Hi , Australia is a beautiful but very large place.

With our currency not go ATM you will get about 30%more for yiur dollar ,bonus

It is very safe to travel on your own. Air BnB rooms are widely available in city's and holiday towns a great way to live like a local.

Maybe do hostels also as you get to meet up with other travellers.

I would combine maybe a bus pass, flying we have great budget airlines, Jetstar, Tiger and Virgin all safe and all great service. Book ahead for great savings .

I would suggest plan out must sees and start from there,

1. You can get a great taste of Australia in 2 weeks doing the City, Rock, Reef combination (Sydney, Uluru, Cairns/Port Douglas). Of course, if your budget allows for more time, that's even better. Just don't try to cram too much into too short of a time. A good rule of thumb is 3 destinations for 2 weeks, 4 - 5 destinations for 3 weeks, etc. And remember that every change of destination is going to subtract at least 1/2 day of sightseeing from your itinerary.

2. Yes

3. As an American citizen, you will need to obtain the aforementioned Electronic Travel Authority (ETA) from the website of the Australian Government's Department of Immigration and Border Protection (www.border.gov.au) While the ETA itself is free, there is a AUD 20.00 processing fee.

4. Yes, those are options, but I would look at hostels in order to meet other like-minded travelers that you might want to sightsee and/or socialize with. Check www.HostelWorld.com for recommendations and reviews. You can also book through that website or directly with the hostel.

5. Most of the distances you are likely to travel will be too far to travel by car. So budget for a lot of air travel. Having a car is neither necessary nor recommended in large cities such as Sydney or Melbourne. Having a car in places such as Uluru and Cairns/Port Douglas is often recommended, but you can also visit these places without renting a car.

We recently returns from AUS in Sept 2015.

It is much safer than Dallas, TX; we didn't have any concerns, even during the night in SYD & Cairns.

When you o to the AUS Govt site for the ETA, it usually takes just minutes to get your confirmation. Once confirmed it is electronically attached to your passport.

We used AirBnB in Cairns and really liked the place we chose.

We never rented a car in Cairns: went on a Daintree/Cape Tribulation tour/walked to boat terminal for GBR Snorkeling/ walked to Cairns Central train station for Scenic Railway to Cairns & then rode the SkyRail back, with a bus transfer back to our accommodations in Cairns.

WE used Jet Star for travel between SYD and Cairns.

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