Introduction
Australia was one of the beautiful countries to spend your vacation in. A lot of beautiful and extravagant attractions are found in Australia If your planning to have a vacation trip in Australia most specifically in many cities there including Sydney, Melbourne, Cairns, the Gold Coast, and Ayers Rock (Uluru), then visit the said spots on a minimal amount to spend. There are beautiful beaches harbor views to shop, sight-seeing national parks, museums, and galleries in Australia that most of the tourists would like to experience. (Schneider, G., 2007)
The way from New York to Australia
From Montvale, New Jersey, you will be departing from one of the airports in the New York City area and will be soon flying to Sydney, Australia. You have a budget would be $10,000 US Dollars or 11,500 Australian Dollars, and you will be traveling for at least 10 days or so much more. Of course, before traveling you must reserve a booking deal a week before to save or to avail discounts from the packages you want to have. The Sydney City Package is only 425 Australian Dollars (AUD) or $ 370 US Dollars (USD) from the Internet excluding the rates of the hotel where you spend your vacation in. Availing of this package is less expensive since there are inclusions from the package. The package includes the following:
- Seat-in-coach shuttle bus transportation upon arrival and departure.
- Access Fee of the Sydney Airport
- Hotel’s accommodation for three nights (depending on the rates of the hotel)
- Meals to be served (Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner) that only specified for the itinerary
- Sydney’s Day Tour
- Goods and Service Tax (GST) of Australia (Cervero, R.B., 1998)
From Montvale, New Jersey, you’ll be riding on the New Jersey’s Airlink Bus number 302 that will be traveling to Pennsylvania Station primarily in Newark Airport. This transportation fee cost USD 3.50. From that station, you’ll be catching the Amtrak train that will be going to New York. This train will be running for a day or 24 hours from New Jersey to New York. The Airlink buses departed the Newark Airport terminal every 30 minutes by the journey takes 20-30 minutes. So, you must be an hour earlier from the departure time of these buses. You’ll be spending about 4 dollars for the transportation fee on the way to New York City or the Newark Airport (Cervero, R.B., 1998).
From thereon, you may have a connection flight on the way to Sydney Australia in which you will be paying $2887 US Dollars for the round trip flight fee. You will be riding Qantas Airways. The departure time from Newark is 1:15 in the afternoon and the arrival time in Kingsport Smith Sydney Airport in Australia is at 8:00 in the following morning (Cervero, R.B., 1998).
Spending days in Australia
As you arrived at the Sydney Kingsport Smith Airport, the Sydney Airport Service Assistants will collect your luggage and after that, you will be going to the ‘Meeting Point’ located between GATES B and C outside Customs Hall where you will look for the blue wall. There, the SYDNEY AIRPORT TRANSFER SERVICE driver will lead you to to the seat-in-coach shuttle bus going to the Sydney hotel. You are going to Comfort Inn Cambridge (Cambridge Park Inn International) a tourist class hotel located at 212 Riley Street, Surry Hills Sydney NSW, 2010. This hotel is less expensive but the rooms are comfortable to have your three nights stay and have many balconies where you can view the Sydney skyline city. It also takes minutes to visit the Central Business District and other city’s tourist attractions. The Comfort Inn Cambridge is an elegant place to stay your nights in. Upon checking on that hotel, you will be collecting the additional travel information that I will get from the hotel receptionist. Of course, upon checking in, I will pay about AUD 326 per night or USD 284 per night. After the tiring day, you will be resting in my quiet room and enjoy your dinner there. So, from your budget of $10,000 (USD), you spend almost $3546.50. So I still have $6451.50 or $7419.225 for your vacation trip in the next few days (Cervero, R.B., 1998).
