How to travel to Australia on your own. Visa to Australia. How to get a visa when traveling with a child, as well as when traveling with one of the parents

INFORMATION FOR TOURISTS

How to save money on your trip to Australia

Unfortunately, for the Russians, Australia is located very far from our homeland. And therefore, a trip to this country should be planned especially carefully, scrupulously and in advance. It is best to plan your trip to Australia for at least two weeks.

So, there are two ways to travel to Australia.

However, recently, more and more often, tour operators go bankrupt, as, for example, it happened with notorious companies: Lanta tour, Windrose Mir, Neva. What is a tourist to do? The answer is simple, choose the second way, where you depend only on yourself. The second method is certainly more difficult than simply ordering a tour through an agency, however, this method is cheaper and, as practice has shown, more reliable. You can plan your own trip, pay for hotel and flight via the Internet (always choose payment sites that you can trust, that you or your friends have already used, official websites of airlines and hotels, or sites that have been providing hotel booking services for a long time and tickets). In order to plan your own trip you need:

Decide on the purpose of the trip.

Goals:

1. If your goal is beach holiday, then we recommend that you go to the gold coast of Australia: .

3. If your goal is to attend Formula 1 races, then we recommend that you first find out the schedule here: http://www.grandprix.com.au/ (In 2012, the Formula 1 round in Australia will be from 15 to 18 March)

5. If you are planning combined rest, then just decide how many days you are ready to spend on this or that type of holiday in Australia. In this case, Russian guides will also be able to help you.

Determine travel dates:

So that you can better navigate with the dates here: You can see the list of holidays in Australia, and here: You can learn about another important factor - the weather.

Select flight:

Select hotels:

Take care of excursions in advance:

If you are going to a country as far away as Australia, then you definitely want to see as much as possible. We recommend that you take care of excursions in advance, you can learn more about all excursions and attractions from. Russian guides will be able to help you plan your trip correctly in advance, so that you can see and learn as much as possible about Australia.

If you are planning to travel to Australia for the New Year, we recommend that you start planning your trip and celebrating the New Year no later than early September. Exactly at New Year the largest influx of tourists to Australia, and, accordingly, more likely not to have time to find a free guide.

When ordering excursions directly through Russian guides, you can still save about 2-3%. Well, the last thing to take care of is a visa, more details here: and medical insurance, which can be bought from almost any insurance company in Russia. This way of traveling to Australia will save you 35 to 50% compared to traveling through a tour operator. You can spend this money on souvenirs or book an additional excursion. However, this method is only for those who are willing to spend one or two days planning their vacation.

Customs in Australia

Australia has very strict customs controls.
Any food, plants, animals are prohibited from being imported into the country.
Before leaving the plane, check that your hand luggage no apples, bananas, sandwiches, flowers, honey, etc. left.
For violating the quarantine, you can be deported from the country within 24 hours.

money in australia

In Australia, only Australian dollars are in circulation.
Banknotes of 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollars and metal 1 and 2 dollars, as well as cents.
You can exchange other currencies for Australian dollars at a predatory rate in the only exchange office at the airport or with great difficulty at the bank.
And not every bank will perform such an operation.

No, they change money, but only for their clients.
It is clear that a tourist, moreover, from the CIS, cannot be a client of an Australian bank.
Let's say you found a bank that agreed to exchange North American dollars (bucks) for Australian ones.
Paperwork will take you quite a long time, you will be charged a commission for the exchange and the exchange rate will be better than at the airport, but worse than, for example, in Bali.
But do not go to Bali for the sake of exchanging money.

Exit: plastic cards VISA, Master Card

Yes, it is most profitable to take with you not cash, but plastic money.
ATMs in Australia are in any village or farm.
Cash withdrawal limit at a time: 1000 Australian dollars.
Plastic can be used to pay for a hotel, motel, car rental, tickets for domestic flights, gasoline at gas stations, a hot dog in a diner.

When traveling in Australia, take plastic money with you - debit or credit cards.
When paying for services or at the checkout in a supermarket, you may be asked if you have a debit or credit card.
In any case, answer that credit. Even if you have a Visa classic debit card or a Master card.
If you say that it is debit, then you will be asked to enter a pin code from the terminal. Do you need it?
All this applies to full-fledged Visa Classic and Master Card.
I don’t know about Visa Electron or Maestro. I have not. Did not use. Probably the same.

Car rental in Australia

Traveling by car is the best way to see Australia.
Australia is a continent, there is no need to open visas in order to get from the extreme north to the extreme south or from east to west.
You can also get to the islands of Tasmania, Kangaroo or Phillip by car, crossing with it on a ferry.
Australia is not Europe, the distances there are the same as in our homeland.

Roads are not always paved and not always in perfect condition.
Left hand drive, right hand drive vehicles. Gasoline is not cheap, but not super expensive as in Europe.
The price of a liter of gasoline depends on the state and on the place where the gas station is located.
The most expensive gasoline in the Center of Australia, in Outback, in the wilderness, where there may be only one pump per district.
The cheapest gasoline in the state of Queensland (eastern Australia). On average, a regular liter (similar to our 93) costs 1.5 A$

Which car to choose depends on the route.
If the route involves driving only on paved roads (asphalt), then it makes no sense to take an SUV.
If you are traveling as a couple, it makes no sense to take a minivan. Believe that no one will pay attention to the brand of your car.
I choose a car based on gas savings and rent. Traffic outside the cities, and even in cities, is calm, driving a car with a manual transmission is comfortable and more economical than an automatic one.

Do you need full car insurance? I did not take.
I tried to take the car without insurance at all. But without the Australian OSAGO, they don’t give a car for rent.
The car is given for rent with a mandatory minimum insurance. The price of insurance is included in the rent.

