Australia.. (for the year)

Kali

So I'm heading off in june.. now I've been before on holidays (Sydney-Cairns-Darwin) but that was 5 years ago... so I've a few questions for those who have done a long stint there...

Costwise... how much money to bring over? How cheap are the hostels/food etc?
Jobs.. don't want anything serious at all (plus theres that 3month limit on the visa).. just enough to see me by.. are they at all easy to get? which city would be the best for this? and cheapest rent?
If we're going on the ultimate cheap, I reckon a purchase of a camper van would be in order.. anyone know what the story is with licence/insurance requirements?

And apart from the 3 cities I mentioned above.. where else is good and worth visiting/staying/working/going on the rip?

cheers,
Ken

Delusional

Haven't been there yet. Hoping to go the end of the year so i am unable to answer any of your questions.

Here is a site that may be able to answer some of the questions you have.

http://thorntree.lonelyplanet.com/categories.cfm?catid=58

x in the city

was in oz in 2002. spent ages in victoria and rural victoria......mildura is in sunraysia, way north of melbourne, its a great spot for making some money!

as for travel, if you are with people buy a camper. its cheaper in the long run.

accomodation and stuffs is cheaper than here, but if you can easily spend like crazy if you want, i spent thousands in a short while in sydney for christmas and the new year

go up to kakadu in the nortern territory, i never went there, its a awesome spot

they got a railway track spanning the length and breath of australia now, so going around shouldnt be a problem as long as you dont mind looking at the same scenery for a few days

why not consider taz? get a ferry from near melbourne, a few days in taz would do you the world of good.....they got the best beer in the world and the freshest air to boot.

there is no right way or no wrong way to do oz, the main thing is to have a good time, and pull a few chicks along the way........

Eric

http://photos.yahoo.com/ericmc2k1

check the car rental companies about insurance and stuff!

:ninja:

HarryD

>Costwise... how much money to bring over?

Depends on how much you plan to work..
I brought 5k, and spent it all, and worked for 3months..

>How cheap are the hostels/food etc?
Much cheaper than Ireland :-)
Hostels in range from 10AUD upwards..

>Jobs... are they at all easy to get?

They can be, but depends on the time of year.
Most of the backpacker jobs can be already taken by
backpackers if during the oz summer..
Unless you wanna resort to fruitpicking :-(

> which city would be the best for this? and cheapest rent?
I reckon Melbourne was def the coolest city..
I'd love to live there..
Jobs are easier to get here than Sydney..

>, I reckon a purchase of a camper van would be in order.. >anyone know what the story is with licence/insurance >requirements?

When you buy a vehicle they generally come with 'rego'
This is tax& basic insurance for the specifed duration.
Rego is quite cheap (depends on the size of the car)
You can opt for additional insurance if you wish at a price.
I got a international driving license from AA in Ireland,
before I left, but I'm not sure if it's necessary.

>And apart from the 3 cities I mentioned above.. where else >is good and worth visiting/staying/working/going on the rip?

Melbourne, Melbourne, Melbourne.
St Kilda is a class part of the city..
You can't beat a Sunny Sunday afternoon driking in the Vineyard restaurant, listening to live Jazz.

Quigs Snr

I am also thinking of heading away for the year, or perhaps trying to get a company to sponsor me and go indefinitely. At 28 I am maybe a little old for it, but my circumstances have changed so much of late that I can't bear to be in this country.

Where would be a good place to start in terms of trying to find a job (I have 7 years IT experience) is it easy to get IT ?, where online would I find out about the types of Visa's and how to apply etc....

Years ago they used to say that you needed X,Y,Z amount in your bank account to go etc... is that still the case ?

Gaz

As you apply online for the visa , you dont have to have proof of funds , also i got my visa granted in 9 hours , it used to take weeks.

I spent 3 months travelling though Asia and arrived in Sydney just before Christmas ... on first impressions , its very like home ... just hotter. And bloody expensive until you get settled. I spent thousands of dollars in the first month ... hostels where upto 80 or 90 dollars a night (thats for a couple) but you could get a dorm for 25 or so a night ... being in a hostel also tends to make it harder to make your own food , so ended up eating out alot. More $$$

Things are better now that we have an apartment, finding a nice one can be tough and finding short leases can be tougher. We have a very nice one in a place called Coogee , indoor pool and hot tub aswell Its $500 a week and we share with another couple , so thats 250 a week per couple. But i know some people in places paying 100 or so a week but thats sharing with 4 or more.

Now .. finding jobs is tough ...nurses, accountants and tradesmen (ie: painters) will get jobs very easily. I myself work in IT and it took me 5 weeks to get something decent ... Im doing IT support in a Government building now on $22 an hour ... thats better than most ive seen , most backpackers seem to go into horrible telesales and most average backpacker jobs pay about $16 an hour.
Also it was a bit of a shock at how many places wont take on travellers ...eg: Ice cream shop down the road looking for part-time staff would only take on citizens.

Plan from here is too get another job after this one and hopefully not spend too much of what ive earned while looking for a new job ... then its off to New Zealand , then back here to see the Gold Coast , Cairns , Melbourne ....then its off to China , Mogolia , India and possibly Tibet , if i can make the finances work.

My main piece of advice would be to spend sometime in Asia on the way , so many people do a short few days in Bangkok then head to Oz , I backpacked all over thailand, Laos , VIetnam and Cambodia and it was the most incredbile time of my life .... Makes Asutralia and anti-climax though. Everyone raves about Oz but it hasnt a patch on Asia.

Right im going back to my hot tub