Brisbane, Melbourne & Sydney. All advice needed!

Hi guys

I am going to Brisbane, Melbourne & Sydney in May/June this year. First and foremost, what are the best ways of getting from and to the airport? I have early flights.

Healthcare, I have my insurance but do I need to be registered with a healthcare provider before I arrive?

I am after loads of advice on getting around e.g., buses, trains, ferries etc, mingling with the locals and making the most of my few days I have! My first day in each City I want to take it easy and try and get my bearings!

Any suggestions on routes to take, how the transport system works, do I need travel cards? Is it best to have cash or cards? etc etc. I also hope I haven't picked anywhere too badly located!!

I don't want to look like a ridiculous tourist as I am travelling alone (so excited!). Any good restaurants, cafe's etc? I want to try and mingle with the Aussies and not spend all my time meeting other tourists (sounds stupid I know!!).

ALL advice will be greatly appreciated!

I start in Brisbane so I am allowing for a lot of jet lag so I am not planning on going too crazy here!

I am based on Turbot Street so I am wanting to spend a day walking/cruising the river, botanical gardens etc

Another day heading to the Gold Coast - What is the easiest, scenic, quickest way to get there?

Melbourne, I am based Southbank:

Day in the city, Eureka tower...

St Kilda

Brighton Beach

Considering heading to Ramsey Street for a quick visit.

Great Ocean Road

Sydney, I am on Riley Street:

Day in the city/Harbour

Bondi - Bondi to Bronte walk

Manly - Manly to Curl Curl walk.

Want to also go across to the Olympic Park as I am a huge Tahs fan so would be good to go and see the ground whilst I am there.

Thank you in advance

The train is the easiest and quickest way to get to the Gold Coast, can catch this from Roma St right near Turbot St.

I'd sign up to a couple of organised day trips to do Great Ocean Road (or time permitting do a 2 day trip) and Olympic Park Sydney. Both of those options will provide pick up and drop off from/to central locations near where you are staying.

The other bits are either walking distance (Brisbane), or accessible public transport options (e.g. tram to St Kilda).

Thank you!

Do I need travel cards or can I use cash and ride as and when? I'm from quite a small city in England hence the dumb questions! :biglaugh:

Thank you!

Do I need travel cards or can I use cash and ride as and when? I'm from quite a small city in England hence the dumb questions! :biglaugh:

In Brisbane you can't use cash and ride. You either have to pre-purchase a ticket or use a GO card which can be purchased and pre-loaded (much like the Oyster card we had in London). A GO card provides substantially discounted travel and walk-on/walk-off convenience on buses, trains and the River Cat (which is an absolute must to travel on when in Brisbane for the most scenic way to get around).

You can buy tickets with cash on the river cat in Brisbane. The tickets come in 2 hour blocks - you'll likely need more than one of these, and it is slightly more expensive, However if you buy a Go card and never use it beyond this trip again that will work out more again as you have to buy the card, preload etc. Potentially everywhere else you have listed you can walk to in Brisbane very easily provided you are fit and healthy - not big distances.

You'll need a Myki to get around in Melbourne, too, which is another pre-loaded card. If you are only staying in the CBD, the trams are all free, but this won't apply if you want to go to St Kilda or Brighton. I think there are bus tours out to Ramsey Street, if you want to do the neighbours thing. You should be able to book one of those. The only other way to get out there would probably be taxi or Über.

You can buy tickets with cash on the river cat in Brisbane. The tickets come in 2 hour blocks - you'll likely need more than one of these, and it is slightly more expensive, However if you buy a Go card and never use it beyond this trip again that will work out more again as you have to buy the card, preload etc. Potentially everywhere else you have listed you can walk to in Brisbane very easily provided you are fit and healthy - not big distances.

I should have said that you can't do cash and ride on buses and trains. Agree with this post if you are only in Brisbane for a couple of days the GO card will not be worth it as the cost will exceed discounts. And walking Brisbane is a good option particularly as the weather is much more conducive when you are going to be here.

Get an Opal card in Sydney for public transport. Use for trains, buses and ferries.

If you go to Olympic Park, a ferry from the city on the Parramatta River Ferry is a nice way to get there.