Which company to rent a car?

The first question would be:

Do you have booked?

The fact is that Australians book motels in the direction of travel by phone, using directories, booklets from gas stations, etc. advertising material.
A very useful guide in Australia is called Cook's Tours.
If possible, immediately find it upon arrival at the airport or at Comfort Inn motels.
Released locally. For example, I have Amazing North - in the North of Australia.

If you don't have a motel booked, the clerk looks at his notes and offers a room and price.
You can (should) take the key and go see what it is.
After that, you can bargain (I always and everywhere bargain). At least 10 dollars can be dropped. In one place they threw off as much as 50A $
You can say that I am, say, a poor student, that I pay cash, that you, Ma'am, look good today despite the high price for a room ... Turn on your fantasy.

Check-out in motels is strictly at 12. We left an hour late - pay for the extra hour.
Leaving things at the motel, you can drive around the area, find restaurants or supermarkets in order to cook your own breakfast in the morning: everything you need for this will be in the room, except for international motels - it is offered to use the motel restaurant.
Please note that most motel receptions are open until 17:00. Especially in the north, in Outback, small towns.
It is possible that you arrive in the dark and see closed receptions in front of your nose.

It remains only to spend the night in the car, which is prohibited in Australia and fined in the city for this.
That is, you have to go to the forests ... So take care of the lodging for the night in advance.
I did this: I figured out a stopover place on the map, preferably with viewpoints in the area.
He used to come at 1 a.m., dropped his things and went to see the surroundings, it happened that 100 km from an already packed overnight stay.
This applies to roadside motels.

Now in Australia, a network of private mini-motels, ranches, or whatever they are called here is booming. Bed&Breakfast.
As a rule, this is a farm, a ranch or a piece of private land of tens of acres, on which there are at least 2 houses: one for guests and the other for the owner. B&B are designed for 1-2 families.
If it is designed for 2 families, then be sure of your comfort: you will not encounter neighbors. For reasonable money (about the same as in motels), you will be offered more exclusive living conditions: in terms of size, furniture, linen and plumbing.
The price also includes breakfast. O! These Australian breakfasts…
Although the Australians are in many ways outwardly similar to the British, they prefer to cook, serve, eat like Americans - a lot.

I highly recommend paying attention to this type of accommodation.
Since there is no reception here: what time you arrived - at the same time they will settle and will be glad to see you.
There is no shabbiness and the feeling that a million people before you have already slept on this bed and sat on this toilet (I don't want to say anything - all accommodation in Australia is EXCEPTIONALLY clean, tidy and comfortable).

I'm not talking about Asian eateries in major cities, since the cities were not interesting to me, and if I stayed there, then only in good hotels.
Informal atmosphere, communication with the owners. You can roam around the ranch area or barbecue (very highly developed in Australia)

The only inconvenience of such placement is the difficulty of finding.
When you drive along the road at speed and see the B&B sign aside, there is not always room for maneuver, and even if it is in a village, you are tormented to look for it: there are no signboards, like in motels.
This is the only inconvenience. But things are changing, B&B is getting bigger.

An even more exotic kind can be attributed to the same type of accommodation for the night: accommodation at wineries and accommodation at pubs.
In southern Australia, Victoria, New Wales, Western Australia... grapes are grown and wine is made.
As a rule, wineries have a restaurant where they cook excellent food and a small hotel for 2-4 families. Well-known wineries organize wine tasting tours, and since drunk driving can put you in jail, there will be a hotel.

Imagine: after a long journey, drop into a shady oasis, take a bottle of cold wine, order meat, pies, cheese ...
Then stroll through the picturesque surroundings and relax in normal conditions.
But it's not cheap.

Pub rooms are less comfortable.
I would say that they are mostly viper, with creaking floors, antique furniture and nightly crackles in the hallway.
As a rule, the pub has 2-3 rooms on the second floor. Since the days of spree-walkers shooting at the ceiling are gone, it is safe to stay in the rooms.
This property is VERY popular with Australian and English tourists and booked a week in advance.

Other, youth and family accommodation in Australia is Caravan parks, campsites.
In Australia, traveling in motorhomes or as they are also called campers is very popular.
I had the experience of such a journey from Darwin to the center of Australia.
This is the cheapest type of accommodation for the night. Parking spaces for motorhomes cost $15-20A, including an electrical outlet, a water faucet to connect the camper, and a public shower and toilet.
Everything is very clean and in order.

In the parking lot, you can pitch a tent, or you can sleep in a camper if it is air-conditioned, powered by external electricity (there is an outlet for this).
At caravan parks there are units or wagons for those who are fed up with spending the night in a car or tent.
The trailer costs from 40 to 60A$. It has a shower/toilet, a fully equipped kitchen and a sleeping place(s).

As a rule, Caravan parks are located at the entrance / exit from the city, they have visible signs and a reception, which closes at 17-00.
That is, if you are late, then you do not have the right to stand on the site, although the entrance to the territory is free.
You can call in, connect and even go behind someone's back to the toilet or shower with a laundry machine.
But it will be necessary to slip away before 7 in the morning, as the clerk who comes to inspect the territory and catch freeloaders, calling the police.

In some places it is impossible to find other housing. Especially in the national parks in the North and in the Center.
Usually in picturesque places, near water bodies, in the north of Australia, the Caravan Park is a real opportunity to get comfortable in nature. I can also recommend this type of accommodation to independent tourists.

Hotels in large cities, I will ignore, I will only note that I wrote above about parking at hotels.

You should not worry in advance and book something: you will find everything on the spot. Especially the motel down the road. And believe me, in Australia, hotels are not the main thing. The main thing is the country itself, its people, and nature (flora and fauna).