On your second day, the tourist guide will inform you of the “Full Grand Sydney Tour” including the tour at Lunch Cruise on Sydney Harbor. But before that, breakfast will be serving first. The Full Grand Sydney Tour took 7 to 8 hours. With this tour, you will encounter the best of Sydney Australia just in a single day. The tour will render a complete and broad coverage of Sydney including, Manly and Sydney’s Northern Beaches and the world’s famous Harbor Bridge. (Angus and Robertson,1926) On this tour, the lunch that will serve as one of their promos is the Christmas Buffet Menu. The menu consists of Sydney Rock Oysters, Platter of Cured Meat, Fresh King Prawns, Thai Red Fish Curry, Sirloin Strogano¬ with Chives and Sour Cream, Traditional Roast Turkey, Mediterranean Vegetable Frittata, Steamed Chicken Hokkien Style, Steamed Rice, Bread Rolls, Salads, Cheese and Cakes, Coffee and Tea. This will happen at the same time when the lunch serves. Right after the cruise, there will be a tour of the Eastern Suburbs and Southern Beaches of Sydney where I can view a lot more on the Watsons Bay, Paddington, Double Bay, Kings Cross, and the Bondi Beach. From that day tour, there are a lot of souvenirs to buy. On your souvenirs and stuff, you can spend $75Australian money or $65.50 in USD. Afterward, you’ll be going back to Comfort Inn Cambridge where you have your time to rest the whole night. Dinner will serve right away. You still have $6386 in USD or AUD 7344 (Cervero, R.B., 1998).
On the third day in Sydney, as the package tells that it will be a free day for you to have your leisure time and discover Sydney’s delights. For you to enjoy Sydney, you should reserve a booking so that you will experience one of the most beautiful architectures and engineering structures of all time, Sydney’s Opera House. Since the Opera House is a walking distance of the hotel, you must take the opportunity to take some pictures from that spot. Maybe, you can spend almost an hour or more exploring this tourist spot. They said that the Sydney Opera House has a very striking view outside. If you are curious about what’s inside then you’re going to see inside the Opera House. Going inside will spend AUD 27.50 or USD 24. So, it’s not that big amount since you’re already in Sydney, you must take this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Inside the Opera House, there will be a tour guide walking along. The tour will take almost one hour. They said that the tour would take approximately 200-250 steps so the tourists will have to wear rubber-soled shoes or flat sandals (Cervero, R.B., 1998).
After visiting the Opera House, you can go to your hotel room to take some rest. At 1:00 pm, the Sydney Aquarium and Sydney Wildlife World will open. Sydney Aquarium is located in Cockle Bay. This is where we experience the underwater life of Australia under the underwater tunnel where you can feed the animal such as seals, sharks, crocodiles, and penguins in the allowable feeding time. Meanwhile, the Sydney Wildlife World is the newest flora and Fauna attraction that is just located next to the Sydney Aquarium. You spent almost AUD 157 or USD 137 on both tours already. Spending the whole day discovering Australia at my own pace is incredibly great. You have total pocket money of USD 6225 or AUD 7158.85 (Cervero, R.B., 1998).
On the fourth day of vacation in Sydney, the Comfort Inn Cambridge will give you some souvenirs, and right after you will be riding on the seat-in-coach shuttle bus that they will transfer me to Kingsport Smith Airport. At that time, I have still USD 6225 or AUD 7158.85 money left in my pocket. There will be a connecting flight going to Melbourne Australia where you will spend your vacation days left. For my airline ticket, you’ll be paying about USD 202 or AUD 176 on the way to Melbourne from Sydney Kingsport Smith Airport. The travel time will take an hour and a half to get there. From the departure time from Sydney Kingsport Smith Airport at 10:15 in the morning, you will be in Melbourne at 11:45 (Cervero, R.B., 1998).
Upon arrival in Melbourne, you have to ride a taxi going to the cheapest hotel which you save up to 70 percent. The taxi costs AUD 10 or USD 8.7. The taxi will take you to Alto Hotel on Bourke. The Alto Hotel costs AUD 75 per night or USD 63. The hotel induces the old world facade of the late nineteenth-century type of building and a modern and attractive interior design of the hotel. This hotel is very convenient since from the center of Melbourne City and it only takes few meters on the way to the Spencer St Station and Airport Bus city terminal. The hotel serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals for only an additional payment of AUD 100 or USD 87. From thereon, you can take some rest to have your tour continues the next morning. From that spot, you still have USD 5890 or AUD 6774 money in your pocket (Cervero, R.B., 1998).
