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Cruise liners dock at Sydney (www.sydneyports.com.au), Melbourne (www.portofmelbourne.com), Hobart (www.tasports.com.au), Perth (Port of Fremantle) (www.fremantleports.com.au), Adelaide (www.flindersports.com.au), Brisbane (www.portbris.com.au) and Darwin (www.darwinport.nt.gov.au).

It's often possible to arrange passage to Australia from the UK or other parts of Europe on cargo freighters, travelling via the Suez Canal. A journey of this type takes between 30 and 40 days. There are fairly low limits on the number of passengers that can be accommodated on a freighter – usually somewhere around 12 or 15. Meals are often taken with the ship officers, and passengers should (unsurprisingly) expect fewer leisure facilities than would be found on a standard cruise vessel. A good company to contact for further information on travelling by freighter is Strand Voyages in London (www.strandtravelltd.co.uk).

For those travellers already in Asia and looking to arrive by sea, spaces occasionally become available on freighters travelling from Singapore, Indonesia or Malaysia. These sailings are, however, infrequent and notoriously difficult to confirm in advance.

The season that draws the most cruise ships is the November to February period, which ties in with the Australian summer.