Food in Australia. take away. Restaurants

Australia is a country of immigrants, like the USA. But here the Asian presence and influence is more noticeable. Especially in cities. At the same time, the majority of the white population of Australia is English and Irish, and food influences have formed in this way: Fish and Chips can be seen in every city, in every restaurant. It is common to eat from cardboard boxes, with your hands ... in general, as in the time of Charles Dickens.

Sometimes the problem of eating can become very acute. Especially when you fall into the time period from 2 to 6 pm, when lunch is over and dinner has not yet arrived. You can wander from restaurant to restaurant for a long time, bumping into closed doors. This is possible even in tourist places. There is only one way out: go to the Take Away eatery or to the supermarket. Takeaway is takeaway food.
Sausages in dough are common - hot dogs, and salads in pita bread - like "our" shurma. A lot of bread, little of everything else ... A kick to the stomach so that it does not growl. In the supermarket you can buy ready-made food: chicken, ham and boiled pork, salads, aspic ... In general, as we have in large supermarkets. You can buy ready-to-eat food and cook at a motel or campsite.

I came across good restaurants and restaurants where they served absolutely tasteless meat, which had to be peppered, salted and still did not differ in piquancy after that. How about a steak with shrimp piled on top with 1000 island sauce?
In large cities, the problem of eating is solved by a large number of national restaurants, but another arises: in Australia, it is customary to book a table in a restaurant in advance. That is, walk past a beautiful, half-empty restaurant with a view. Come in and they ask you:

Have you ordered? Not? Sit, wait at the bar.

But half the hall is empty! No, you have to sit for 15 minutes drinking beer in a bar until the time limit passes in order to cancel someone's order. There are no problems with food only in very highly promoted tourist places such as the Gold Coast or Harvey Bay - there are just a lot of restaurants and cafes there.

Tipping in Australia

Not nice.

Surrender is given in full. If you wish, you can leave something if you really liked it, but you will be welcome if you rake all the little things in your pocket.
There are restaurants that do not have a license to sell alcohol. Therefore, you can come to these restaurants with your booze, bought in a nearby bottleshop, put it on the table and you will be served, putting a bottle in a bucket of ice and giving out glasses. Is free.
There are a lot of Chinese, Thai, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Indonesian restaurants in the cities. In general, Asiatics cluster in the cities, but in the provinces they are rare birds. The province is mostly white and aboriginal, so the food is simpler.

The most affordable eater in the cities is food courts: a common self-service hall with tables and several distributions: some are for chicken, others for seafood, others for veggie eaters, etc. The food is of good quality, but like in any place of mass service without outstanding taste of dishes, plus plastic tables without tablecloths, some crowding ... It looks like food courts in Auchan stores. To be honest, I am not a fan of such establishments. For me, it's better to buy food at the supermarket and cook it at the motel. On average, food in Australia is spent less than in Europe and the US, but more than in Asia.

Alcohol. Beer. Wine

There is no problem with alcohol in Australia. Neither with their own, nor with imported ones. Taking something from duty free with you does not make any sense: Bottle Shops sell hundreds of types of strong and liqueurs at low prices.
Alcohol is sold only in licensed, special stores: Bottle Shop. It looks like a gas station. The entrance, as a rule, is located under an arch so that minors do not accidentally see how their parents load boxes of beer and vodka into the car. There is a rich assortment inside: vodka, rum, tequila, cachaca, gin, cognac, brandy, whiskey… liqueurs, wine, nutmegs, beer, cocktails… Everything is available. For example, whiskey is around $15-20A, a beer basket of 6 bottles is $10-15A, wine is $12-20A… 30% of all shelves are occupied by wine. Australia is a major wine producer. Australian wine is my favorite. In Australia, the cult of wine, so they drink and drink a lot of wine. Usually ordered in bottles. Served under an ice bucket. Wonderful white Chardonnay, chilled in ice, perfectly quenches thirst.

If you want to enjoy and taste, go to the winery. There are many of them in the south, west of Australia, in Victoria, in New Wells, in Queensland. Many wineries have excellent restaurants where you can have a good lunch / dinner, ordering a bottle of the wine you like. Beer is Australia's second favorite drink. Especially among Asians and young people. Beer in Australia is very good. The choice is huge. I can recommend the varieties of Tasmanian Cascade that I liked, the Queensland XXXX Bitter, the good Hahn beer, and the very popular Crown Lager. Each state has its own signature beer, for example in the West: Emu. The store can have 20-30 varieties of different beers. Fosters beer, famous for our advertising, is not popular in Australia. Didn't see anyone drinking it. Apparently quoted as the Baltic. Pubs always have excellent draft beer, dark Guinness is widely represented, but there are few fans of it.

National parks. Beaches

Australia has many national parks. Entrance to the park may be paid, for example Uluru in the center or Pinnacles in western Australia, or free and free, such as Devis Marbles in the center, Badgingarra, Lesueur, stockyard in the West, Port Campbell in the south, in the state of Victoria. On average, the fee to visit the park is $10A. In some places, the collection of taxes is entrusted to the machine and the consciousness of people, for example wave rock in the West. If your conscience allows you to save 10 bucks, slip away for free ... well, that's your right.
All the little sights in Australia are marked in guidebooks, brochures and accompanied by brown road signs.

It is impossible to embrace the immensity, Australia is very large, but there are places that must be visited. And it will be the calling card of the state. For example, the Northern Territories are Kakadu Park and Uluru, Victoria is the Great Ocean Road, etc. At the airport, hotels, motels, there will definitely be a stand with brochures for the main attractions of the state. Easy to use, do not neglect them.

