Budget Travel - Getting around Australia on a shoestring?

What's the cheapest way to get between cities in Australia? Most journeys seem to cost at least twice as much as comparable ones in the US, UK or most of Europe. (Prices like $70 for the train Sydney-Melbourne or $55 for the bus Melbourne-Adelaide when booking both well in advance online, and far more when bought on the day.) Tiger Airways looks fairly cheap by the standards of flights, but not so cheap as to really undercut the ground transport options the way e.g. Ryanair does. I'm really looking for something equivalent to Megabus in the US/UK, or the cheap advance rail fares available in the UK and Western Europe.

There isn't really anything like that in Australia - distances are too far, and car ownership is high, so most people either fly or if they do choose to travel by ground, drive themselves. Trains are generally quite slow and poor value.

As far as flights go, Tiger is certainly the cheapest, but comes with all the hidden surprises that any ultra-low cost carrier comes with.

The sample prices you mentioned sound like good deals to me for those routings, and over comparable distances (certainly in Europe, perhaps less so in the US) would represent decent value on an all-in basis.

I'm chuckling about the "comparable ones in the UK... and Europe" line.. :D

Given the distances between some of our major centres, and more importantly perhaps the population densities.. I don't think travel here is actually terribly comparable! ;)

(eg BNE to ADL is 2100 klm by road... Where would you be if you headed East-ish from London for that distance? St Petersburg?:D In most other directions one would be quite literally "all at sea"!)

What I HAVE seen in the past (when walking from the train station to the Naval Dockyard in Sydney) is the apparently vibrant trade in (well) used campervans...(VW Microbus and similar) being sold by backpackers heading home.... that seems to be - for some at least - the answer to the distance/travel cost question... but I suspect those folks are here for several months at least...

Flying between OZ cities is the best option. Check this site, find a fare, then buy it directly from the airline:
http://www.airfaresflights.com.au/
Carriers like Jetstar match Tiger's lowest fares, so you will have other options!
IF you buy your domestic ticket separate from your trans-Pacific, be aware that the checked luggage rules are not the same!
ps Be sure to visit BRI, you will not be disappointed!!^

There isn't really anything like that in Australia - distances are too far, and car ownership is high, so most people either fly or if they do choose to travel by ground, drive themselves.If everybody drives, do you have any advice about ridesharing websites, or even hitchhiking? I've had good experiences with both these options in other parts of the world, and am surprised they don't seem to be very common in Australia given the prices.

I'm chuckling about the "comparable ones in the UK... and Europe" line.. :DWell, MEL-ADL is a similar distance to BOS-WAS or LON-GLA, both of which can easily be done for $25 on Megabus (and under $5 if you're lucky and early). I took Eurolines for €34 from Paris to Bratislava, which is about 67km shorter than SYD-ADL. Obviously getting to Perth is a different matter entirely, though even there airfares seemed rather high compared to NYC-LAX flights.

and am surprised they don't seem to be very common in Australia given the prices.

:confused: It's a wealthy country that doesn't screw over the working class like the US does so the relatively "poor" actually have money to spend. Try your thumb or be prepared to spend "more money" than you would in the US. For a Western US resident the prices don't seem at all high.

You'll have to spend more money anyways with the current exchange

If everybody drives, do you have any advice about ridesharing websites, or even hitchhiking? I've had good experiences with both these options in other parts of the world, and am surprised they don't seem to be very common in Australia given the prices.

Well, MEL-ADL is a similar distance to BOS-WAS or LON-GLA, both of which can easily be done for $25 on Megabus (and under $5 if you're lucky and early). I took Eurolines for €34 from Paris to Bratislava, which is about 67km shorter than SYD-ADL. Obviously getting to Perth is a different matter entirely, though even there airfares seemed rather high compared to NYC-LAX flights.

No, you're right, rideshare/hitchhiking isn't particularly common. My best suggestion (given cost, rather than time, seems to be the biggest factor) would be to take overnight buses between cities to get yourself to your next destination, and to save on accommodation.

One of the biggest factors in the lack of cheap transportation options is that competition is generally pretty limited due to the relatively small population and long distances (a factor in itself), making barriers to entry pretty high, and margins pretty small.

So basically, you're not missing any secret cheap travel options. Australia is not a particularly cheap travel destination.

