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QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA - THE RECIPE
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Percutian ke Australia
Date: 12th to 18th
August 2015
Duration: 6D7N
Type: Leisure backpacking
Airlines: Air Asia X
Cities: Gold Coast and Cairns,
Queensland and Byron Bay, New South Wales.
Warning! Long post ahead. It was
our dream to have a vacation in Australia. For me, I wanted to go to the Great
Barrier Reef! And so we have planned it!
1. FLIGHT TICKETS
We bought this ticket in August
2014 during Air Asia Free Seat Promotion. Itu
pun lambat sebab harga naik sikit. We manage to get our return flight to
Gold Coast at RM 861 per person. We add on some luggage, meals and select
seats. This is my first time long haul flight with Air Asia. 8 hours and 45
minutes.
2. INTERFLIGHT
I mentioned we are going to see
the Great Barrier Reef. After researching, there are many places you can see it
but flying to Cairns is the cheaper option. So we bought the tickets to Cairns
from Brisbane Airport using Jetstar. Initially we thought of going to
Whitsunday Island. Tapi masa tu mahal pulak
tiket. The southern tip of GBR is located at Bundaberg which is around 6-8
hours drive from Gold Coast. We did not want to drive to save time. The Jetstar
ticket to Cairns costs us AUD175 return for 2+ hours flight. Nampak dekat kan tapi Australia ni sebenarnya bear.
3. HOTEL
Since we went to Cairns, we have
to book 2 hotels. The first night we stayed in Cairns and we stayed in Gold
Coast the following nights
A. CAIRNS
– BELLEVUE MOTEL
I researched a
lot of options for Cairns. There is a lot of backpackers motel in Cairns
whether a female only or co-ed. Then I found this motel which scored high
review in TA. It is an old motel with basic amenities located near the harbor,
in front of the boardwalk. The staff are very friendly especially Vicki. They
treat us with utmost kindness during booking and until we left the premise! One
night in a quadruple private room with ensuite bathroom costs us AUD76. Cheap!
B. SURFER’S
PARADISE, GC – ARTIQUE SURFER’S PARADISE
At Gold Coast,
we decided to stay in a fully furnished apartment in Surfer’s Paradise. We
first want to choose Warringa but for some reason we had to choose this
Apartment. This is a modern apartment 200 m from the beach and close proximity
to the center. It has secured parking, complete kitchen and laundry for every
apartment. One night in a 2 Bedroom 2 Bathroom costs us AUD150. Warringa costs
us cheaper actually.
C. HOTEL
SECURITY DEPOSIT
This is very
IMPORTANT. Unlike in Europe or Malaysia, we rarely imposed this security
deposit. In Australia, it is mandatory. For our Apartment and I believed the
same for every other place, the security deposit is AUD200. You can pay it by
cash or you can charge by credit card. Both are refunded on you check out.
For my motel in
Cairns, the key deposit costs us AUD 10 per head. Also refunded at check out.
If you are on a budget constraint, do ask your hotel about the deposit amount.
4.
TRANSPORTATION/PARKING
A. CAR
We rented a 7
days deal from Europcar Australia since this is the cheapest deal for rental
outlets at the Airport. Our flight back was delayed at 9 p.m. So it is
important that we can return the car successfully. The cost to rent a Hyundai
i20 automatic for 7 days is AUD210.
GPS? We bring
our own GPS from Malaysia. Luckily Syima owns a GARMIN with Aussie and NZ map
pre-installed.Excess
Reduction Insurance? We opt to get rental insurance separately from TripCover.
It’s the only insurance that can cover other citizens visiting Australia. The
costs for this insurance is lower than Europcar.
Deposit? Nope,
there is no security deposit. They will pre-authorized your rental amount then
only charged it when you returned the car.
A friend of
mine who’s leaving for Melbourne in September rented out from Apex Australia.
It costs cheaper! And it includes insurance and GPS.
Driving hard?
Driving here is easy because it’s just the same as in Malaysia. But beware of
speed limits and traffic light camera. If you speed, the ticket cost AUD300.
