Any one been to Australia?

[Glaucus]

Been invited to a wedding next year over there. Don't think he was expecting any of us to say yes. But wanted to go for ages and what a good excuse.
However flights for august seem to be around 1100 but most other months seems to be as low as 700. So any ideas how to get cheap flights, I've heard about split flights being cheaper but how do you do that.

Also any must dos thinking 3 or 4 weeks and weddings about 8hr drive from Perth.

[BBx]

Wow that seems v expensive :/ especially for August which will be cold!

What sort of things do you want to do?

Went back for a wedding in Melbourne last year - went to Melbourne and Sydney (bro lives in the blue mountain).

3-4 weeks is a great amount of time - depends on what you want to get out of it :)

That was my second trip to Oz... have also been to Brisbane and only spent 2 hours in Perth changing planes!

BB x

[Glaucus]

Ideally a bit of everything nightlife, Holliday, beach, culture, sites/outback.
Tbh not really sure what's out there, did you do any cool things which you would say are a must do.

[BBx]

Depends on where you want to go.

Never actually been to Perth but have been told there isn't much to do there really.

Sydney
Obvious sights to see: the Bridge, the Bridgeclimb (isn't actually as scary as it seems but quite expensive for what it is tbh), Royal Opera House (I went to see Carmen there tickets were about £60 back in 2003).

We stayed in the Vibe Hotel - there is a shuttle bus which gets you to Circular Quay (its one straight road and a 20-25min walk all flat so no problem) which is where the bridge, opera house and ferry to Taronga zoo and other attractions are.

The Rocks Market - think this is on a Monday

Blue mountains tour - cable car and train - I would suggest doing this

Going out: I think I went to a club called The Establishment. There is also The Cheers and 3 monkeys bars on Elizabeth Street (I think its that street)

Chinatown, Paddy's Market and the Fish Market are also top sightseeing things to do.

Get a train to Bondi and check it out - nice places to eat there :)

Darling harbour - loads of places to eat and drink there! It has evolved between my first and second trip and is lively and bustly :)

There is also the Casino (again)

Melbourne
Melbourne is one of those places that you would go to once - it was nice, but smaller than Sydney.

Went to the Crowne plaza - casino which was good fun

Also went up the observation tower - can't remember what it was called.

We also went to Phillip Island where there is loads to do on there - one of which is a family run animal park - Maru Wildlife park http://www.visitphillipisland.com/search_results_full.php?id=98&productCategory=Family%20Activities&productName=Maru%20Koala%20and%20Fauna%20Park

We went to the chocolate factory which was also good fun :)

You can also see the penguins walk out of the ocean and go to their homes - this is a big attraction on Philip Island.

Hire a car and drive on the Great Ocean Road - apparently its brilliant - but we ran out of time.

Luna Park in St kilda is worth a look too - old skool funfair.

We visited ramsey st too!

Brisbane:
My only memory of Brissy was driving a robin reliant to the Lone Pine Sanctuary. In New South Wales you can't hold koalas there because they are slightly different and their bones are more brittle - in Queensland you can, which is why we made the trip!

We also went to the Gold Coast where there are some theme parks - we went to Movieworld because my friend was too chicken to go to Dreamworld which looked awesome!

Hope this helps :)

BB x

[Mark]

Spent a month out there. Would love to do again.

Try looking at one-night stopovers (usually Singapore or Bangkok) to see if that helps with the cost. The plane will refuel there en-route anyway so you're not adding any extra mileage (though obviously you are adding extra hotel costs). This is probably what is being referred to by 'split flights'. 28 hours each way is a bit of a drag!

Perth is the wrong side of the country for most of the touristy bits. Perth is far to the west and the tourists tend to head south (Sydney/Melbourne/Adelaide) and east (Gold Coast/Cairns). If you want to do the touristy bits you might want to look at a round-trip including an internal flight (driving is possible but an order of magnitude bigger than almost anything you'd do in the UK).