Beaches in Australia

Swimming in the sea, in Australia, is a whole problem. Only in one place the coastline of the continent is protected from ocean waves - the Great Barrier Reef. Elsewhere, the coastline trembles with ocean surf. The water is cold even in the Australian summer due to the influence of cold Antarctic currents. Plus a list of troubles in the form of poisonous "sea wasp" jellyfish - a seasonal phenomenon, when thousands of these jelly-like creatures with long tentacles swim up to the shores of eastern and northern Australia and man-eating sharks.

The picture is bleak, and so it is. The Australians are forced to sit at this time in paddling pools, corrals, protected from open water by buoys with nets hanging on them. Maybe that's why it seemed to me that most Australians can't swim. I didn't mention the surfers. Surfing is a popular culture and sport in Australia. People of all ages are constantly sitting in the water, in wetsuits, waiting for "their" wave.

The bulk of vacationers stand waist-deep in water, sometimes crouching to cool off. An interesting contrast: cold water below, at the top it is so hot, as if blowing on you from a giant hair dryer.

Nevertheless, Australians are very fond of water. They bathe in pools, lakes, streams and rivers. By the way, in the lakes of the North and Queensland there is another danger - crocodiles. The danger is so serious that before entering the water, in an unfamiliar place, we intently looked around the water area of ​​​​the lake for the presence of reptiles: they can be mistaken for a floating snag.
On the surface of the water, only the eyes, nose and partially back comb are visible.
There are very frequent cases when crocodiles dragged tourists under water, especially in places overgrown with reeds or backwaters near the sea. Dangerous places are marked with appropriate posters, but if there are no posters, still be careful, as crocodiles migrate and if yesterday everything was calm in the reservoir, today it may not be very good.

Trouble in Australia

Flies.

Flies are the scourge of Australia. They are especially annoying in the Center and Outback. No, they don't bite. They simply climb into the eyes, mouth, nose, buzz in the ears, in the hair, tickle, crawling over open areas of the skin. As soon as you leave the air-conditioned room and the skin warms up, you are covered with dozens of flies. The Australians are already used to them and just brush them off the face, and it annoyed the hell out of us, especially when you climb some viewpoint or eat outdoors. A hat with a mosquito net helps against flies, special fly creams (sold in supermarkets), and flies also sit less on light and love dark. Wear light-colored shirts and pants - you will be like a snow maiden.

Before the trip, I read a lot about various poisonous reptiles and spiders. To be honest, I saw a snake only once, on Kangaroo Island, and even then, the snake hastily fled from me into the bush. However, in many places there are signs about the danger of being bitten by poisonous snakes. But I think that if you don’t climb crevices, hollows with your hands, don’t lift fallen, rotten tree trunks (that is, those places where snakes usually hide from the heat of the day), then a snake bite will not threaten you. Snakes are good at picking up the vibration of the ground from a walking person and reel off before you stumble upon them.

Mobile communication and Internet

I didn't buy an Australian sim card. I left my Beeline and communicated on business via sms. When I needed to call my homeland or the USA, I used the Day break IP telephony card (there are many different cards in Australia, it’s just that this one suited me for these countries in terms of tariffs), dialing the free number 800-…, entering the PIN code and the number of the called subscriber from ordinary payphones. GSM is available, almost everywhere, except for perfect deserts, I know that calls from mobile to mobile in Australia are very expensive.

The Internet, as well as mobile communications, is very expensive (relative to neighboring Asia). There are not everywhere. The hotel may offer to use a telephone socket, that is, to communicate via modem. Wi-Fi is rare, Ethernet is available only in expensive hotels in large cities. Australia lags behind the USA in this, but it seems like they are developing their own Internet. In large tourist areas there will be public Internet access such as Internet cafes. Small ones are empty. Modem only. Where to buy a card for communication via modem - x.z. It should be noted that the connection via a landline phone in motels is paid.

Safety and Health

As I already wrote, there are unpleasant moments in the fauna of Australia. When visiting the beach, pay attention to the warning posters. Keep in mind that even a “sea wasp” torn apart by the surf can be dangerous. The consequences of being stung by the tentacles of this jellyfish can be severe burns, followed by scarring and even death (in the sea, just discard the skates due to cardiac arrest) When swimming in the lakes and creeks (gorge) of Australia, pay attention not only to the presence / absence of crocodiles, but also the fact that you can’t dive or quickly enter the water - there is a very high probability of running into a heated tree trunk or boulder. Try not to climb the bush in sandals, with bare feet.

However, this is unlikely, since the only way to get through the bush is with a machete or a bulldozer. When swimming in the open ocean, do not swim far from the coast - strong currents pass along the coast of Australia and you can simply be carried away into the open ocean, where a great white shark will bite you.

Australia has a very active Sun and is kind of like an ozone hole. I don’t know - I didn’t see it, but the fact remains: Australia has a high mortality rate from skin cancer. This does not threaten you, who have come for a month, but you can easily get burned. You can get sunstroke, so a hat is a must (sold locally, cheap, straw). In addition, sunglasses and sunscreen on exposed skin are required. Australia is not the place to sunbathe. There is a lot of sun there, so protect yourself.

I did not notice crime and theft in Australia. Therefore, I will confine myself to this statement. But in any case, it is not recommended to click on the eblom (this applies to any country).

Clothing. Australian people

The local people dress very simply. Especially in the outback: a washed T-shirt or T-shirt, shorts, boots or slates on your feet, a hat or a baseball cap on your head. When collecting proceed from the same. Every motel has a laundromat, so you don't have to pack a lot of clothes. This applies to the Australian summer, in winter (June-August) it can be cold at night and in the evenings, sometimes the thermometer drops to 0, especially in the depths of the continent. Therefore, a warm sweater, jacket - will not be superfluous. By the way, I didn’t say anything about pants - Australians prefer shorts even in cold weather: sometimes my grandfather wears a down jacket and shorts with flip flops - it looks interesting.

