lalapalooza

Sorry if this is a subject that has been exhausted elsewhere ...

Have a week in Kakadu Park in June and wonder which were the highlights of YOUR trip and what sights - in retrospect - would you have skipped?

Has anyone taken a boat tour of the East Alligator River and how does that compare to Yellow Water?

If you had to choose between the Jumping Croc Cruise on the Adelaide River (are there more than one?) and a tour of the Mary River, with the Corroborree Billabong / Couzens Lookout, which would you recommend?

Expect Two Mile and Four Mile Holes will be closed in mid June and can't find much information about the Red Lily, Bucket and Alligator Billabongs off of Arnhem Highway near South Alligator River - anybody camped at any of those sites?

What about Koolpin Gorge?

And last but not least, what's the most effective repellant for mozzies?

Thank You.

marg

We've done both the East Alligator River and Yellow Waters boat trips. Yellow Waters is run by the National Park service and goes from Cooinda. You should see lots of different birds and lots of crocodiles. The boat trip on the East Alligator River is run by a local aboriginal community and goes from near Ubirr Rock, about 30 minutes drive from Jabiru. The scenery isn't as nice as Yellow Waters, but you should see crocodiles. The guides will tell you about the aboriginal way of life. The tours are different and we enjoyed both. As they are not expensive, try to do both.
Make sure you see the rock art at Nourlangie Rock - really spectacular.
Personally, I wouldn't bother to do the jumping croc cruise - you'll see plenty of crocodiles in Kakadu and I'd rather see one swimming down the river there.
We've been to Kakadu twice in June and didn't have a problem with either mozzies or flies.

lalapalooza

Thank you marg - that was just what I wanted to know!

May I ask whether one needs to book the Yellow Water Billabong cruises in advance or would our family be able to just walk on?

Thanks once more!

marg

We've booked on arrival at Cooinda and got on a boat trip either the same day or the following morning but if you want to be sure, you could make your booking in advance from the tourist office in Darwin. The early morning tour is supposed to be the best.
Incidentally where are you staying? The accommodation and facilities at Jabiru is (in our opinion) better than Cooinda and only about 30 minutes drive away.

lalapalooza

Thanks again, marg!

We wanted to mix it up, spend some nights camping, interspersed with a night or two in a motel.

We had made reservations at the Kakadu Lodge Jabiru; figured it was situated close to Ubirr and Nourlangie.

But once we started looking more closely, we wondered if we ought instead to move closer to Cooinda.

Thankful to have your take on both!

Has anybody been to 2 or 4 mile holes and Alligator Beach? Wonder about driving time, road condition, scenery and camping ...?

Gratefully yours ...

marg

We've camped (with a caravan) at both Jabiru and Cooinda. The camping area at Cooinda was dusty and overgrown, the toilet block was open to day visitors and wasn't very clean. On the other hand, Kakadu Lodge and Caravan Park at Jabiru was excellent. Nice swimming pool, bar and restaurant, several toilet blocks with good clean facilities. Cooinda is only about 30 minutes from Jabiru so I would recommend basing yourself at Jabiru.
There are several national park camping grounds but you need to check at the park office as some may be closed at the time of your visit.
The bitumen roads within the park are all good; the unsealed roads depend on the weather conditions at the time.

lalapalooza

You're so helpful, marg, thanks again! There are so many things to look forward to in our upcoming trip to Australia, but I am especially excited about camping in Kakadu!