If you’re planning on traveling to Australia, here are some ways you can cut the costs of your spending there.
Save on your flights.
The first place you can save money on travel to Australia is your flights. Air Asia have amazing deals so sign up to their email list to get alerted to their sales. You can also find great prices on one way flights Singapore to Brisbane – for some research this route seems to be cheaper than other routes and it’s usually easy and cheap to get to Singapore from within Asia. I learned this tip from Bethaney of Flashpacker Family who wrote this great post on saving money when traveling to Australia.
Look for people in need of a roommate.
If you can cope with sharing an apartment with others, or maybe are keen to meet some Australians, your best option for accommodation it to check sites like gumtree for people who are in need of a short/medium term roommate. If you have Australian friends, ask them to ask around for you. You may find a family who normally hosts international students who is happy to host you in one of their spare rooms.
Transportation.
Be aware that the luggage allowance for carryon is much lower in Australia than in the US, and tends to be strictly enforced. You’ll get 10kg (22lb) on Jetstar and 7kg (15lb) on Qantas. Don’t expect to bring a huge rollaboard as carryon and save on bag fees. They’ll make you check it and pay the checked bag fee.
Save money on car rentals by booking weekend rates. Try to arrange your time so that you can use a car on the weekends and not need one midweek. You can usually get “weekend” rates by picking up Thursday or Friday and dropping off Sunday or Monday.
Get to know the local websites that offer group deals or free shipping.
Buying items from Amazon from Australia tends to get expensive when the shipping is added. Look for sites that offer free shipping. However some items, like some types of camping gear, are still worth getting shipped even if you have to pay because the prices the prices of buying these items can be 2-3 times higher in Australia due to manufacturers setting the pricing of their products much higher in Australia (MSR camping gear comes to mind). Do your research.
Group deals sites are often a great way to travel in Australia. You can grab the voucher when the deal comes up and then use it the dates you need it. Pay careful attention to the booking conditions and take care not to fall into the trap of buying vouchers you don’t end of using.
Minimize purchasing overall.
EVERYTHING is expensive in Australia from restaurant meals to the supermarket, to public transportation. Using lower cost options will save some money but to be frugal in Australia you really need to adopt a minimalist travel style, which can be just as enjoyable as packing in a lot of attractions and visiting a lot of different places. Where you can, if you think you’ll need to buy something while in Australia then buy it before you go e.g., sunscreen, cosmetics. Get ready for some sticker shock if you’re planning to buy the same brands you’d buy at home e.g., Mac Makeup. A lot of things like that are basically considered luxury items in Australia whereas they aren’t so much in other places because they’re price more affordably.
Adopting the Australia tradition of bbqing and taking an “esky” (the Australian word for cooler) to the beach will save money.