The people liked it. Normal, without Anglo-Saxon snobbery, they speak funny, so if you don’t know the language well, you’ll understand, they are responsive - they will listen to your problem without really understanding what they want from them. When they get drunk they have noisy fun, especially the Irish - these are still those drunks, but they don’t hooligan and don’t pester

Literature

I advise you not to save money and buy Lonely Planet for each state.
For example, I have 4 guides: West, Queensland, Northern Territories and East Coast.
Plus, this is a DK for Australia, but this is a bad guide, very superficial, although there are a lot of photos in Russian.

Useful links for traveling to Australia

Momondo flight designer. If there is a lot of time and little money, it is better to fly through Southeast Asia or China.
– A car is required in Australia. There are no trains or buses in Australia. If you are only interested in Sydney, then it is better to go to any Europe - it is more beautiful.
Booking hotels and motels in Australia - without a roof over your head in Australia is bad. In addition, a hotel reservation is needed for a visa, and at passport control in Australia.
. - It is better to have, although this is not a prerequisite for the trip.
No vaccinations are required to visit Australia.

Personal messages ask a lot of practical questions regarding independent travel for Australia. I will answer those of them that occur most often.

How to get an Australian visa?

On the topic of incredible difficulties in obtaining Australian visa a lot of speculation. In fact, if you correctly collect all the required documents, then there should be no difficulties. However, we still played it safe and turned to Double Bay Inbound Travel for help. We got a visa in 24 hours.

What is the easiest way to get to Australia?

Of course, by plane. The flight is long. But, if you are serious about walking around Australia, then it is better to accept this fact right away. Australia won't get any closer. You have to decide on a flight. Especially since there is no less during it.

There are many flight options. We chose Moscow - Singapore - Melbourne and Sydney - Singapore - Moscow. Why? Because that's how our beloved Singapore Airlines fly.

It is better to buy tickets directly from the airline or through some aggregator (I recommend Skyscanner).

How much does life cost in Australia?

I'll use Sydney as an example.

Food. Per person: Cafe breakfast: 10-15 AUD (approximately 6-9 AUD for food and 3-4 AUD for coffee) Lunch at a cafe: 10-12 AUD (Asian) and 20-25 AUD ( European cuisine) Good dinner: from 40 to 70 AUD (including wine). If you buy food in a supermarket, then you will need about 700-1100 AUD per month for a family of two adults.

Cellular communication, Internet. Cellular and internet are expensive, and internet is also slow. Apparently, the remoteness of the mainland affects. Cellular communication - about 30 AUD per person per month. Packages with a fixed price per month (X minutes, X SMS and X megabytes) are very common. Unlimited Internet - 60 AUD per month.

Most good hotels WiFi available. It will usually be offered as a compliment or in exchange for joining some local "club" (such as the hotel's fan club).

Accommodation. The rent for an apartment varies greatly depending on the area and the newness of the house. On average, renting a 2-room apartment near the center will cost 500-600 AUD per week. Exactly a week. This is not a reservation, but the specifics of the Australian mentality (housing is billed weekly, not monthly). Gas and electricity are additionally paid. Renting a two bedroom house is 650-700 AUD (per week) and water costs will be added to gas and electricity bills.

If you plan to stay in hotels, then please note that they have a practice of blocking from 100 to 200 AUD as a deposit on your bank card. With frequent changes of hotels and "brakes" in unlocking funds, this can become a noticeable nuisance.

Transport. Transportation costs will vary greatly depending on which mode of transport - car, bus, train or ferry - you will predominantly use. The most expensive ticket, which covers all areas of the city and includes all modes of transport, costs 246 AUD per month or 2444 AUD per year. This is less than the average cost of gasoline for a car (91st gasoline costs 1.55 - 1.60 AUD per liter).

There are people who from year to year go to rest in the same favorite hotel in Turkey or Thailand, and there are those who are greedy for new experiences and distant unexplored places. Such a whole world is not enough, and perhaps only the technical impossibility of this at the moment keeps them from traveling to Mars. The latter includes the hero of this article - Nikita. He has already written for our site. Today we will talk about an even more distant place on our planet - about Australia. Author's word:

Travel planning and flight

It's priceless when you send a link to a shared chat with your friends. cheap tickets to Australia for May holidays with a call to fly, and literally in a day 8 (!) people take tickets to the other side of the globe. For this alone, it was worth graduating from the Faculty of Geology of Moscow State University (6 out of 8 people from there). By the way, about the price - 30 thousand rubles for tickets to Sydney and even for the May holidays! With one "but" - departure from Stockholm. But could this stop the geographers? Just another city as a bonus (albeit wildly expensive). In general, thanks to British Airways for the error in the booking system, and PiratesRU.com for information about it.

When planning a trip, you must take into account that a visa to Australia is done for at least a month! But you don't have to go to Visa Center or an embassy, ​​even original documents are not needed - only a questionnaire via the Internet and scanned copies. And then the visa comes to e-mail. Comfortable!

Another months were spent on compiling the route, tears from the cruelty of this world, when it is impossible to cram all the Wishlist into a budget that would suit everyone and not turn the rest into something between a military march and a trucker trip (one of the options was to drive 11 thousand km by car). As a result, we decided to limit ourselves to Eastern Australia, Melbourne and the Great Barrier Reef.

When entering and leaving Australia, neither a visa nor even a stamp is put in the passport! So then brag about how far you climbed will not work.

Beware, life.

This topic was raised by everyone to whom I told anything about this trip. Wild life in Australia can be divided into 3 types:

1. The one who wants to kill you.
2. The one who generally doesn't want to, but can do it because of her own stupidity.
3. The ones that are too slow to get into group #2.