Check out CouchSurfing.org there's always people driving between cities that are more than happy to share fuel costs.

What worked for me though when I traveled on a shoestring budget down under in 2009 was the Virgin Blue / Virgin Australia happy hour fares... of course you need to book in advance, but I was able to snag some excellent deals for day trips out of Sydney to places like Gold Coast, Melbourne, even Hobart in Tasmania.

Another option is Greyhound. Its not as bad as its namesake in the US, and is quite affordable when its on special. I did a few day trips out of Sydney to Canberra and out of Brisbane to Surfers Paradise.

Good luck!
--Russ

Try your thumbThe Australia pages on hitchwiki.org are surprisingly sparse, but I may end up trying anyway.
No, you're right, rideshare/hitchhiking isn't particularly common. My best suggestion (given cost, rather than time, seems to be the biggest factor) would be to take overnight buses between cities to get yourself to your next destination, and to save on accommodation.Thanks for the advice; this is probably what I'll end up doing for the most part. In case anybody with the same questions comes to this thread in the future, jayride.com.au was the most promising rideshare site I saw, though it's clearly nowhere near as popular as in other parts of the world and probably won't work for me.
Check out CouchSurfing.org there's always people driving between cities that are more than happy to share fuel costs.I've used couchsurfing for accommodation before, but I don't see where to find rideshares on the site?
Another option is Greyhound. Its not as bad as its namesake in the US, and is quite affordable when its on special. I did a few day trips out of Sydney to Canberra and out of Brisbane to Surfers Paradise. I've traveled extensively on US Greyhound and didn't think it was bad at all. (I realise the two companies are totally unrelated.) The $55 MEL-ADL fare I quoted above was from Greyhound; that still seems expensive to me bug I guess I will have to deal with it.

while there are some separate forums for ride-share I would recommend joining the "city" forums for both your departure and destination, and simply asking who's going where and if they can help. much planning is done ad hoc like that.

the two Greyhounds are owned by the same parent company if I'm not wrong, just run separately. I used to work for Coach USA in US, and did take Mega Bus on a few occasions on those $1 fares... nothing wrong with traveling that way, though I'd rather fly.


but yeah... in general travel in Australia or New Zealand isn't really cheap

the two Greyhounds are owned by the same parent company if I'm not wrong


i'm wrong... the two Greyhounds are separate entities although both use the same name and logo: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greyhound_Australia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greyhound_Lines

The $55 MEL-ADL fare I quoted above was from Greyhound; that still seems expensive to me bug I guess I will have to deal with it.

Mate, seriously, you need a reality check. Let me spell it out for you:

* Australia is BIG. Very big.

* The population of Australia is TINY in comparison to the rest of the world, especially give the size of the land.

* Australia is not the UK. Not the US. Not like anywhere else you've been. Don't even think about "it seems more expensive than <xxx>" lines because you're comparing apples to oranges. Big countries have more population, more competition, more services, all which generally results in better deals for consumers. Australia doesn't.

* Cost of living in Australia is HIGH. Wages are higher. Property costs are high. Petrol is expensive. Food/drink is expensive. Given the current currency conversion from GBP to AUD you will feel this pain even more so.

In short, if you're tight for money or always whinging about prices being too high, you're gonna hate Australia. Save more before you decide to go or just accept that your wallet is gonna get hammered. Sure you can be smart about some things, but I worry that you're just going to go in with the wrong attitude and hate the place for the wrong reasons.

In terms of travel:

* Airline travel is always the best and quickest way to get around. Tiger and Jetstar are the budget airlines. Qantas and Virgin are the main players.

* Train travel is dreadful and should be avoided.

* Bus travel is possible but restrictive and they are LONG journeys.

* If you plan to travel around alot of Australia and want to explore the countryside, looking into a campervan or rental car as already suggested is a good idea. Many hostels will also have noticeboards with people trying to hook up with travellers, offering to contribute to petrol, etc. Depending on the time of year you could easily buy some tenting equipment once there and stay in campsites, of which Australia has heaps, some of which are free. If, however, you want to focus on major cities, airline travel will probably be a lot less stressful and take up a lot less time (Melbourne to Sydney along the coast can be a lovely drive along the coast though!)

Australia is an amazing country (I'm biased though) so go in with the right expectations and you'll leave with life-long memories.

