Wollongong is where the mountains meet the sea and we were all very excited to explore this beautiful coastline and picturesque escarpment. With the latest hits on repeat in the van and everyone dancing in their seats, we started the trip by heading north to Bald Hill, driving along the famous Sea Cliff Bridge and onto Symbio Wildlife Park. At Symbio, we were able to get up close to some of the most amazing animals from both Australia and around the world, such as the koalas, cheetahs, lemurs and meerkats, to name a few. One of the koalas even woke up to say Hello to our group of Trusted Travellers. Another highlight was the kangaroos eating right out of our hands – it was the most cute and fuzzy feeling.
Onto the hotel! Our accommodation was right across from the most popular beach in the Illawarra – North Gong. Our first breakfast was at the iconic Bathers Pavilion, with the waves lapping close by and the sand practically between our toes. After breaky, the day really called for a walk along Wollongong’s spectacular Blue Mile.
No Wollongong trip would be complete without visiting the famous Kiama Blowhole. We all waited with anticipation for the “whoosh” from one of the world’s biggest blowhole and did we get it. We travelled further south to beautiful and quaint Gerroa where we had lunch at the Gerroa Fisho Club and revelled in its million-dollar views.
On our third day, we headed to the mountains and went to the Illawarra Fly. The Fly is a 1.5km journey through beautiful rainforest with 500 metres of steel walkway nestled in the tree canopy, some 30 metres above the ground.
On our last day we got to mingle, socialise and have breakfast with the awesome, “behind the scenes” Trusted Travel Team. These are the fantastic staff that travellers get to chat and plan their holidays with on the phone but rarely get to sit down together and share holiday stories. It was a special moment as people who had spoken over the phone for years finally got to meet.
Our travels weren’t over yet. Breakfast was but we still had some adventuring on the agenda. Before lunch, we visited the Nan Tien Temple, the largest Buddhist Temple in the Southern Hemisphere. The Temple is a place to wander around and take in some stunning architecture, manicured gardens and peacefulness.
Our last lunch together was on the shores of Lake Illawarra with pelicans by our side and jet skiers putting on a water show for what felt like, just us.
We all thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful sightseeing of the Gong and we were beyond happy that we made new friends.