So, the good news is that in Eastern Australia there is a minimum number of representatives of group # 1, especially in large cities, so your chances of being fatally bitten are minimal. But there is an opportunity ... to be eaten by a saltwater crocodile! There are a lot of warning signs in the Cairns area that you can’t swim here, because a person has a limited number of limbs. But in the Northern Territory (it's so pompously called the state) vicious animals, reptiles and insects are more than enough. These are true outbacks of the country with landscapes a la Mad Max - the goal of the next trip.

The car rental agreement expressly states that it is forbidden to drive outside the cities after 18-00 in the statesWesternAustralia andNorthernTerritory. Draw your own conclusions.

Crocodiles want to eat too. Sometimes people too.

Group 2 includes animals that do not have personal accounts with representatives of Homo Sapiens, but their stupidity and lack of knowledge of traffic rules can greatly shorten your personal path to Valhalla. So driving at night on forest roads is a lot of fun and tests your vigilance, forcing you to dodge kangaroos and wombats.
But at the same time, these cute animals can be lured, stroked and fed (with some patience and perseverance).

Australian life hack: kangaroos are great at baiting bananas.

Kangaroo selfie is a must do in Australia

Koalas, as you understand, are group number number 3. They are difficult to find in wild nature, let alone get closer. But! They can be touched and viewed up close at the Sanctuary (a less torturous version of the zoo). We went to the Sanctuary, located in the city of Brisbane. The entrance fee is about $30, plus extra for photos, etc. There you can also feed and communicate with kangaroos, but compared to wild ones, these look like the Russian football team (stupid and do not move).

Soft butt of a koala smelling of eucalyptus

Sydney

In Sydney, in the very center, huge liners the size of a house are parked

The feeling from Sydney (and from other Australian cities) is something between the cities of the USA and Europe: an organic interweaving of American layout and appearance and European thoughtfulness and cleanliness. In general, Australia is about comfort, from the urban environment to the national composition of the population. It is not for nothing that crowds of British pensioners move here (especially to Perth, where more than 50% of the population is already British).

Sydney spreads along a picturesque and very winding bay, so a great option to see the city from excellent angles is to ride the ferries, which are quite common public transport there.

There is nothing to do in the city itself for longer than a couple of days, since all conditional sights cost in a day. There are, of course, historical districts, even a museum of Judaism, but this is for those who want to get to know the city in great detail.

There are nice suburbs with beautiful beaches, where you should go to surf or look at those who surf (girls are more relevant than boys). One of these iconic places is Bondi Beach. There is also a swimming pool, which they like to post on photos in various stupid publics - like it is flooded by waves (in fact, extremely rarely).

Bondi Beach

Blue Mountains

Blue Mountains Park is 1.5 hours from Sydney. There, for the first time, nature reminded us that, in fact, in the southern hemisphere, May is an autumn month. Moreover, on the plateau - a classic golden autumn, and below, in the canyons, evergreen variable-humid forests with waterfalls. In general, this park is worth it to come: there are beautiful views and hiking trails in tropical forests past rivers and waterfalls.

View of the waterfall and valley

Moving around the country, housing

In total, we traveled about 2.5 thousand kilometers by car, renting an 8-seater minibus, which drove so-so, but accommodated everyone. Per person, 3 cars (in Sydney, Cairns and Brisbane) cost 250 local dollars per person (and twice there was a one-way rental, which is more expensive).

In general, the “development” of a country can often be easily assessed by its intercity highways / autobahns / interstates (underline as necessary). And although Eastern Australia is quite close to California in terms of climate and surroundings, but as soon as you start by car outside the city, you realize that this is still a village. Still would! In all Australia's population is 2 times less than California's. Therefore, the Brisbane-Sydney road in places resembles Russian federal highways, which pass through villages with 50 km / h limits, plots under construction and other delights.

Of course, trips in eight can save a lot on almost everything: from housing to transport, but in general the country is relatively inexpensive (especially after Stockholm). In terms of the general level of prices, I would compare Australia with Northern Italy.

Of course, there are gigantic perks to traveling with eight, such as being able to boo and rent an incredible house on the ocean front for A$800-something a night (which is more or less adequate per person).

Only about 4.5 million Australian dollars and you can wake up with this view. Residence permit as a gift.

Australia is a country of meat. They just don't put it in ice cream here. Every home we've rented through Airbnb has always had a barbecue (maybe except for a high-rise apartment in Melbourne, but that would be weird there). Therefore, several times we bought meat in the store and cooked at home.

By the way! In Australia, not only in restaurants, but also in the store, you can buy and taste kangaroo meat (it tastes like wind-blown turkey), crocodile (which is like chicken-flavored tuna), emu ostrich (turkey again).

In Australia, you can always find excellent local wine (especially white) and beer, but all this is sold in separate stores, where they will ask you for a passport to check your age even if you look like Novodvorskaya, and for everyone who buys!

Kosciuszko and Snowy Mountains

From Sydney we moved south, towards the highest peak Australia - the Kosciuszko Mountains (the heart of geographers should shrink touchingly). It is located in national park Snowy Mountains, as the name suggests, is the only place in Australia where it snows and even eats ski resort. Our plans were to “climb” Kosciuszko and “conquer” one of the seven peaks, since there is a flooring on which even pregnant women and the disabled can reach the top. But ... if there is no strong wind and wild cold. Let me remind you that May in the northern hemisphere is November in Australia. Unpreparedness for such cold weather and time constraints did not allow us to climb, although it took only 2.5 hours each way from the lift to the top.

The region itself is beautiful and rather harsh (especially by Australian standards), somewhat reminiscent of Sheregesh or the Khibiny.