The $55 MEL-ADL fare I quoted above was from Greyhound; that still seems expensive to me bug I guess I will have to deal with it.

What's hurting you this year is the exchange rate. The U.S. dollar has been doing very poorly in Australia. I cancelled a trip this year when an Australian dollar cost $1.09, and even now it's only dropped to $1.02. It's hard to be a leisure traveler with that type of surcharge on everything you eat, drink, all transit, hotels, and activities.

Compare that to last year's trip when an Australian dollar was at 82 cents. Basically, you're paying high prices because the U.S. dollar is weak and the Australian dollar is strong. I have traveled to Australia every year since about 1995, and the exchange rate has me going to other destinations now. I'm not expecting any change in 2012.

It's a new (and pleasant!) experience for us... I remember travelling to the US in the early 2000's when the Aussie $ was worth 49 cents US... Ouch!

The folks who get angriest are I think are the ones who see a certain exchange rate as "right".... forgetting such things ARE changeable.....

My impression is that Australia has a lot of hostels and backpacker hotels. One sees a lot of people, especially young people, doing budget travel.

Before driving, camping, or hiking, be sure you know what you are doing in terms of dangerous wildlife, climate, distances, gas availability, mechanical reliability of the vehicle and equipment such as extra tires, extra gas, water, etc. Australia is very hot and unpopulated in some areas. Be prepared.

Don't forget that you don't tip (generally) in Australia and tax (GST) is always included, so things can maybe seem quite expensive at face value, but you don't have the hidden costs of tips etc. above and beyond that.

I always find the opposite going to the US, things seem cheap at face value, and then once you add on tax and tip, things aren't as cheap as they first seemed....

I've taken buses between Adelaide and Alice Spring as well as Cairns to Brisbane and they were both 24h journeys. They did not seem expensive but this was a decade ago when £1=A$3. Heard the train from Adelaide to Slice Springs is a historic one and used to run thrice weekly.

I've taken buses between Adelaide and Alice Spring as well as Cairns to Brisbane and they were both 24h journeys. They did not seem expensive but this was a decade ago when £1=A$3. Heard the train from Adelaide to Slice Springs is a historic one and used to run thrice weekly.

That'd be The Ghan. I wouldn't expect it to be cheap.

a few grand last time I checked

you also have an option to just book a seat... like an economy seat

who would spend a few days on a train in a seat... that sounds ridiculous

IMO, the best forms of travel between Australian Cities:

1. Flying
2. Driving

Daylight.

More Daylight.

3. Train
4. Bus


You pretty much have 2 options. Flying or Driving. But considering how expensive fuel is, you're better off flying. And be smart about it when getting a flight - If you're on a budget then if possible, try and get flights that are off peak, you can save heaps by doing that.

Also, do not hitchhike. Just...no.

Also, do not hitchhike. Just...no.

Definitely DON'T Hitch-hike! (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf_Creek_(film)) :eek:

Definitely DON'T Hitch-hike! (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf_Creek_(film)) :eek:

Don't even think about it! (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backpacker_Murders)

OK, I'm back.

Nearly everything in Australia costs at least twice as much as in the US, with the overall costs ending up far more than anywhere else I've traveled. Intercity transport costs were an early clue, but this is also applies to local transport costs (nearly $4 for a single ride on urban metro systems), restaurant food (almost impossible to eat non-fastfood for under $10), fast food ($3 for McDonald's crap that's on the 'dollar menu' in the US, $7 for a fast food meal), grocery store food ($4 for a 2L of soda), etc. Tourist attraction costs are harder to compare, and I didn't end up spending much on these with my budget so blown by basic living costs, but $35 for a tour of the Sydney Opera house or $100 for a one-day tour from Melbourne to the Great Ocean Road both seem pretty steep to me. Many merchants also had surcharges of as much as $5 for paying with a credit card, which would have been very annoying if I didn't have an ATM card with a good exchange rate.

There were a few things cheaper or not much more expensive than in the US, but these were mostly reflections of categories where the US is unusually expensive by global standards rather than of Australia actually being cheap. These included Thai food ($10 a meal), prepaid 3G data ($2 a day, absolutely worth it to avoid the $5/hour internet cafes), and backpacker accommodation (around $25 a night for a dorm bed, but of pretty low quality by global standards at that price, no aircon, typically no screens in windows, etc). As ryanbryan pointed out, the lack additional tax and tip does help, though some people seem to tip anyway.