The various tours operators who do the GOR will also offer trips to Ramssy Street. There's a tour operator office at the backpackers on the corner of Flinders and Spencer, just across from Southbank. A couple of friends did the GOR last week and had a great day out with a good mix of folk on the bus.

Brighton beach in May/June will possibly be quite cool and also empty; so if it's a nice winter day you'll get some good photos of the multicoloured beach boxes.

City circle tourist tram will take you around the city block and dock lands and it also gives a running commentary. All other regular trams are free within the city block which is good for hopping on and off short trips.

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Healthcare, I have my insurance but do I need to be registered with a healthcare provider before I arrive?

 

You don't register with a medical practice in Oz (even residents). You are quite free to visit any GP's surgery - provided they haven't closed their books to new patients because they are so busy. But I don't think you'll have problems in the central city areas where you will be staying.

Thank you all so much!! This is so useful. I'm guessing I can buy these from stations?

There is no train or tram to Melbourne Airport it's either bus or taxi..

I lived in Brighton and the beach isn't that good. The beach boxes are pretty but so what? Williamstown is much nicer (moved from Brighton to Willy soon after arriving), lovely sea front walks and there's quite a few nice restaurants and cafes there. st Kilda is worth a trip, so is Fitzroy, Brunswick St (I hope Bimbos still do $4 pizzas...the best I've ever had). Geelong is quite pretty too.

as others have said you can walk around most places in the CBD. Definitely go to the botanic gardens, Southbank, Roma St park is nice but it's up a VERY steep hill. The city cats and riverwalk are fun. When my parents visited they got a city cat and bus to the koala sanctuary

Hi Claire

In Sydney you will need an Opal card for transport, it works like Oyster in London (same system) if you've ever used that - buy a card at any newsagent (pretty much) and top it up either in similar shops or at the machines that are now being rolled out across the stations. Works on buses, ferries and trains and is just no fuss

The Tahs play all their games these days at Allianz rather than ANZ stadium. This is actually a good thing, because it means no need to schlep out to Olympic Park which is a bit of a pain to get there and quite dull when you do, unless there's a game on. Allianz is at Moore Park, which has the added benefit of being a REALLY easy walk from pretty much anywhere on Riley St.

Cafes, bars, restaurants etc - you have selected where you are staying perfectly. Depending where on Riley St you are, you are either in Darlinghurst (north end) or Surry Hills (south end). Either suburb is rammed with great cafes, pubs and restaurants. In Darlo look around the junction of Bourke St/Oxford St, on Victoria St and for Italian Stanley St which is "Little Italy"; Surry Hills, try around Crown St, Foveaux St, Devonshire St.

You can also walk to Central or Museum stations from Riley St depending which end you're at. Dead easy

The Spit to Manly walk (or sections of it) is way better than walking over to Curl Curl IMO, which is a bit suburban. Or catch the Manly ferry and do a circular walk up around North Head - views from here are stunning

Think you're doing most of the right things. Don't miss the Rocks historic area in the city centre or the botanic gardens/domain behind the Opera House (also easily walkable from Riley St)

I should have said that you can't do cash and ride on buses and trains. Agree with this post if you are only in Brisbane for a couple of days the GO card will not be worth it as the cost will exceed discounts. And walking Brisbane is a good option particularly as the weather is much more conducive when you are going to be here.

Definitely get a Go Card. Get it at the airport, then you can use it on the airtrain into the city (and back to the airport) and it is also valid on the trains to the Gold Coast, and the buses from Gold Coast stations to the beachfront. Those long trips (airport and Gold Coast) make it worthwhile on their own).

eg airport to Surfers $29.50 offpeak Go card, $39.30 without a Go Card

http://translink.com.au/travel-information

Hi Claire

 

In Sydney you will need an Opal card for transport, it works like Oyster in London (same system) if you've ever used that - buy a card at any newsagent (pretty much) and top it up either in similar shops or at the machines that are now being rolled out across the stations. Works on buses, ferries and trains and is just no fuss

 

The Tahs play all their games these days at Allianz rather than ANZ stadium. This is actually a good thing, because it means no need to schlep out to Olympic Park which is a bit of a pain to get there and quite dull when you do, unless there's a game on. Allianz is at Moore Park, which has the added benefit of being a REALLY easy walk from pretty much anywhere on Riley St.