Snowy Mountains. Album cover of the best indie rock band of 2017.

Melbourne and the Great Ocean Road

As the locals told us, Melbourne in Australia is a sort of St. Petersburg, the climate is worse, but for some reason many people want to move there, which is especially incomprehensible given the presence of Brisbane and the Gold Coast in the country. We went there after Kosciuszko. The city itself is picturesquely located along the banks of the river and in general there were no dramatic differences from Sydney.

Near Melbourne there are a lot of vineyards (more only near Adelaide) where you can come for a tasting, buy wines or just have a good time enjoying the views of the green hills. But you need to understand that this is more and more in the "American" style - that is, you just pay 20-25 dollars for a tasting and actually taste it, but this does not turn into a learning process.

To the southwest of Melbourne, the Great Ocean Road begins, which eventually leads to Adelaide (and beyond it to Perth, the awesome coastline, judging by the photographs). This is essentially some analogue of Highway 1 and Big Sur in California - constantly changing views of the rocky ocean coast with long white waves, cliffs and winds. You can look at this for hours, thinking that only Antarctica is already to the south and these waves came from somewhere there. This is one of the best viewpoints in Australia, and probably in the world. The most famous photos are the 12 Apostles - picturesque rocks scattered along the coast.

Allocate 2-3 days for the ocean road. It's worth it. Don't repeat our "see everything in one day" mistake.

Views along the Great Ocean Road

Nimbin

I'm not sure that Roskomnadzor will approve the placement of several paragraphs of text about light drugs on a travel site ... In short, stop by this city and you will understand everything yourself. This is a hippie commune, lost among the picturesque, forested mountains, with all the ensuing consequences. You won't regret it, I guarantee it! It takes about 2.5 hours to get to it from Brisbane, and the farther from the coast, the more the roads resemble Russian ones. The city is not very visited by tourists, so what do they live on locals not very clear (or vice versa too clear). By the way, there is a great pizzeria there, and you might need it!

Nimbin. Guess what stores sell the most goods here?

Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef

When planning a trip, diving on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) was almost a must, although the diving experience was 3 dives for 8 people. The main points from where ships go to the BBR are Cairns and Townsville. We lived in Cairns. It is located at the latitude of Goa, so in May (November) there are comfortable +30. Swimming near the shore here is not so pleasant, as the water is somehow muddy and resembles Sochi or Gelendzhik after a storm, and the presence of saltwater crocodiles does not add enthusiasm (however, vacationers in Gelendzhik cause even more fear and hostility). There are many diving offers on the GBR, here are some key tips:

1. There are no individual tours (even for 8 tours), since it is about 80-120 km to the reef. Or it will cost as much as a whole ship.
2. Learn which spot the ship you have chosen goes to. This also depends on the cost. We were a little stupid and chose a cheaper option on the nearest reef and left the impression that there are more interesting places. But it is not exactly.
3. It is better to choose a ship newer and faster. There will be more time for the actual swim. Don't begrudge the $50-70 extra!
4. The ships are designed for 70-200 people. In general, there is enough space for everyone, but there is a certain feeling of a “crowd” and there is frankly nothing to do all the way to the BBR.

Astern Green Continent

There is nothing to do in the city itself. In addition to diving, you can ride the surrounding waterfalls and animal parks. We rolled up to one, but he was not particularly impressed. Oh yes, in the city instead of birds there are flying foxes (it's like mice, only fat ones).

Brisbane and Gold Coast

The Gold Coast is the quintessence of what Australia "should" look like in the eyes of a Northern Hemisphere: skyscrapers on the ocean, huge waves, giant beaches and a warm ocean. In the morning, surfers come to the beach (yes, as in the picture). The main advantage of this place in comparison, for example, with the south of California, is the warm ocean, where you can surf in November without a wetsuit and the risk of freezing all the most valuable. There we rented the best house of the trip, which even had surfboards, which we used with the grace of Kobzon. But they took a picture.

In general, calling the city (!) Gold Coast (Gold Coast) is mega-cool in its own way. We dined in a skyscraper in the city itself, overlooking the ocean coast.

This is another place where I would like to stay longer in a relaxed surf mode (especially with shopping from Nimbin!).

State motto of Victoriastayalert-stayalive". Talks about a lot.

Gold Coast. View from the skyscraper.

Conclusion

Australia may not surprise a sophisticated and boring traveler, especially if you have the experience of visiting California, but a true geographer (or country expert) tries to find some features everywhere, and this is enough in Australia - from unusual animals to new cities.

Our Dream Team

Well, for complete exoticism, of course, you have to go to the center of the continent, where there is much more entourage: deserts, dangerous animals, endlessly straight roads, half-abandoned cities and so on. Well, in the end, the thought of how far you have climbed from your usual place of residence in any case generates tons of curiosity.

A bonus to all those who read this long article to the end is a cool video report about the trip. We look, enjoy the landscapes, mentally begin to plan our trip to Australia:

Australia and Oceania is one of the most inaccessible and expensive regions for travelers from the CIS. However, it is very interesting. The material below will discuss how to make your trip to these parts as cheap as possible.

Geography and entry point

When you are looking for tickets to distant regions, you should not look at tickets immediately to the final destination or any particular city where you want to go, but to large entry points. In this case, there are only two of them - Sydney (Australia) and Auckland (New Zealand). From these cities it will be convenient to travel to all districts.

I would like to say right away that the IATA code of Sydney (needed to search for air tickets) is SYD, Auckland is AKL.