After taking such a beating the wallet, one finds oneself attracted to free attractions and activities. Australia does okay on this front, e.g. Sydney Botanical Garden is free, beaches are free, Sydney and Melbourne are beautiful, fascinating and multicultural cities worth spending time walking around for free, public toilets are reasonably common and free, etc. People mostly seem friendly and laid back; it's a pity you have to feel like they're constantly trying to rip you off. (One restaurant said I couldn't have tap water with my meal without paying extra!)

After flying back from PER to SYD, I learnt that I would have to pay $5 for the train to get from the Domestic to the International terminal at SYD in order to connect to my onward flight out of the country. Unwilling to accept this final indignity, I walked 4km along the road between the terminals instead.

I was told by people living there that over recent years, prices of goods denominated in Australian dollars have been rising quickly even as the value of the Autralian dollar itself rose relative to other currencies, and that it had reached the point where the Australian retail industry was suffering because nobody wanted to shop at such high prices. In a global economy with oil priced in USD, this seems unsustainable; surely at some point Australian prices will drop back into line with the rest of the developed world. To be honest, I'd suggest that all but the "1%" for whom money is no object consider waiting until then to visit Australia.
4. BusI took an overnight bus from Sydney to Melbourne and an overnight bus from Melbourne to Adelaide. Given the somewhat higher fares for flying, the hassle and cost of getting to the airports at either end (e.g. $15+ each way in Sydney), and the money I saved not having to book a hostel those nights, I have no regrets about taking the bus.

you also have an option to just book a seat... like an economy seat

who would spend a few days on a train in a seat... that sounds ridiculousWhat are you even doing in Budget Travel? I've ridden overnight in seats on trains in every inhabited continent, and not found it anything to complain about. On this trip I rode the train from Adelaide to Perth (two nights, one day); the seats were big recliners, at least as nice as one might find in domestic airline business class, and there was even an onboard shower in the carriage.
Don't even think about it! (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backpacker_Murders)This argument seems kind of like saying "Don't even think about flying! (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11_attacks)" The world is an unsafe place and you can be robbed or murdered while walking down the street too. A study by the California Highway Patrol found no evidence that hitchhikers are overrepresented as victims of crimes or accidents relative to their numbers in the population; I'd find it very surprising if the risk of violence in Australia were higher than in California. As I said, I've had great experiences hitchhiking in other parts of the world, and would have had no qualms trying it in Australia if I'd needed to travel a route where it made sense; the distances I was covering and my relatively limited schedule meant that it didn't on this particular trip.

To be honest, I'd suggest that all but the "1%" for whom money is no object consider waiting until then to visit Australia.

I think you have a better handle now on why I cancelled last years trip when the Australian dollar was at $1.09. Just not enough value for the travel dollar. I've been fortunate to have been over 15 times since 1995 and remember the Australian dollar, on my first trip, priced at 75 cents. On a subsequent trip it dropped under 50 cents and the entire country was on sale (and I came home with a stack of Christmas presents). From that 50 cent range it eventually bounced past $1 mark, and my tolerance for being on the ground for 2 weeks at that price just dissipates.

As to hostels, I did those for 25 years before switching over to hotels. The last few years I did try to book single rooms and they seemed to be available at YHAs in Sydney and Melbourne, for instance. YHAs tend to have a set standard that includes cleanliness standards and air conditioning and they're not partying hostels as some of the private hostels will be. Just depending what your taste in hostels is as there is a wide range of properties and pricing.

Sounds like you had a good time overall, even with the currency challenge.

This argument seems kind of like saying Don't even think about flying"

Thanks for your patronising comment. I'll suggest to TB that FT should add some sort of emoticon that I can include for irony-deficient foreigners. The world is full of dead people who failed to heed warning.

Hitching vs flying is not a valid comparison to make, but there ya go.

I think you have a better handle now on why I cancelled last years trip when the Australian dollar was at $1.09.

(shrug) and I've experienced the opposite some years ago when I visited the US when it was at $0.65 or less. I'm afraid that you're going to have to get used to it, your dollar just isn't worth what it used to be

Being from Melbourne I could rattle on for hours about your reply lexande. At the end of the day, money aside, I genuinely hope you enjoyed your trip. Australia is NOT the US. And it never will be. It has it's own quirks, good and bad.