Toll? Okay,
Australia has an electronic toll system. In your car there will be an
electronic device stuck on your windshield. There is no toll booth in
Australia. You will pass a toll bridge with sensors build – you can hear a beep
indicating a transaction being made. The toll amount will be charged to your
credit card. No worries, not as much as in Malaysia AUD3 from GC to Brisbane.
B.AIRPORT
TRANSFER
This one is
applicable for our stay in Cairns. There is an airport transfer shuttle counter
at Cairns Airport arrival hall. It costs us around AUD20 for return trip. It’s
door to door pickup meaning the drop and pick you up at your hotel lobby.
C.AIRPORT
PARKING
We drove
ourselves from Gold Coast to Brisbane Airport and we opt to park our car at the
Airport Parking. Sure, at first I thought this is bloody expensive to leave our
car overnight but we strike a discount deal. The airport parking for weekend
only costs us AUD49 for 2D2N. The parking is covered and fully secured. There
are other parking lot outside the airport but we choose this one. We book the
spot via Brisbane Airport website. Risau
sebab ni rental car. Buatnya kena curi ke.
D.PARKING
AT SURFER’S PARADISE
We rarely
drove while roaming around the city. The hotel is close enough we can walk. But
we have the experience of parking our car at the designated parking spot.
Regardless of what people say, I find parking in Surfer’s Paradise is easy to
find. We just have to pay the parking fee at the nearby machine just like in
Malaysia.
5.
DOCUMENTS
A. VISA
To visit
Australia, you will need a Visa. Yes, odd since Australia and Malaysia are both
a Commonwealth country. Well if you look at Australian Immigration website,
electronic visa for tourist or called ETA will costs you AUD 20.
In Malaysia,
we have an agent that only charge the ETA RM20 per person. Siapa tak nak murah. Save 3 kali ganda kot.Jadi apply la kat Miss
Intan. You have to provide your flight tickets, passport copy. You will
only pay after your visa is approved. It took us 24 hours to get our visa. Fast
eyh?
Ms Intan – eta.australia@yahoo.com
B. TRAVEL
INSURANCE
I always
recommend to purchase these. My insurance are still valid. Feeza and Syima
bough a one time travel insurance from AIA and Kurnia.
C. DRIVING
LICENSE
Yes, this time
I am the designated driver. Dulu pergi
Europe tak cukup umur nak drive. I applied my International Driving License
at UTC Sentul. What do you need? A picture with white background and photocopy
of IC. Both can be done at UTC. Owh and you have to change/renew your driving
license too. Cost? RM150 for 1 year.
6.EXCURSION
TICKETS
A.THEMEPARK
PASS
We bought ours
through online. We went to Movie World, Sea World so we bought the Annual Magic
Pass that costs us AUD 82.5. One entry pass for one themepark costs AUD99.
Better buy the pass.
For Currumbin
Wildlife Sanctuary, we bought our tickets at Groupon Austalia which only costs
us AUD20
B. GREAT
BARRIER REEF
After
surveying and recommendation from Vicki at Cairns, we opt for the snorkeling
tour that costs AUD110. The cheapest is AUD99 I guess. We got a 5% discount from
our hotel in Cairns.
7.FOOD
Please check
what you can and cannot bring in Australia. Basically you cannot bring dairy,
fresh vegetable, meat into Australia. I recommend you write down a list of
foods with its ingredients in case you are being questioned by the Customs. We
all bought pre-cooked meals and instant noodles. We were lucky the custom did
not do a thorough check on us. Also since we planned to cook, we bought our
groceries in Australia – quite cheap.
 |
| Example of our food and medicine list |
8. CLOTHING
We went in March
so it is Autumn. We expected rain so we bring raincoats. We bring a jacket
along if it gets windy. FYI, Gold Coast is not as cold as Sydney or Melbourne.
It’s quite tropic, especially in Cairns.
Next post: Australia - Gold Coast Day 1
Next post: Australia - Gold Coast Day 1