Sydney - Mei has things pretty well covered. Public transport was fantastic but it was the year after the Olympics so may have gone downhill in the last 10 years. Ferries are highly recommended (I got a multi-day ticket and made plenty of use of it). Obviously if you're into cricket then the SCG is a must-do.

Melbourne - not been

Adelaide - only really worth it en-route to somewhere else (which is what I did).

Uluru/Ayers Rock. It's quite some rock (over 9 km around the base - I've walked all of it!) Can be climbed but it's quite the challenge apparently. Only problem is it's pretty much bang in the middle of the country (so lots of distance away from anywhere).

Cairns - almost into Tropical Rainforest climate so looks very different to much of Australia. If you're there, do go visit the rainforest. And of course, the great barrier reef.

Finally, check out the AAT Kings tours. Obviously you can only go where they go, but it saves driving. Did a 15-day tour right up the middle with them. :)

[BBx]

Perth has nice beaches... so I heard.

Our flights were £974 and that was Booking in Jan for travel in April - so quite late. We also flew into Melbourne, MEL > SYD and SYD to LHR so was more expensive.

As Mark said you probably could look into the the East Coast trip (have never done it) but Whitsundays, Fraser Island and Great Barrier reef - look them up.

We flew Quantas/BA on the new A380 = it was lush! :D

As mark said you will have to refuel or transit at Malaysia/Singapore/Dubai depending on the airline.

BB x

[Mark]

Yes, east coast! Fixed! :o

PS - Qantas. :)

[Will]

About 10 years ago I spent about 3 weeks there, but only really remember a little of it. Spent most of my time in NSW. BBx has much more up to date info!

[BBx]

http://www.australia.com/campaigns/nothinglikeaustralia/campaignpage-emirates-uk.htm?channel=online-media&tacampaign=emirates-coop-uk&campaign=ta-ek-online-oct-2010&publisher=facebook&website=facebook&placement=homepage-geotargeting&adunit=homepageadunit-lon

From a FB ad - Emirate fly to Perth you might want to check out.

Otherwise:

Singapore Airlines, Malaysian Airlines, Qantas.

BB x

[Glaucus]

Cheers guys gives me a lot to look at and search when I get home and can get on proper internet.

[Pumpkinstew]

I lived in Perth for about 6 weeks and was in Oz for around 8 months in total.
If you're still looking for a bit of advice let me know. The West of Australia is every bit as good as the East in my opinion but with none of the 'iconic' attractions of the Red Centre and East Coast. That also means there's less tourists.

You said the wedding was 8 hours drive from Perth but which direction?

[LeperousDust]

Haven't checked it out myself, but the aussie next to me suggests www.airasia.com for connections to KL or maybe flying straight from london price depending. It's how they all manage to get over here, so it can't be that bad for getting back either... :p

[BBx]

haven't been on Air Asia, but I have heard that its the RyanAir of aisan long haul. Not in the attitude or downright rudeness, but in the fact that everything is stripped back. (its REALLY cheap!)

If you go, you will have to pay extra for food, entertainment (have often think that DS/DVD player/book/sleep is often enough anyway) but all things you usually take for granted on a long haul flight you will have to pay for.

Have been meaning to check it out, but haven't had the opportunity yet. I don't think missing those things will bother me that much as I have done the trip so many times. But if you haven't been long haul much, you might want the little 'luxuries'.

Especially as this is a 20 - 24hr journey.

BB x

[Glaucus]

N long haul, but cheaper the better. Have books, phone, laptop anyway.

I still can't find any cheap flights though.

[BBx]

http://www.australia.com/campaigns/nothinglikeaustralia/campaignpage-emirates-uk.htm?channel=online-media&tacampaign=emirates-coop-uk&campaign=ta-ek-online-oct-2010&publisher=facebook&website=facebook&placement=homepage-geotargeting&adunit=homepageadunit-lon

From a FB ad - Emirate fly to Perth you might want to check out.