To address some of the things you said:

1. Tips are not expected, but people often round up to the nearest 5 or 10 dollars. And the price you see is the price you get most of the time (the exception is more upscale places that have a service charge/fee). No addition of federal tax, city tax, tip, blah blah blah. A $6 burger is a $6 burger. But I know you're going to say "more like a $16 burger!" :)

2. You should NEVER, ever be charged for tap water. At one stage it was happening in Sydney, but people simply stopped going to the cafes/restaurants. In Melbourne some people avoid cafes that charge more for a 'strong' coffee! ;)

3. Australians are VERY internet savvy (despite the terrible speed and cost - that's the price of distance!) and often buy from overseas. That's why local retail is suffering. On top of that is a current war on the GST (equivalent to VAT or sales tax) on in-store goods versus online goods.

4. The transfer cost at Sydney does suck, but Sydney has a long-standing reputation for ripping people off (which is why Melburnians love to pick on them). I see that Qantas and Virgin Blue, two major airlines, don't seem to charge for transfers from domestic to international (which is usually why you transfer terminal). http://www.sydneyairport.com.au/go/terminal-transfer.aspx

5. Done a comparison of living costs with NYC and Sydney recently? I think I know who will win!

Nearly everything in Australia costs at least twice as much as in the US, with the overall costs ending up far more than anywhere else I've traveled. Intercity transport costs were an early clue, but this is also applies to local transport costs (nearly $4 for a single ride on urban metro systems), restaurant food (almost impossible to eat non-fastfood for under $10), fast food ($3 for McDonald's crap that's on the 'dollar menu' in the US, $7 for a fast food meal)... Guess you've never been to London, or most of the rest of Europe. I was in Oslo last month; a bottle of Carlsberg in a bar was US$13. You seem angry that you didn't find America 2.0 when you got off the plane. And why are you eating McDonald's in Australia when you can get meat pies and sausage rolls for less? Why'd you even go?

Tourist attraction costs are harder to compare, and I didn't end up spending much on these with my budget so blown by basic living costs, but $35 for a tour of the Sydney Opera house or $100 for a one-day tour from Melbourne to the Great Ocean Road both seem pretty steep to me. $100 for a whole-day tour of anything doesn't seem steep to me. When you take a half-day bus+boat tour of New York City the fare is $79.99 plus tip:

http://www.onboardnewyorktours.com/tours/index.php?page=shop/index

If you want to go the top of the Empire State Building in New York, it's $37 -- and that's about an hour's fun. One spin around the London Eye is GBP18, a "fast track" ticket GBP26 (that's US$40), and the ride takes about 30 minutes IIRC. You seem a little naive about what touristy things cost in big cities around the world in general.

People mostly seem friendly and laid back; it's a pity you have to feel like they're constantly trying to rip you off. (One restaurant said I couldn't have tap water with my meal without paying extra!) I've never felt anyone in Australia is "trying to rip you off," only that the country is built a little differently, that's all. You are charged for some things you might be used to getting for free, but you don't have to leave 20% tips or pay weird, sneaky taxes at every turn. It's just different.

After flying back from PER to SYD, I learnt that I would have to pay $5 for the train to get from the Domestic to the International terminal at SYD in order to connect to my onward flight out of the country. Unwilling to accept this final indignity, I walked 4km along the road between the terminals instead. Did you know that at JFK in New York, you have to pay $5 to ride the Airtrain just to get to the subway to get into the city? I don't see a lot of people hiking out along the Van Wyck to avoid this "indignity." You seem easily offended by the prospect of paying for the services you want to use, from ice water to rail transport.

In a global economy with oil priced in USD, this seems unsustainable; surely at some point Australian prices will drop back into line with the rest of the developed world. As I have said Australia is in line with, or cheaper than, much of the developed world. That said it does not appear cheap right now if you come from a weak-currency destination like the US. You seem to have allowed your preoccupation with the Australian "sidewalk tax" to ruin your view of what should have been a very nice holiday. To most people this would be a trip of a lifetime, and I doubt most good travelers would have compromised it by hiking 4km between air terminals to save $5, fuming all the while.

