Top Tips to Save Money When Travelling in Australia

Around 6 million tourists visit Australia every year, a large amount considering the population of Aus is only 24 million. Australia is known to be an expensive country, even the locals would tell you this. However, if you practice healthy spending and saving habits in your daily life, there is no reason as to why you cannot do the same while visiting Australia. Plus, with the Australian dollar being weak in comparison to the US dollar among others, your foreign currency can stretch reasonably far in this country.

TRANSPORTATION

Summer in Aus is between December and February – typically the most expensive time to go and the most popular time to travel to places such as Melbourne and Sydney. To cut costs and have more to spend on experiences within the island you will more likely come across lower airfares during the other seasons.

Airpass – Qantas includes a roundtrip airfare to Australia as well as some domestic flights within the country. These Walkabout Air Passes vary in cost based on the season and the lengths you plan to fly within Australia.

Do not try to visit EVERYWHERE. Australia is gigantic – almost the size of the continental United States. You would not attempt to travel the whole of the U.S. in two weeks so do not even bother trying in Aus! After choosing the length of time you can travel the island, fix your sights on one or two regions and explore them thoroughly. This offers more relaxation, saves time and money on transportation. Plan your travel routes wisely!

Due to the size, Australia’s most efficient way to travel round is by air. Australia has various discount airlines that can provide affordably priced domestic flights, these include Jetstar, Regional Express (REX) and Tigerair.

Bus routes – With more time on your hands, or you are focusing on traveling on a small region, jumping on a bus to your next city can be your cheapest option. Greyhound Australia offers various discounts and specials – occasionally up to fifty percent off! Brisbane has a free service on several bus routes in the city center, whilst Perth offers free travel on buses and trains within a certain city zone. Sydney also offers several free shuttle buses. Best option if you are looking for extended travel.

ACCOMMODATION

Australia is very well set up for travelers, even those on a budget too. Cities such as Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide all have an abundance of accommodation options, however, I would highly recommend choosing to stay within a hostel.

I know what you are thinking, “A hostel? Basic room? Busy?” Well … unlike hostels in other parts of the world, Australian ones are a cut above the rest, and they’re not all dorm rooms either. The bigger they come, the cheaper the rooms and you can secure a decent private room for less than a dodgy budget hotel. This is a great way of meeting people on a similar budget as together you can save more money by sharing taxis and getting group bookings on excursions.

YHA Australia is an Australian hostel chain that is associated with Hostelling International (HI), the world’s largest backpacker accommodation network.

If you are planning on staying in a city for a longer duration, you can look into working at your hostel in exchange for free accommodation. This could be doing a couple hours of cleaning or laundry each morning, just ask!

Couchsurf – an online community for travel lovers. Many members will offer their couches or spare rooms up to traveler who are passing through their city – for free! The idea is to promote cultural exchange and authentic travel experiences.

DOING THINGS

There are lots of freebies available in Australia. They have a wealth of museums and attractions that do not charge any admission fees – like Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art and Brisbane’s Botanic Gardens.

Buy a discount card! IVenture Card can be purchased for popular tourist destinations like Sydney, Tasmania and Melbourne. These include free entry to many area attractions, as well as special offers and discounts, for a single price. If you are planning to do lots of sightseeing in a short space of time, then this card will save you a lot of money.

Look on Gumtree. People will offer ride shares, accommodation, work, discounted items on here. A whole range of money saving options will be widely available here to choose from to make your experience more fun, relaxing and affordable. It is also notable to buy a lot of your items before you go to Australia to travel from Gumtree. There are bound to be resellers from people who have items you might need for your travels!

With any excursions/experiences you know you 100% want to do it may be worth purchasing while you are in the U.K in good time so you can use the rest of the money you save for things you come across when out there.

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