 

Cafes, bars, restaurants etc - you have selected where you are staying perfectly. Depending where on Riley St you are, you are either in Darlinghurst (north end) or Surry Hills (south end). Either suburb is rammed with great cafes, pubs and restaurants. In Darlo look around the junction of Bourke St/Oxford St, on Victoria St and for Italian Stanley St which is "Little Italy"; Surry Hills, try around Crown St, Foveaux St, Devonshire St.

 

You can also walk to Central or Museum stations from Riley St depending which end you're at. Dead easy

 

The Spit to Manly walk (or sections of it) is way better than walking over to Curl Curl IMO, which is a bit suburban. Or catch the Manly ferry and do a circular walk up around North Head - views from here are stunning

 

Think you're doing most of the right things. Don't miss the Rocks historic area in the city centre or the botanic gardens/domain behind the Opera House (also easily walkable from Riley St)

Thank you!!! This is the best! Pretty bummed I won't be catching a Tah's game whilst i'm over !

Definitely get a Go Card. Get it at the airport, then you can use it on the airtrain into the city (and back to the airport) and it is also valid on the trains to the Gold Coast, and the buses from Gold Coast stations to the beachfront. Those long trips (airport and Gold Coast) make it worthwhile on their own).

 

eg airport to Surfers $29.50 offpeak Go card, $39.30 without a Go Card

 

http://translink.com.au/travel-information

Thank you for that

I should have said that you can't do cash and ride on buses and trains. Agree with this post if you are only in Brisbane for a couple of days the GO card will not be worth it as the cost will exceed discounts. And walking Brisbane is a good option particularly as the weather is much more conducive when you are going to be here.

Just a note that you can still do cash on most buses and trains in Brisbane. It just costs a shedload more. I think the brisbane city council buses that don't accept cash are the city gliders (routes 60 & 61) and buses that have a P (for prepaid) in front of the route number (mostly commuter peak hour buses).

In Brisbane I would vote for getting a GoCard as so much cheaper.

For example, if you jump on the citycat in off-peak and do a 3 zone full river tour it will cost you $6.70 in cash or $3.72 using a GoCard. Also a lot simpler to jump on and off public transport with your card than holding up queues paying cash.

Fares here: http://translink.com.au/tickets-and-fares/fares-and-zones/current-fares

You have to pay a $10 deposit when buying a GoCard. You get this back when you refund your GoCard at the end of the your trip.

To purchase a GoCard:

"go card can be purchased from a range of locations, including:

• go card online
• any 7-Eleven store and selected retailers
  
• many Queensland Rail, G:link and busway stations
  
• onboard CityCat ferries."
  

To refund a GoCard:

Go to this website and change the "I want to" drop down to "Get a refund". This will show you the retailers around the city centre that refund a GoCard.

You can also get a GoCard refund at the Domestic and International trains stations.

As mentioned you can get into Brisbane from the domestic or international terminal on the AirTrain. It is a privately run service so does not use normal public transport fares though you can use a GoCard to pay the fare. Cheaper than a taxi for a single traveller. Normal hotel bus transfers would be available as well. If staying on Turbot you would be getting off at either Central or Roma St stations.

Booking online can save you money: https://airtrain.com.au

If staying in south east qld for 3 days or more you might want to consider a SEQ Explorer Card. See: http://shop.translink.com.au/epages/shop.sf/en_AU/?ObjectPath=/Shops/shop/Categories/SEEQ

For three days it is $79 for unlimited travel on public transport across the whole of south east queensland transport network (brisbane, gold coast, sunshine coast; around 250km north to south) + it includes also 2 trips on the private AirTrain.

From what you said you individually you may be paying:

- Airtrain from International terminal to Brisbane City pre-booked online (return) = $31.35

- Brisbane city cat ferries x 4 trips ~ $12

- Public Tranport Bus to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary (return) = $9

- Brisbane to Surfers Paradise, Gold Coast (return) = $24

- Tram around Gold Coast x 2 trips ~ $5

Total: $81

The bonus is you can go crazy and catch city cats all over the place in Brisbane (which are great), plus all train , buses etc - the downside is you have obviously committed to those trips so alternatively you could just load up your GoCard as you go.

Thank you everyone! This has been so useful. Not long until I arrive!! YAY