Otherwise:

Singapore Airlines, Malaysian Airlines, Qantas.

BB x

Did you have a look at the link above?

Best to get a return to Perth and if you want to travel around - its cheap enough to get Virgin Blue flights out there when you get out there.

What dates u going? You might have to wait till nearer the time for prices to come down - have you checked Air Asia?

BB x

[Glaucus]

Yeah those offers are only available to end of june unfortunately. Think you might be right, it may just be a bit early for any offers.

Wedding is 6th of august, other than that totally flexible on flight dates.

[Glaucus]

YAY so happy :D

Booked it, or at least some of it.

Thai airlines depart 30/7/11 return 26/08/11. (£1,116.93)

arrival day in perth, then 3 day tour http://www.adventuretours.com.au/3-day-albany-margaret-river-south-west-tour/

then a few days in Freemantle, then a few days in here. http://www.lakesideholidayapartments.com.au/

Not sure what after that, looking at Alice springs/darwin and possibly Cairns.

[Pumpkinstew]

Heard a lot of good things about the Kakadu, but never went myself.
August is the middle of the dry season in the North but early Spring below the tropics so you might encouinter a bit of wind and rain elsewhere.

If you dive there are some great night dives under the Busselton Jetty and and also some really good wreck dives from Busselton and Albany. (HMAS Perth and Swan I think)

If you're feeling brave there used to be a bus trip that went from Perth to Alice overland. I think it was about 5 days with visits to Ulura nd Kata Tjuta included. I did the reverse 'express' trip which was 2.5 days.

[Glaucus]

Any idea who that bus trip is through or where to find info?

What sort of costs is diving and can anyone do it?

[Pumpkinstew]

A quick google only turned up out of date pages. I'll try and dig out my journal and see if I can find the name of the company that was running the tour back in 2001.
It's probably cheaper and easier just to visit a backpacker travel agent when you get to Perth though.
I turned up a few tours that went North out of Perth up to Ningaloo Reef to Broom to the outback and then to Darwin. Darwin to Alice is then straight down the highway by Greyhound or an internal flight. Maybe that would suit you better?

Diving. It's not cheap.
If you can swim and don't have severe ashthma then just about anyone can qualify for an open water PADI licence.
You can probably go on a shallow dive without a licence but you might as well be snorkelling.

[Glaucus]

I turned up a few tours that went North out of Perth up to Ningaloo Reef to Broom to the outback and then to Darwin. Darwin to Alice is then straight down the highway by Greyhound or an internal flight. Maybe that would suit you better?

That sounds epic, what are these tours like, is there plenty of young backpackers on them. Travelling on my own for most of it, so want to meet some cool people to hang out with.

[Pumpkinstew]

http://www.adventuretours.com.au/21-day-perth-to-darwin-tour-package/

http://www.ozbackpackertours.com.au/tours/tao.cgi?ct=tours&md=second&id=116

http://www.travelforever.com.au/tours.php

It's normally pretty clear from the website/brochure (and price!) whether the tour is aimed at the backpacking crowd or the older more refined traveller.

Western Australia is definitely the road least travelled in terms of tourists, so there may not be a massive choice of operators. You could always talk to your driver on the first trip to the SW out of Perth. Failing that there are travel agents in Perth that just cater to the backpackers and most hostels also have a travel agency in reception.

My experience of Uluru and Alice Springs was that getting there was more memorable than visiting the park. The viewing areas are normally filled with about 20 coaches and the local aboriginees are more interested in emptying your wallet than passing on any folklore.

[Pumpkinstew]

I've just checked and the website I cobbled together in 2002 is still running :D

WA pics are here (http://pumpkinstew.tripod.com/OZWebsite/ozindex-page5.html) if you fancy a squiz.

[Glaucus]

Where's the best place to get the visa from? Or are they all the same?

[Pumpkinstew]

Used to be the Australian Embassy.

Seems like it still is:
http://www.uk.embassy.gov.au/lhlh/visitor.html

I'm assuming you want the three month tourist one.

