I spent 2 weeks traveling around Queensland, Australia I am by no stretch an expert but I did learn quite a bit. I spent countless hours researching trying to make the most of my time and money. Hopefully this will save you some of that time!
General Tips for Queensland, Australia
Every country has its own little oddities. Most of the time you don’t find out about these oddities until after arriving in the country. It’s easy to google currency exchange rates and local language but what about the bathroom situation? Do you flush toilet paper? Do they have hot running water? For Australia, these were not my exact concerns I was more focused on the giant spiders and deadly crocodiles.
Currency
This is an easy one to google but its really important to remember. I find it easiest to find out what 5 USD is worth where ever I am going. In this case, 5 USD was worth about 7 AUD. I find the math to be easier when I know how much 5 USD is worth versus trying to convert 1 USD to the local currently and then multiplying.
Bathroom Situation
Coming from the U.S. we say bathroom for everything, shower, toilet, and sink. This is not always the case in other countries though. In Australia, the toilet is often separate from the shower and sometimes even from the sink. If you ask for the bathroom you may be pointed in the wrong direction. Australia thankfully has modern plumbing so you are able to flush toilet paper and they do have hot running water everywhere.
Deadly Animals
One of my biggest fears is spiders, I freak out about nonvenomous ones so imagine my fear of deadly ones. I’m sure you’ve heard it before, everything in Australia is trying to kill you. The spiders the snakes, the crocodiles and don’t forget about the box jellyfish! I thought for sure I would see at least one killer animal while I was there but I didn’t. I saw 1 medium sized spider on a wildlife tour and 1 cockroach while in Brisbane. There were a lot of warning signs about crocodiles but from talking to the locals it sounds like they migrate through. As long as you stay on land or in the designated swimming areas you should be alright.
Packing for Queensland, Australia
Of course, there are always the basics, clothes, toothbrush, electrical converter, camera, etc. But is there anything specifically needed for traveling to Queensland, Australia? Given that it is a tropical climate I would highly recommend you pack a rain jacket. It saved me on several occasions from being completely drenched. Plastic grocery bags are not really a thing in Australia so bring your own reusable bags. Or even better buy one when you get there, it doubles as a souvenir! And do not forget your sunscreen! The sun is incredibly strong in Queensland, Australia I burned on several occasions, even with sunscreen.
Brisbane
Brisbane is Australia’s third most populated city after Sydney and Melbourne. It is home to roughly 2.5 million people and covers just over 6,000 square miles (about 150 square kilometers). Brisbane sprawls along both sides of the Brisbane river creating gorgeous skyline views.
Transportation
One of the thing that stresses me out the most when I’m traveling is using public transportation. I still don’t entirely understand how it works, and they all work just ever so slightly differently. The bus service in Brisbane is called TransLink. The fares are not super expensive, I never spent more than 5 AUD on a trip. However, there are a few cheaper options if you’re going to be taking the bus quite a bit.
- Paper Ticket- You can, of course, buy a one-way paper ticket on the bus. You will need to pay for the ticket in cash if you are purchasing your ticket on the bus. They do give back change though so you don’t have to worry about that. Super important to note your paper ticket is good for 2 hours after purchase! So say you buy a ticket from your hostel to Queen Street to do some shopping. An hour and a half later you’re ready to go back or you want to go to a cafe on the other side of town, show your paper ticket to the bus driver and you’re good to go! The key is it has to be within the 2 hour time frame and within the same zones. Hold onto your tickets is what I’m saying. I didn’t find this out until my last day, I could have saved myself a lot of money had I known earlier.
- Go Card- If you’re going to be in Brisbane for a while a go card is a great option for you. Having a go card saves you about 30% per fare which can really add up. It does cost 10 AUD for the card itself so you’ll have to determine if it will save you enough to be worth it. The go card also works for Ipswich, the Sunshine Coast, and the Gold Coast. Some of the larger bus stops have kiosks where you can buy a go card or they sell go cards at 711s. 711s are not to be confused with @7 stores which do not sell go cards but seem to be everywhere.
- Go seeQ Card- this card works in Brisbane, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Ipswich, Logan, and Moreton Bay. You are able to choose from a 3-day or a 5-day card. The days are consecutive though so make sure you pick the best option for . The 3 day is $79 AUD and the 5 days is $129 AUD. Unless you plan on doing a lot of day trips I don’t personally see how this would be worth the price. It does include 2 Airtrain services which would get you from the airport to Brisbane city. It is best to buy this card online but you can buy them at a few locations around South East Queensland.
A lot of options I know but you want to make sure you are making the best possible purchase for you. Brisbane also has one more option to throw into the mix, public ferries. Because Brisbane sits on a river there are 2 public ferries that run. The CityHopper and the CityCat/SpeedyCat. The CityHopper is free, it runs every 30 minutes between 6:30 am and midnight 7 days a week. It only stops at 8 of the main ferry terminals though. The CityCat will take you to a lot more places but you do have to pay for it. If you have a go card you can use that for the ferry as well. The CityHopper is red and the CityCat is blue so it’s easy to tell from a distance which ferry is headed your way.
Cairns
Cairns is the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, but that’s not its only selling point. It is surrounded by lush tropical rain forests including the Daintree National Park, and the tablelands. The tablelands are not as popular as the Daintree National Park but they offer much of the same wildlife. If you’re interested in hearing more about the tablelands check out my post on Cairns.
Transportation
Downtown Cairns is pretty small, definitely walkable. From one side of Cairns to the other it took me about a half hour to walk. If you don’t feel like walking there is a public bus, it’s called the sunbus. The fares start at $2.30 AUD and go up to $8 AUD.
Townsville
Townsville is a laidback coastal town in Queensland, Australia. If you’re looking for a place to chill out this is the perfect town. There’s a couple of good restaurants along the strand as well as a nice beach and park to walk along. There’s also a large strip of bars if you get a little too bored.
Transportation
The sunbus also operates here. They have decent fares to get into downtown. I stayed about 20 minutes outside of the city and paid about $3 AUD each way to get to downtown. Make sure to check the timetables though, some of them only come about once an hour.
Magnetic Island
Magnetic Island is worth the trip from Townsville even just for the day. It’s a gorgeous little island full of outdoor activities! There’s even a possibility of seeing Koalas in the wild!!! One really weird thing I wish I had known is almost every restaurant is closed on Mondays. Why I have no idea. I was there on a Monday and I found 2 places that were open out of the 10 that I looked at. So either plan on cooking that day or avoid going on a Monday altogether.
Transportation
Once again the buses on the island are sunbuses. The buses go pretty much everywhere on the island, I wouldn’t worry too much about having your own car there. Unique to the island, as far as I’m aware, is that there is a day pass option. For $7 AUD you can get on and off the bus as much as you’d like. Definitely worth it if you want to see as much of the island as possible. Otherwise one ticket is about $3 AUD. The sunbuses do meet every ferry that comes into/leaves the island which is really convenient.
Queensland, Australia should be on every traveler’s list. Between the incredible wildlife there, the gorgeous mountain views and the friendly locals you really can’t go wrong. I hope you find these tips to be helpful! For more info on what to see and do in Australia check out my posts on Brisbane, Townsville, and Carins. Looking to dive the great barrier reef?? Check out my experience here!
