopter flights can be added.
4 breakfasts, lunchTwo nights at the Adina in Brisbane — South Bank, the river and the West End — before your return flight from Brisbane to the UK.
Itinerary summarised from the operator's published programme and correct at the time of writing. Order of stages can vary by departure date — confirm the exact schedule for your date on the operator's site.
Photo tour
Photography from Wikimedia Commons contributors under Creative Commons licences — full credits here.
The detail
The best-structured multi-centre holiday we list. Breaking the flight in Singapore is the right call, the Queensland routing is logical rather than zig-zagging, and getting two completely different reef experiences plus four nights in the Whitsundays at this price is genuinely hard to beat.
Before you fly
On a 16-day trip departing from London Heathrow, parking is a serious line item — and a policy that caps single trips at 31 days would leave you uninsured for none of this one.
Not sure this is the one?
Here's how this compares with the other multi-centre holidays we rate. See all 20 holidays →
| Tour | Days | Australia | New Zealand | Cook Islands | From (pp) | True Cost / day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perth, Rottnest & Margaret River | 11 | ✓ | — | — | £3,339 | £351 | View |
| Sydney, Alice Springs & Melbourne | 9 | ✓ | — | — | £3,429 | £413 | View |
| Sydney, Brisbane, Whitsundays & Cairns | 15 | ✓ | — | — | £3,499 | £292 | View |
| Sydney, Uluru & Melbourne | 13 | ✓ | — | — | £3,639 | £320 | View |
| Australia Bucket List Adventure | 15 | ✓ | — | — | £3,849 | £308 | View |
| Singapore & Queensland multi-centre You're viewing this | 16 | ✓ | — | — | £4,019 | £304 | View |
| NZ South Island & Stewart Island | 16 | ✓ | ✓ | — | £5,879 | £420 | View |
| Ultimate East Coast Explorer | 21 | ✓ | — | — | £7,249 | £400 | View |
Before you book
No — and this is the main difference from an escorted tour. Flights, hotels, transfers and any named day tours are booked for you, but there is no group and no guide accompanying you between destinations. You have far more free time and rather more independence.
These operators publish a brochure price and sell at a discount on selected dates. The saving is real in the sense that it is what you pay, but treat the higher figure as a reference point rather than a price anyone was recently charged. Judge the trip on the price you would actually pay.
It means the operator books you into a property of the stated standard in that location, but does not name it in advance. It keeps the price down. If knowing your hotel matters to you, choose an itinerary where they are all named.
Departures run from October 2026 through to September 2028. Long-haul escorted tours of this length sell out early — the best-value departure dates and preferred room types typically go 9–12 months ahead, so it pays to secure your place sooner rather than later.
Return flights are included from your chosen UK airport. Regional departures are available on most dates, sometimes for a small supplement — you'll see the options for your date when you check availability.
Yes — this is a fully escorted small-group tour with a Travelsphere Holiday Director travelling with you throughout. They handle the logistics, the check-ins and the local know-how, so your job is simply to enjoy it. Groups are typically modest in size and overwhelmingly British.
British passport holders need an Australian ETA (Electronic Travel Authority) and an NZeTA for New Zealand where applicable — both are straightforward online applications. Your passport should have at least six months' validity remaining. Always check the latest FCDO and official government guidance before you travel.
Live availability, departure dates from your local airport and current offers are on the operator's booking page. Deposits are low, the balance isn't due until much later, and every booking is ABTA and ATOL protected.
Check dates & prices for Singapore, Cairns, Port Douglas, Hamilton Island & Brisbane →Keep looking
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