I'd suggest that all but the "1%" for whom money is no object consider waiting until then to visit Australia.

Don't be absurd. If you're worried about every $5, you shouldn't be traveling at all.

At the end of the day, money aside, I genuinely hope you enjoyed your trip. Australia is NOT the US. And it never will be. It has it's own quirks, good and bad.

And thank goodness for that.

2. You should NEVER, ever be charged for tap water.Happened in Perth.
3. Australians are VERY internet savvy (despite the terrible speed and cost - that's the price of distance!) and often buy from overseas. That's why local retail is suffering.Why aren't retail stores forced to lower their prices then?
4. The transfer cost at Sydney does suck, but Sydney has a long-standing reputation for ripping people off (which is why Melburnians love to pick on them).Yeah, Melbourne did not seem quite as bad. Interterminal transfer at SYD is only free if you're transferring between airlines of the same alliance, which I was not.
Guess you've never been to London, or most of the rest of Europe. I was in Oslo last month; a bottle of Carlsberg in a bar was US$13. You seem angry that you didn't find America 2.0 when you got off the plane. And why are you eating McDonald's in Australia when you can get meat pies and sausage rolls for less? Why'd you even go?I lived in the UK for four years. You can happily get e.g. a baguette sandwich or panini in London for under £4 ($6). Food in British grocery stores is often even cheaper than in the US. Costs in France and Germany are similar. Intercity transport (by Ryanair, Eurolines or advance-booked train) also tends to be cheaper per km in Europe, as I argued earlier in this thread. I agree Scandinavia can get pretty bad though.

I only mentioned McDonald's because it was the cheapest food I saw in Australia.

Did you know that at JFK in New York, you have to pay $5 to ride the Airtrain just to get to the subway to get into the city? I don't see a lot of people hiking out along the Van Wyck to avoid this "indignity."When I land at JFK I take the Q10 bus to the subway, which is a free transfer with Metrocard, so my total cost into the city is just one $2.25 fare, vs over $15 to get from SYD into the city (which is less than half the distance). And there's no charge to take the Airtrain between terminals at JFK.

As I have said Australia is in line with, or cheaper than, much of the developed world.Even Japan is cheaper than Australia. Scandinavia might be about as bad.
Don't be absurd. If you're worried about every $5, you shouldn't be traveling at all.If you never worry about spending $5, it won't take you long to spend through any conceivable budget.

Notwithstanding these problems, I certainly did enjoy my trip on the whole. But I definitely don't intend to return until the economic situation improves.

I think the "economic situation" is brilliant... I have just changed a bunch more AUD into USD for this years trips... at slightly better than parity. ^

As I well remember travelling to the US 10 or so years ago when the rate was as low as .49 you'll have to excuse me for being happy.. and the OP will know that I understand the pain...

... but it really is best to avoid having the mindset that ones own currency is always going to be worth more, or will always make travelling anywhere else "cheap"...

I am not sure the OP has got that understanding... deep down where it counts..;) Or maybe he does... NOW. :eek:

... but it really is best to avoid having the mindset that ones own currency is always going to be worth more, or will always make travelling anywhere else "cheap"...The currency is beside the point, I talked to people whose income was in GBP or EUR who had just as much issue with prices in Australia, and for that matter as Enigma noted above even people paid in AUD are shunning the outrageous prices to shop online instead. In a global economy, this kind of imbalance isn't sustainable, though I suppose it might be corrected by prices everywhere else rising instead of prices in Australia falling.

@lexande: I will be going to Australia for 3 weeks in April. What do u expect my budget should be for food, accomodation and activities if i will really live simple and basic?
Did u also try to travel by car and/or do ridesharing?

@BearX220: I dont think the prices of most of the rest of Europe is comparable to or higher than in Australia. Im from Germany, one of the most populous countries in europe, food prices are extremly low here for example. Also u seem to forget that Europe doesnt end on the eastern border of Germany. Ever been to eastern Europe? Still really cheap! And really, Scandinavia is the prieciest region in Europe, and especially alcohol (your example) is overpriced because of governmental rules, so i dont think this works as a comparison.

(shrug) and I've experienced the opposite some years ago when I visited the US when it was at $0.65 or less. I'm afraid that you're going to have to get used to it, your dollar just isn't worth what it used to beAnd that is the reason. The US economy is at its lowest in decades.
Just how many companies went bankrupt in the last few months ?
- American Airlines
- Kodak
- who is next (there will be others)

I'm afraid that you in the USA are going to have to get used to it.