Here we go. Online application and it seems to be free. :)
http://www.immi.gov.au/e_visa/evisitor.htm

[Glaucus]

Thanks, I googled it and there are loads of companies you can apply through.

[Glaucus]

Visa granted.
Right guys. This is a toughy, is there anyway to take a suit and keep it in reasonable shape, I'm a bit stumped on what to do. I won't have time to hire one between getting there and the wedding. As I'm doing a coach tour thingy the first week. So it's going to be in a rucksack for a week before I need it.

Also is there anything you would take for backpacking which you would say is a must, other than the usual Holliday stuff.

Also anyone know a cheaper version of the http://www.jackson-sports.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=7778&PartnerID=23&utm_source=google&utm_medium=shopping&utm_campaign=Google-Shopping-UK which has zip away shoulder straps, so don't have to muck around with odd bag rubbish at the airport.

[Fayshun]

This is a toughy, is there anyway to take a suit and keep it in reasonable shape,

Fold the left shouder inside out into the right shoulder and roll the trousers up inside the shoulders. Fold bottom of jacket to the top. And before your wear it, stick it on hanger in a bathroom with the shower on hot to steam the creases out.

[Mark]

Anything that goes in the hold will get chucked around by the equipment and the handlers, whether or not it has zip-away straps, so:

Obviously, a proper suit carrier taken as hand luggage will be your safest bet, but I assume you want to avoid that.
Rolling clothes instead of folding them will often keep them in better shape. Haven't tried the above suggestion but it might work.
If the suit does have to go in the backpack, get a lightweight inner bag (preferably just big enough) to keep it clean, dry and separate from anything else.
Would you have access to an iron (or steamy shower) to sort mishaps out?

[Glaucus]

Yeah will be at a hotel so iron shouldn't be a problem.

The zip thing is to zip away the straps. As usually if you have straps the bag can't be put throughough the usual luggage route at the airport and I don't really want to gaffe about, taking it to the special luggage area.
Basically on that rucksack there's a pouch which zips over all the shoulder straps, so it becomes a normal bag.

[Pumpkinstew]

Hmmm, I've always taken a backpack with me and never had any problems checking it in. Just tie any loose straps up as neat as you can and the airlines seem happy enough.
The newer kind of bacpaks with a side zip which unfold are way easier to pack than the old stuff it in the top design

My top tip is to pack the sleeping bag in the ruck on the way out and then remove it and strap it to the outside. That way you shouldn't ever have trouble cramming everything in and you have a bit of space for souvenirs too :)

Don't worry too much about packing. Anything you forget you can buy over there and probably cheaper at that.

Take a close look at the wording of your travel insurance. Most of them consider any kind of physical activity (such as trekking, surfing etc) as 'Venture sports' and won't cover you if you get injured.
I ended up purchasing a new policy in Australia which was far more comprehensive and cheaper and getting a refund on the other policy. ;D
Also quite a few are putting disclaimers for travel disruption caused by industrial action, which is increasingly likely these days.

We were in a traffic accident in Canada fairly recently and the difference in the service the Aussies on the bus received from their insurance companies compared to the Brits was unbelievable.

[LeperousDust]

Don't worry about backpacks on airlines really, i've very rarely had trouble, with KLM of all people. If you really want to make sure your bag is checked in normally and dont want to buy a zip away bag, you get hold bags which ar essentially big zipped tuck away containers without zips or pockets designed to fully encase a backpack. NO airline will complain about these. Personally myself i save the room, pull my rain cover over my bag, tie it tight and tie any straps away, then tie the main to shoulder straps together into one big handle. As i said it rarely get rejected :)

[Glaucus]

I got a fancy rucksack anyway, as it has a detachable day sack, which makes it very easy to carry both. Got this one
IZ6IBzY4eUY
Did want the 70+15 one, but it had wheels on it, who wants wheels.

