Where to go in OZ? - TravelPUNK Backpacker College Student Budget Travel Message Boards!

**mooloo** · 03-27-2007, 02:18 AM

Hi everyone,

I am thinking about going somewhere in oz for a long weekend or maybe even a week.

It might not even happen yet, i just want to go somewhere instead of staying here!

I was looking at some of the places which have cheap flights from NZ, so sydney, melbourne and brisbane are proberly the best.

Now i will get to my actual question...

What place would you reccomend over the others and why? What things must be seen or done in each of these places?

Cheers

Amanda

**kiwichick** · 03-27-2007, 05:16 AM

I've been over about six or seven times and would suggest sydney or melbourne. Melbournes shopping and markets are amazing as is its kinda multicultural cafe culture. really enjoyed my time here and found it super easy to get around by tram. Sydney is more tourist focused, and the weather tends to be warmer, u've got beach waterfront, aquariums, zoo's and again shopping although i didnt find it as good. Did u spot the $149 airnz had recently? Will post again if i think of anything else

**LiveFreeorDie** · 03-27-2007, 11:24 AM

If you just want to booze it up and lay on the beach you could head to Surfers Paradise. Very much on the cheesy overdeveloped side of things, but quite fun nonetheless. Sort of an Australian version of Miami Beach.

**mooloo** · 03-28-2007, 01:52 AM

Thanks for the tips, anything else.....

Kiwichick, i didnt see the $149, only the $219etc although they have been having a few good sales on grabaseat lately so i have to keep looking there!

**kiwichick** · 03-28-2007, 02:27 AM

yeh i know they had them for 149 for awhile but may not in the last week or so, perhaps try sta? cos theyre normally pretty good! or even just flightcentre

**lauren313** · 03-29-2007, 01:10 PM

I would go to Melbourne. Beach, city, cafes, shops, loads of places to hang out. It's lovely. Go to St Kilda for the beach and loads of cafes/bars to chill out in. Lush.

Also, it's really easy to get round. The trams are pretty cheap and reliable, and to get round the city, there is a free tram that does a loop. Then you can either walk the rest, or pay for the tram.

**raoulduke** · 03-29-2007, 03:45 PM

I'd recommend Melbourne but I'm entirely biased. I think it's got more character than Sydney.

I love St Kilda, don't go there for the beach though, your better of day tripping out to a real beach like Torquay or Bells Beach. In fact a trip down the great ocean road to check the scenery and seaside towns is a great day out.

**kiwichick** · 03-29-2007, 07:48 PM

lol so popular vote appears to be melbourne!! I think i'll use my airpoints from europe and head over round december too

**mooloo** · 03-30-2007, 02:57 AM

melbourne def seems to be the place to go... i'll keep that in mind, thanks for all your tips!

**aliz** · 03-31-2007, 08:50 PM

hehe now i'm just gonna annoy you and say sydney. i love this place. but i go to melbourne for a few days every year and it is a nice place to visit.

**mooloo** · 04-02-2007, 03:04 AM

hehe, nice aliz - way to make the decision harder!

p.s loved the pics you took of your day out in canberra!

**aliz** · 04-02-2007, 04:50 AM

lol wow you saw those huh. dont be fooled into actually going there over sydney or melbourne, though!

**raoulduke** · 04-02-2007, 05:01 AM

Inside · 04-02-2007, 09:18 AM

As an Aussie, i've spent plenty of time in Sydney and Melbourne, and i find it hard to believe that so many people are recomending Melbourne

sure the shoppings great, but im a bloke so..............i dunno, personally i prefer Sydney

Inside · 04-02-2007, 09:20 AM

P.S. DO NOT GO TO CANBERRA

No offense Aliz

**mooloo** · 04-03-2007, 01:56 AM

hehe, why the no to canberra comment? Don't forget i come from a tiny hick town where nothing happens! Well nothing worth mentioning!

**louse** · 04-03-2007, 02:17 AM

Probably because everyone hates canberra! Frequently referred to as "boring"... "artificial"... "full of public servants"...

Well, I like my hometown. Maybe because I've been overseas for a year. And I think it's kind of cool and random that when you drive around canberra you can see kangaroos hopping around. And big hills too. Uh-huh. Um yeah... canberra is therefore the pinnacle of cool

But we're inland which I guess it stupid when the great beaches are one of the big drawcards to visit Aus. And the city is not very well designed for tourists to get around. Pretty crappy public transport... only buses. We're not populated enough/ too spread out to support anything more. And boring... well... ...

But I like to compare Canberra to Holland. Besides both being known for their liberal attitudes to the sex industry and drug use (yes, seriously!) the Netherlands is a compact country and when you travel anywhere you keep passing through towns in much the same way as in Canberra we travel between the different districts, seperated by paddocks with kangaroos and sheep. The population density's are both around 400 people per km squared (For all of Australia it's 2.65, Amsterdam is thousands) Also, both were basically planned and built... Canberra was created as a compromise between Sydney and Melbourne and has artificial lakes, and, well... "God created the earth but the Dutch created the Netherlands" with all their crazy polders and dykes.

But with this parallel, rather than encouraging people to visit canberra I've probably scared them away from visiting holland....

**mooloo** · 04-03-2007, 02:29 AM

Classic!

Don't worry u havn't scared me off going to holland, or canberra for that matter, however neither will be my next trip, unfortunately for the holland part, damn being on the opposite side of the world!

**aliz** · 04-03-2007, 05:56 PM

lol louse my flatmates and i were just comparing holland and canberra last night!! not in that much detail, but saying how they're both kinda strange, unique places, both full of sex shops and both legalised pot to some degree! we were thinking that the government should stop advertising the museums and parliment house and concentrate on what everyone really goes there for.. it would be a much more exciting place then! heh im going there tomorrow can't wait for pancake parlour and goodberry's

mrwr0ng · 04-04-2007, 12:26 AM

if anyone does head to melbourne, it is highly recommended to be there during melbourne cup week.....