Australia - Brisbane Help! Advice needed

1connect

My mate bu-ggered off to Brisbane Oz about a year ago, we have been saying we will go and visit, great but i'm on a hell of a budget , so I thought I would post asking for ways to save a fourtune on this holiday of a lifetime.

We are a family of 4 comprising of 2 adults & 2 kids aged 13 and 14
We are going for a month hopefully next August 2007
I want to spend about a week in the brisbane area with me mate and then 3 weeks seeing the rest of Oz, and I want suggestions on where to go and what to see, and stuff to avoid.
I want to get there in the absolute cheapest way possible flights or comination opf flights, I can add extra time onto the beggining and end of the hol for this, we had herd of flying to dubai then singapore then brisbane
but can go direct in 2 hops but which is cheapest, and what are the flight prices like in august ? or should i go some other time?
I want to stay on a shoestring budget, I was thinking something like YHA or their equivelent? or backpaking student type accom but a family room basis ? we would consider camping or similar.
Im gonna need car hire at some point, so tips on this would be great.
Also recommendations for eating (cheaply as poss) when out there.
Basically what im saying is I need to do it on 4 grand or less

So (im guessing here) per person thats say £550 a flight and £450 for 30 days accom which is equal to £15 a night each ! or £60 a night for the whole family, or even better less than this !!!!

Then I need to spend as little as poss whilst there too.

So the hypothetical budget then is
£1000 GBP each for a month thats $ 2363 AUD
and I need to work BACK for that !

So what do you recon - is it possible if so how - please share your knowlage if you have been there and done that.

thanks
1connect

Lucie_2

If you want cheap accomodation & a car, why not consider combining the two & going for a camper van for some or all of your trip?
Nearly everyone picks up in Sydney & drops off in Brisbane, so the company then have the expense of getting the vans back to Sydney. If you pick up in Brisbane & drive to Sydney they will often waive the one way fee because you're doing them a favour.
Googling campervan australia will come up with loads of options.

lozkate

We are staying at the Kingston Riverside Inn in Brisbane in December, it is costing just over £40 per night including breakfast for our family of 4.

The owner is English and has emailed me with lots of info - they seem really friendly!

http://www.budgetaccommodation.com.au/index.html

Hope it helps
Kate

blindman

Sorry to start on the negatives but lets be realistic here:eek:

but i'm on a hell of a budget

Going to Aus is never a BUDGET option

3 weeks seeing the rest of Oz

:rotfl:

You will not be able to do that, just pick some fairly close by city and go there. Otherwise you have to fly (more cost) or drive (longggggggggggg way)+ the cost of petrol in Aus is rising.

but can go direct in 2 hops but which is cheapest, and what are the flight prices like in august ? or should i go some other time?

Direct flights are usually cheapest as you don't have to pay airport tax at each stop.

Also the more times you stop the more money it costs for hotels\transfers food etc. and the more time you 'waste' by not being in Australia

August is one of the cheapest times to go, it's their winter.

want to stay on a shoestring budget, I was thinking something like YHA or their equivelent? or backpaking student type accom but a family room basis ? we would consider camping or similar.

Plenty of backpacker style places, though you'd have to research quality etc. Not sure how the family would take to this.

Cost of petrol and hire for campervan is a lot more than ordinary car so need to weigh up if its worth it.

Also slower and more difficult to park\drive into town etc.

IMHO
You don't want to spoil this trip by really penny pinching whilst you're there.
Unless your mate is coming back in 2007 I'd save up so you can afford a reasonable trip of about 5 weeks total.

Callisto

Staying at a youth hostel will work out cheaply. We joined the YHA when we got to Australia for 50 dollars each (but I think you can join in the UK before you go) and then it was about 25 dollars each per night to stay at the Brisbane City hostel. Prices vary between hostels and I think we paid double that to stay at one of the Sydney hostels. Also, being a member of the YHA entitles you to various discounts at attractions (they give you a little booklet with the discounts in). Most hostels have private family rooms, but some don't, so you would need to check in advance. Check out the link for more information: http://www.yha.com.au/hostels/index.cfm

The cheapest way of eating is to buy supplies from the supermarket and take sandwiches while you're out during the day and then cook in the hostel kitchen for the evening meal. There are also 'fast food' places like McDonalds etc if you want something cheap, but don't have time to prepare it yourself.

If you're going to be travelling up the East Coast from Brisbane, then I highly recommend that you go sailing in and around the Whitsunday Islands. Places to avoid would be Cairns (really touristy and overrated IMO).

Also, I would agree with the above post that you should stay as long as you can (we were there for six weeks - three weeks with relatives and three weeks travelling from Sydney - Cairns on a Greyhound bus). The long flight means you may possibly 'lose' a couple of days when you get there by being jet lagged and sleeping loads, so perhaps you could stay with your friend for a little longer to make up for this?

HTH

LesD

1connect wrote:

Basically what im saying is I need to do it on 4 grand or less

Good luck!

Amba_Gambla

In Australia, the hostels are better than many hotels over here, and much cheaper. I stayed in many that were comparable to Travelodge in this country for about a quarter of the price. Hostels in oz are big business.
Most of the hostels are open to anyone too. I was there backpacking, but there were families and family rooms too. Try looking at www.hostelz.com or www.hostels.com before you go.

The facilities were all fantastic (most weren't ensuite, but had very good facilities). Many of them had decent swimming pools etc. The nicest hostel was in the town centre in Cairns, cost me about £8 per night, and had a rooftop swimming pool where I sat one day, reading the DaVinci Code, supping beer and watching a huuuge storm roll in off the Pacific......

Cheap accommodation is no problem in Oz, but shop around....

shazrazmataz

As your kids are both over 12 they will have to pay an adults price for flying!

gijsanne

Check out https://www.hospitalityclub.org
stay for FREE!

Party_Animal

I'm staying at Tin Billies in Brisbane. Its a hostel but ensuite and sounds ok.

swizzle_2

August is winter in Oz, but it`s also peak summer hol period here, hence the airlines cotton on and charge peak rates. Sorry

If you are thinking of spending most of your time in Brisbane- but don`t want to stop with your friends for all the time, what about house sitting?

Sometimes you can even get paid to do it,get your mate to look in paper?

Have a look on travelsupermarket, put dates in for this August this year, will give you an idea of how much you will have to pay for flights. Flight prices do not change much from year to year, Although prices on websites can change daily even hourly, put normally £10`s not hundreds.