@lexande: I will be going to Australia for 3 weeks in April. What do u expect my budget should be for food, accomodation and activities if i will really live simple and basic?There are a lot of factors in cost wherever you travel, and what's basic for one person isn't necessarily for another. But on the whole I'd say, to avoid disappointment, expect to spend about twice as much per day as one would on average in the US or Europe (perhaps 1.5 times as much as Western Europe, 2.5 times as much as Eastern Europe). In my case, I spent around $100/day total in Australia; on recent trips to Europe (touching both West and East) at a similar standard of comfort and rate of movement I spent about $50/day. Your Mileage May Vary.

I didn't end up doing any ridesharing; it didn't seem hugely common and my schedule was too tight to risk waiting a couple days for a ride.
And that is the reason. The US economy is at its lowest in decades.The US economy has been in pretty bad shape for the past three years, and I don't share the unbridled optimism of many other Americans about its future either. But oil is still priced in USD, and (I believe as a result) I've had no trouble with the exchange rates in Europe, Asia, Latin America or Africa. Australia's costs remain the highest I've had to deal with anywhere.

@BearX220: I dont think the prices of most of the rest of Europe is comparable to or higher than in Australia. Im from Germany, one of the most populous countries in europe, food prices are extremly low here for example. Also u seem to forget that Europe doesnt end on the eastern border of Germany. Ever been to eastern Europe? Still really cheap! And really, Scandinavia is the prieciest region in Europe, and especially alcohol (your example) is overpriced because of governmental rules, so i dont think this works as a comparison.

See my price comparisons for tourist attractions in Sydney, NY, and London; Sydney looks pretty reasonable. I think the world's top cities (Sydney, Tokyo, NY, London, etc.) all price out pretty comparably actually. It's wrong to single out Australia as the most expensive example based on the OP's limited perspective.

The currency is beside the point, I talked to people whose income was in GBP or EUR who had just as much issue with prices in Australia, and for that matter as Enigma noted above even people paid in AUD are shunning the outrageous prices to shop online instead. In a global economy, this kind of imbalance isn't sustainable, though I suppose it might be corrected by prices everywhere else rising instead of prices in Australia falling.

:confused: In this post the strength of the currency is very much the point. If you received poor value at places you stopped shop better. Oh, and don't go to Perth for gods sake.

I've traveled extensively on US Greyhound and didn't think it was bad at all. (I realise the two companies are totally unrelated.) The $55 MEL-ADL fare I quoted above was from Greyhound; that still seems expensive to me bug I guess I will have to deal with it.

For what it's worth I found the Australian Greyhound experience much more pleasant than its American counterpart (although I now realise they are not the same company). I made Greyhound journeys from San Diego to Flagstaff and then Flagstaff to Las Vegas. Although the service itself was good, the clientelle a bit loud and a bit rude. I sat next to a guy on a night ride who went to the toilet several times and tapped me on the shoulder when he needed to get out rather than asking nicely.

In Australia the buses seemed much better kept and were not as overcrowded. It seemed that people using the buses were in the same boat as me i.e. backpackers or holiday makers trying to get around on a budget where as in America it was more people who couldn't afford to run a car.

I would also say as a general tip that you shouldn't factor in too many long coach journeys into a visit to any country as they are long and tiring/boring. Internal flights would be my method of transport of choice next time.

Hi Lexande,

I am glad you made it down to Australia for a visit. FWIW - even Australians are finding it difficult to adjust to all the price increases even though we are living through a booming economy, low unemployment rate, great wages, good super etc.

But we do see our fare share of price rip offs. Generally, I never return to a restaurant or business that I feel is overpriced and they do eventually go out of business. If I can offer a unscientific overview, I often see that many of these businesses that charge more than others usually are paying high retail rents. The operators are attempting to cover their huge leasing costs.

But it is possible to live cheaply here once you know where to shop. For example, a local pub does $10 meals including a pint of beer (North Haven Marina). A full breakfast at our local eatery is $5.95 (Cross Keys Hotel).
Coffees are free at every pub with a slot machine in South Australia. I am sure every Australian has a list of places they go for their "specials".