I need help from Australian friends

Well, this is probably the strangest question to be asked on this forum, but here goes… My parents are traveling to Australia sometime after the first of the year in observance of their 50th Wedding Aniversary. They will be traveling on a budget (of course). We’d like to be able to stay in touch with them somehow and figure that e-mail will probably be the preferred method. So, my dumb question is: Are there “Internet Cafe’s” available and fairly accessible in Australia where they could hook up and check/send messages? Are these places affordable? Also any suggestions on some things to see and do that are off the beaten path would be appreciated. They are looking into Military hotels (my father is retired from the US Air Force) or “Elder Hostels” for lodging. When we lived in Europe back in the early '70s, we used to love finding the “non-tourist” places to visit. I’d also like to have them take a flying trip over part of the outback in a small plane. If any of you know of any operators that provide these tours, I’d appreciate it. Thanks for any help! Best regards, Mark.

Mark, I haven’t been home for many years, but I would’ve thought that your question about there being any internet cafe’s funny. For instance; http://www.aussie.com.au/cgi-shl/foxweb.exe/pages/results As for places to visit, try searching the tourist boards of each of the states - they’ll be able to supply information. However, being a banana bender (from Queensland), I would undoubtedly suggest the Great Barrier Reef, the Gold Coast and especially Fraser Island (the largest sand island in the world - hire a four wheel drive and drive around it). http://www.queenslandholidays.com.au I’m sure your parents will thoroughly enjoy their visit. Hope this helps.

Mark, I haven’t been home for many years, but I would’ve thought that your question about there being any internet cafe’s funny. For instance; http://www.aussie.com.au/cgi-shl/foxweb.exe/pages/results As for places to visit, try searching the tourist boards of each of the states - they’ll be able to supply information. However, being a banana bender (from Queensland), I would undoubtedly suggest the Great Barrier Reef, the Gold Coast and especially Fraser Island (the largest sand island in the world - hire a four wheel drive and drive around it). http://www.queenslandholidays.com.au I’m sure your parents will thoroughly enjoy their visit. Hope this helps.

Hi Mark There are lots of internet cafe’s as well as hotels having internet access, airports etc. They usually will cost a $2 or $3 for 15 minutes (that is in Australian Dollars). If you try the link below you can get some information about the different states and areas within those states to visit. If you are driving it is easy to get out of the tourist type areas and drive to country towns or get into the outback. I’m sure there are lots of small plane flights over the outback, one of know of is flying over Uluru (formerly Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (formerly the Olgas). http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/australasia/australia/ Cheers Peter

Thanks for your responses!