Holiday to Australia - beware

parcival

As a seasoned traveller to Oz I wanted to make people aware that a holiday to Australia has become a good deal more costly recently due to the exchange rate.

The last time we went (18 months ago) the rate was just over 2 dollars to the pound. This represented a drop from 2.2 a year previous. At a rate of 2 dollars we found things to be more expensive than in the UK.

Since then the rate has dropped further and is now at about 1.65. This means that everything you buy in Oz will now be considerably more expensive than in the UK.

I know that the pound is weak against most currencies but it is made worse because the Oz dollar is particularly strong. It is also a factor that most holidaymakers down under go for longer than a standard 2 week break.

Hopefully the pound will recover if we get a clear cut election result.

Cade_Foster

I went about 3 years ago and was about 2.30 to the £ , was planning to go back this year but are going elsewhere due to the exchange rate, as it would be more expensive than my budget would allow.

Hope we gain some ground soon.

blued

We're going in October for a month and are hoping the rate will pick up. It's one of these holidays where you need to book so far in advance that waiting for a decent rate could be pointless because it could fall/rise so much by the time you go.

littlereddevil

When I last went it was 2.4 to the pound. Now around 1.6 so I won't be going in the near future as i thought it was expensive before! I know all areas aren't expensive but Melbourne and Sydney certainly are.

*j*

It's the same for travel to the US, Canada, India, Thailand, China and HK, Aus and NZ... just about everywhere.

Sterling has fallen against almost everything. Another sign that our government is doing such a good job on the economy.

If it really is a "global problem", why is it that Sterling has fallen against most of the other currencies??

Don't mean to sound too pessimistic.

*j*

Safiya_2

I am trying very hard not to giggle...as an Australian who had to cop 30p to the Australian dollar when we travelled to the UK in 2000, I'm quite happy to see it almost doubled - stop your grumbles and imagine having to multiply everything by three every time you put your hand in your pocket. We realised restaurants were out of the question when a meal at McDonalds cost us $60. And I'm not even going to share the small argument that resulted when I refused to pay a cappucino-and-cake's-worth to simply PARK at Land's End (no, we didn't go - sanity prevailed).

Happy planning - hopefully less money in the budget just means more inventive travel planning. Our loos are free at least!

Saff

parcival

Parking in Oz is generally free as well (at least outside the big cities). That is certainly not the case in this dump.....

dmg24

parcival wrote: »

Parking in Oz is generally free as well (at least outside the big cities). That is certainly not the case in this dump.....

Are you suggesting we drive there?

If you don't like 'this dump', feel free to close the door on your way out.

Donnie

Safiya wrote: »

I am trying very hard not to giggle...

Happy planning - hopefully less money in the budget just means more inventive travel planning. Our loos are free at least!

Saff

Was most irritated when I realised how poor the exchange rate. But I agree with the statement in bold.

Once I got over how expensive the accommodation and how poor the standard of cooking(prepare to be mighty disappointed on entering a fresh fish shop and ordering fish & chips), we had a fantastic holiday.

There is little difference in the cost of poor, low quality accommodation and nice accommodation.
So we just upgraded our original accommodation ideas by an extra £20 or so per night and ended up with luxury accommodation at a reasonable.
Our 200 sq.m. beachside luxury apartment on the Gold Coast had a balcony big enough for full dining for six, and a couple of deck chairs. All for around £70 per night. So there are bargains to be found. Car hire(Toyota Corolla) including excess reimbursement was around £25 per day.
We made full use of the kitchen, as restaurants close relatively early and the quality was nothing special.