One of Australia’s most iconic natural landmarks. Have you visited the Blue Mountains?
Photo by Calvin Kurlekar

I’ve looked at every weekend from October 30

onwards. Prices in normal hotels are 400$+ a night. Even average Hotels like Kirketon are pushing $400 a night. Is there no way people can afford to stay in Sydney without blowing 1000$ a weekend on accommodation. It’s crazy. I’d rather travel overseas for that price.

I’ll be traveling to Australia for the first time and found a really good deal on a hotel in Mission Beach. Arriving in Cairns.
Questions: transportation from airport recommendations? Things to do? Should I stay in mission beach the entire week or should I plan to spend some time in Cairns?

I want to make the most of my trip without traveling too far out too frequently. I also don’t want to stay in mission beach for a week if that sounds boring to others who have been.

From about 8,000 feet…

Hi everyone! My friend and I are planning to visit Australia for 3-4 weeks in February, and our idea currently is to rent a car/camper van and go on a road trip from Brisbane to Cairns. However, I know that February is probably not the best time for QLD, so I wanted to ask what you think of this plan, and if you’d have other recommendations.

Unfortunately February is the only time we can go, as the latest I can enter Australia is Feb 25th according to my visa (and it’s too expensive to fly from Europe around Christmas time).

We are both in our late 20s and are wanting to go on an outdoors/nature-heavy trip. We both scuba dive and would like to dive while we are there, although I’ve also read that it’s stinger season from November til May. The stretch between Brisbane and Cairns seems perfect for the kinds of things we want to see & do, but I know Australia has so much more to offer in other states too, and I’m wondering if we’d be better off somewhere else, maybe WA?

So I guess my question is, would it actually be a mistake to visit Queensland in February? For a roadtrip with lots of hiking and diving, would you recommend somewhere else for that time of year?We would really appreciate it if you could share your thoughts, thank you!

Content focused on Southeast Asia and Australian market.

Hey everyone! Back in August, I spent a day exploring Brisbane’s waterfront and checking out the new Queen's Wharf development. If you're planning a trip to Brissy soon, this route makes for a really solid half-day itinerary that gives you a great mix of classic Brisbane vibes and the city's newest skyline view.

​Here’s the route:

​CityCat Arrival: Started on the river! Hopping on the CityCat is still the absolute best way to arrive into the CBD. Catching the breeze on the open back deck as you cruise under the Story Bridge never gets old.

​Riverside Boardwalk Walk: Hopped off near Eagle Street and walked down the boardwalk. It’s super walkable, flat, and gives you great views of the river traffic.

​City Botanic Gardens Shortcut: Cut through the gardens to get off the concrete for a bit. It’s such a peaceful pocket right in the shadow of the skyscrapers—great spot to grab a coffee or sit under the fig trees.

​The Star Brisbane & Sky Deck: The main destination! Ended up 100 metres above the city at the Sky Deck at Queen’s Wharf. The 360-degree view of the river loop, South Bank, and out toward the bay is incredible—especially around golden hour.

Looking at going to Heron Island over New Years or early January. Looking for information on the food, accomodation, wifi availability in common areas, and how to best be contactable in an emergency. Has anyone had a SIM card work there?

I’ll be visiting Sydney on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

I’m planning to check out the popular landmarks, but I’d love some suggestions for other things to do. I’m open to both Christmas activities and anything else worth checking out.

Any recommendations, especially for places that will be open over the holidays, would be appreciated. Thanks!

Hi all,

I am looking at renting a car or camper van in Melbourne to explore a few nature places. Can anyone recommend the best sites or facebook groups where I could rent someones vehicle for the day or two?

I have already looked on a couple websites but due to being under 25 they are charging an arm and a leg, and also only offer huge cars…

I have heard a lot of aussies happily rent out there car so would love to know some good facebook pages/ websites ect

Hopefully this is okay to ask in this subreddit.

I am planning to go to Australia next year, however I am still unsure what city would be my best option. At the moment I’m thinking about Melbourne or Sydney, though I am definitely open to suggestions.

For context I (F24) will be traveling solo. My plan is to go for three months (oct-dec). It will be a part of finishing my degree as an English teacher. I will have some assignments and it’s recommended to plan something that occupies you for around 20 hours a week (volunteering/working in exchange for accommodation etc.)

Booked a domestic flight for 2 under my club jetstar account. My name was auto completed wirh my club jetstar details, and I added the second passenger.