There are several search options:

1. From your city directly to Sydney. If you are flying from Kyiv, then with 1 or 2 transfers in the UAE and Singapore. From Moscow, then most likely it will be a flight with 1 stopover in China or the UAE. In general, it is advantageous for Russian residents to fly to Sydney through Moscow. From Minsk - 2 transfers: the first - somewhere in Europe, and the second - in the United Arab Emirates or Singapore. There are also routes with 1 change in the UAE. It is worth noting that such a search algorithm will give you not the cheapest tickets.
2. Through Kuala Lumpur. Kuala Lumpur can be reached from Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan with 1 or 2 transfers. AirAsia (http://www.airasia.com/) flies from Kuala Lumpur to Sydney. It offers very cheap flights to the specified destination.
3. Through Beijing and Kuala Lumpur. This is a universal way from any city. If you did not find a profitable flight to Kuala Lumpur, then first head to Beijing, from there to Kuala Lumpur, and only then to Singapore. This option may turn out to be the cheapest, because already from Beijing you can fly with AirAsia flights.

Algorithm for finding tickets to Auckland

There are also different options here:

1. From your city directly to Auckland. It is beneficial for residents of Russia to fly to Auckland via Moscow; from other cities, prices will be much more expensive. Even from Kyiv and Minsk, it is also more profitable to fly through Moscow. A flight from Moscow often happens with 1 or 2 transfers in China or the UAE. This is the most expensive option.
2. Through Beijing. So you can fly from any city. Chinese Airlines fly from Beijing to Auckland at reasonable prices.
3. Through Sydney. If the second option turned out to be too expensive for you, then fly to Sydney, and from there by the flights of the Australian low-cost JetStar (http://www.jetstar.com/) to Auckland. By the way, JetStar is a good opportunity to travel cheaply within Australia itself and between Australia and New Zealand.

Transit through New Zealand and Australia

Australia and New Zealand are countries where CIS citizens need a visa in any case, even if you do not plan to leave the airport during the connecting flights. There is one nuance. Suppose you are flying to New Zealand Emirates Airlines with one change in Dubai. Such a flight lasts 16 hours and in fact during this time the plane makes a refueling landing in Sydney. Even in this case, you need a visa to Australia. In general, when you see that the flight lasts more than 12 hours, then go to the website of the carrier airline and see if there are any stops for refueling.

A transit visa to Australia is done free of charge and remotely, besides it is electronic. The main thing is to take care of this for 3 weeks before departure. As for New Zealand, you do not need a visa here, only if you have a regular tourist visa to Australia. The New Zealand transit visa is paid and it is pasted into the passport.

You can read about the peculiarities of obtaining visas on the websites of their embassies in your country:

• for Ukraine: http://www.oceania.com.ua/ , http://embassy.net.ua/ ;
• for Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus: http://www.nzembassy.com/ , http://www.russia.embassy.gov.au/ .

For transit visa you only need tickets and a visa to the destination country.

Car rental in Australia and New Zealand

In general, the countries in question are very expensive. Here you should not hope for cheap accommodation, transport or food. For example, getting from Sydney Airport to the city center by train costs about $20. The cheapest way to move around these states is by renting a car. This service costs about $25 per day. If you are traveling 2-4 people, then it turns out very profitable.

If you are flying to one city, then the car is not very relevant - parking is paid everywhere, but if you want to travel around the country, then don’t even think about it - take it. Australia and New Zealand require international driving licenses. Read about how to issue them in the material “International Laws: Necessity or Waste of Money”. The car rental system is similar to the European one - a separate series of articles is devoted to this topic.

Train travel in Australia and New Zealand

Traveling by rail is an expensive form of travel, but more comfortable. Trains in Australia are very comfortable and sometimes even resemble a small hotel room.

When you travel by train across the country, you will have stunning views that will make a lasting impression. Australian Railways website - http://passes.railaustralia.com.au/. In total, there are 4 trains in the country with very good service:

• TheGhan - goes from the northern city of Darwin to the south;
• IndianPacific - from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific;
• TheOverland - in the southeastern part of the country;
• XPT - in the southeastern part of the country.

Tickets for such trains cost from $1,500 to $10,000 per person one way. If you want to travel within the state of New South Wales, where Sydney is located, then use the NSW TrainLinkCoachNetwork.

New Zealand Railways website - http://www.railnewzealand.com/. And here are the bus routes. On the indicated Internet resource, you can choose from where and where you would like to go and immediately book tickets.

Where to fly in Oceania

You can travel around Australia for a whole month and that will not seem enough. And where to fly in Oceania? There are many luxurious and exotic islands here, but there are some especially noteworthy ones.

Where to fly from Sydney:

1. New Caledonia - here you need a visa, which is issued at the French Embassy. Only those who have a French multivisa for more than a year are exempted from a visa. New Caledonia is a unique region with a European level of service, while large resorts border on the impenetrable jungle, where the natives still live.

1. Vanuatu - visa-free islands for Russians, Belarusians and Ukrainians. Here you will find not only a paradise vacation, but also a special atmosphere, thanks to which you will get an unforgettable, from a cultural point of view, pastime.

Where to fly from Auckland (in Oceania it is better to fly from New Zealand):

1. Tonga is a visa-free state for Russians and Ukrainians.

1. Samoa - Russians, Kazakhs, Ukrainians and Belarusians do not need a visa.

1. Cook Islands - visa-free for Russians, Ukrainians, Kazakhs and Belarusians. This is one of the most beautiful places on the ground. It is really very picturesque here.

1. Niue has a visa regime similar to Samoa. It will be especially good for divers and snorkelers to relax here.

1. French Polynesia - a French visa is required here. This place rivals the Cook Islands in its luxury and uniqueness. This includes the famous islands of Tahiti and Bora Bora.

If you are going to this part of the world, then of course you should spend a week in Australia, and then visit some of the listed islands.

Memorable travels! Read about entry points and ways to travel around America and Africa in the following articles.