Still can't decide on camera though, it's doing my head in I get put of by the reviews, then find a review I like but all the good ones are £250, but only want to spend £150ish, but then the reviews are brilliant. Probably just being to fussy.

[Pumpkinstew]

So how was your trip?

[Glaucus]

Absolutely ***** amazing.
Australia is such a nice country or at least the west side.
So friendly, clean and crime free, especially anti social behaviour.
Absolutely fell in love with snorkelling.
And backpacking tours are awesome, stunning way to do a Holliday on your own. Meat some great people and have an absolute blast.

http://img507.imageshack.us/img507/1592/1321310282402.jpg
http://img341.imageshack.us/img341/5803/1321310312261.jpg
http://img694.imageshack.us/img694/7586/1321310344192.jpg
http://img545.imageshack.us/img545/4885/1321310402477.jpg
http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/7158/1321310429542.jpg
http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/1397/1321310457809.jpg

However it was insanely expensive £7 a pint £3 for a 600ml bottle of coke, £15+ for burger and chips at a pub.
Public transport in Perth however is amazing and stupidly cheap and large.
Went 80km south of Perth for the wedding on a day ticket which was about £4.

The backpackers tour was Perth to Brooke which is most of the west coast and stopped at the important places.
Was not impressed at all with money Mia and felt sorry for the dolphins and didn't enjoy the experience at all.
Karajini national park was absolutely amazing, wish I was fitter, would love to go back and do the level 6+ gorges, which require abseiling, canning and the like.
Broome was a nice beach town with a party atmosphere and was a great place to get messy after several days in the outback.
Pinnacles was nice to see, but pretty boring.
Coral beach was spectacular, sunset picture.
Ningaloo reef was stunning, so much sea life (close up picture of fish)

At the end I went to rottnest island for a week on my own, dirt cheap accommodation. Again snorkelling was amazing and teaming with sea life. Stick your head under the water and you'll see fish straight away. The ray? Pic and the quokka pic (so qute)

Perth was a lovely place, was amazed how popular small breweries are in Australia and little creatures was a popular one in Freemantle, went there three times in first week. Don't go to Scaraborough it's where all the chavs go. Only stayed their one night and it was pants.
Freemantle is a lovely place and hillarys harbours is posh and nice to go one evening. North ridge won for me amazing multiculturalism and entertainment. Big tv all year round in one little corner park. It's the diverse, young hippie area.

However if I was doing long flights again 20+ hours I would have a stop over. 11hr flight was fine but then another 9-10hr flight afterwards was a killer and on the way back 9hrs in the airport. I would also spend the extra and fly with Quantas. Thai airlines is cheap for a reason, but it should be more than £150 less.

[Pumpkinstew]

:thumbsup:
Great pictures! And glad you had a good time.
I'm guessing you probably ran into the more adventurous breed of travellers looking to get off the beaten track out west. The backpacker buses on the East coast have a very different clientele.
And now I'm jealous 'cause those are all the bits I didn't see.

Oh, and that looks like a horseshoe ray to me.

[Glaucus]

It was the usual adventure buses things just on the west side, most people seem to go east sided.

This was the trip I did.
http://www.adventuretours.com.au/western-australia/perth-safari-0

However it was only me and two drivers on the way back and you don't do anything interesting, so we did it in one go about 30hrs driving. If I had the money I would of altered my plans and stayed up in Broome from a few days before flying back.
You should go do west side, it's a great place and vibe, although I want to go do central and east side at some point.

Good time though and recommend it.

Also saw this beast absolutely massive, unfortunately this snorkelling site was cloudy.
http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/6563/1321392200487.jpg

Can see its tail here, just(bottom right ish). leaf type shape.
http://img192.imageshack.us/img192/552/1321392285033.jpg

They called it bushed tailed something, but I can't find anything on google. It was at lease human size if not bigger.

[kaiowas]

EDIT - n/m didn't realise it was an old thread...

[Will]

Cool pics! Sounds like you had an amazing time. Would love to go back there, and I really wanna see NZ too!