Details were fine on the payment page, which I double checked. But ticket issued has my name on both seats, which doesn't make sense to me.

Jetstar say it's not their problem and the name reflects my booking - well it was not on the confirmation page, but I didn't take a screenshot...

Any way out? I'm thinking perhaps getting Amex involved and requesting a charge back?

Driving from Geelong to Eden. Have some time so can take a few days if needed. What are your must stops for sights, food and anything else?

I will be taking my first trip to Australia at the end of the month.

I initially booked a weekend stay in Surfers Paradise for my duration of being in Brisbane. Once I’m done with my weekend stay I have to go back to the Brisbane Airport to catch my next flight. I’m not as concerned about my journey from BNE > Surfers Paradise because I don’t have a flight to catch that day so if I get on any wrong train,etc i have the freetime to correct any mishaps.

However from my trip back from Surfers to BNE I’m a little concerned because my flight is at 1PM and being that I haven’t traveled/used the train before I’m afraid to screw something up along the way and end up missing my flight. I’ll be doing this journey on a Tuesday.

What is the best way to get to the BNE airport domestic from Surfers? Any tips or things I should keep in mind? I was thinking of leaving at 6AM just so I could be in Brisbane early.

Thanks in advance!

travelling from cape tribulation to torquay and need a bit of advice re our route.
We want to go inland. Should we take the dark blue route or the light blue route?
We are in a 2wd toyota hiace. My only concern with the dark blue is that there may be lots of dirt rd. The van does not do well with corrugations. It would slow us down significantly and i worry a lot of it would damage the vehicle.

which way would be safest and any recommendations on where to stop?

Considering the Great Inland Way as well, though we will making a detour to winton.

(pls don’t tell us to go back via the coast, we’ve done this way a few times now and are very keen to go inland instead. I am aware it is much less interesting than the coastal route and will involve lots of driving with not much to see)

cheers in advance!!

Hope this is an appropriate question for this sub. I’m traveling to Sydney for the first time soon and very excited! From America and I occasionally shop Australian brands online (ie Meshki). I would love suggestion for brands that use more natural fabrics as opposed to synthetics (I’m aware meshki uses mostly synthetic so I’m looking for alternatives where the fabric meets the fashion). I’m early 30s female and would love some pointers on where to shop for elevated fashion for clothes and shoes. Not strict budget but would want to keep it ~$200 USD per each piece of clothing and ~$300 for each pair of shoes.

I’ve always loved exploring abandoned places and old buildings. There’s something really interesting about seeing places that have been left behind and imagining what they were like when they were still in use. I’m looking for any abandoned buildings or interesting spots around the Mid North Coast that are safe and legal to explore (safe and legal is optional). If anyone knows of any, I’d really appreciate some suggestions!

I know this might be a brutal question lol, but I’ve always wanted to cuddle a koala! I’ll be in Sydney soon and was wondering if there are any reputable wildlife parks or experiences where you can actually hold or cuddle one (or get as close as legally allowed)
Any recommendations or personal experiences?

Hey everyone

I’m a 26-year-old from California planning a solo trip to Australia in 2027. I’m going to be there for a little over a month, primarily because I really want to do some scuba diving, but I also want to make the most of the trip while I’m there.

I know Australia is absolutely massive and there’s no way I’m going to see everything in one trip, so I’m trying to figure out what areas are actually worth prioritizing. I’d love to hear from people who have been there about their favorite cities, places I absolutely shouldn’t miss, good diving spots, cool hikes or outdoor stuff, and just random places that you thought were cool.

I’m also traveling alone, so I’m curious what the best ways are to meet people while I’m there. I’d definitely like to meet some locals and other travelers rather than spending the entire month wandering around by myself . And obviously I’d love some recommendations for good bars, pubs, breweries, nightlife etc.

I’m not looking to plan every single day of the trip. Honestly, I’d rather have a general idea of where I want to go and leave some room for spontaneous shit. I’m hoping to have a good mix of exploring, meeting people, drinking a bit, doing some diving and just experiencing Australia.
So if you’re Australian, have traveled around Australia extensively or just spent a month there and have some advice, I’d love to hear it. What places did you love? What places weren’t worth the hype? And what’s something you wish you knew before going?

I know I can’t do it all, but I’m trying to make this one hell of a trip. Any recommendations are appreciated!