On my fifth day, if you want to spend your whole day touring around Melbourne. The first place you must visit is the National Gallery of Victoria where you can experience and see the glass, porcelain exhibits, painting and art collections, and some South Pacific artifacts. They said that these are the European artists’ works in the 19th and 20th centuries. The great wall of the museum has a glass mosaic ceiling done by Leonard French. There are also souvenirs there for sale. Maybe you can spend USD 100 or AUD 115 from your budget ( Angus and Robertson,1926).
After which, the famous market in Melbourne, Queen Victoria Market will be the next great spot to visit. There, you can spend again as much as USD 75 or AUD 87 for your souvenirs. Queen Victoria Market is a shopping center where you can buy vegetables and fruits, clothes, and even handicrafts that they said more a 100 years old. From Queen Victoria Market, you can go back to the Alto Hotel on Bourke to spend the rest of the day. All in all, you still have USD 3935 or AUD 4526 ( Angus and Robertson, 1926).
On my sixth-day vacation trip, the Dandenong Ranges National Park will be the best place to visit. The Dandenong Ranges National Park has its numerous species of orchids, with forests of ferns, vegetation pattern and a lot of birds. The park is just like a subtropical rainforest. The area is populated because of its natural beauty and attraction. Ferntree Gully is also one of the best tourist attractions. Moreover, there were great restaurants, antique shops, flowers plantation, picnic spots and so much more. From Mount Dandenong, which is the peak point of the park, there will be Melbourne’s skyline to be viewed magnificently. In addition, the Puffing Billy of Dandenong is one of the great attractions on that spot. The amount spends on this spot will most likely AUD 93 or USD 81. The tour will take a minimum of 8 hours from 10:00 in the morning until 6:00 in the evening. The taxi ride would cost AUD 15 or USD 13 and the souvenirs will be AUD 40 or USD 35. Most likely, your budget will decrease to AUD 4377 or USD 3806 ( Angus and Robertson,1926).
On day seven, it would be nice if you are going to spend your vacation in the rest of Australia’s tourist spots. Never miss the Ayers Rock in Uluru. From your hotel, you’re going to the Airport Bus city terminal where you have your booked ticket going to Uluru. The transportation fee would take at least AUD 15 or USD 13. The airline ticket would cost AUD 123.50 or USD 108. If you landed at the airport, get immediately the Ayers Rock Airport Transfer for just AUD 25 or USD 22. From the Uluru Airport, a bus will lead you to Ayers Rock Accommodation Resort (Schneider, G., 2007).
On the following morning, you and your tour guide from the hotel will take you to the Ayers Rock located Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. The Kata Tjuta National Park ran and owned by the local Australian Aboriginals. The Ayers Rock appears to have changes in color due to the sun’s angle. On the low paces of the Ayers Rock’s walls, there are Aboriginal paintings, which are the main tourist attractions. Aside from visiting the beautiful spot, try to have a secluded dinner in the middle of the desert at the Sounds of Silence Restaurant where you can view the millions of stars. This will cost AUD 148.75 or USD 130. Your money will now AUD 4078 or USD 3546 ( Angus and Robertson,1926).
Spend your ninth day at the place called “the Alice” which just costs AUD 63 or USD 55 where you can enjoy an Uluru sunrise breakfast that will be provided by the Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Center. The bus transfer from Ayers Rock to Alice Springs will have an experience of the most elegant and incredible of the Australian’s red center landscapes. This will cost AUD 122.50 or USD 107 with snacks served on a promo basis. You spend as much as AUD 75 or $66 for the souvenirs that you will buy from the Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Center ( Angus and Robertson, 1926).
Your last day is worthwhile when you spend it in Cairns. From Uluru-Kata Tjuta Cultural Center, a bus transfers you to the airport where you will be departed the place and go to the Crain’s Airport where you paid AUD 78 or USD 68. From Cairns Airport and your arrival time at 10:00 am, you were going to transfer to the main spot where the hot air balloons were found. Riding in the hot air balloons of Cairns is a wonderful and memorable experience. This cost AUD 180 or USD 157. This is a package trip that includes the sensational hot air balloon ride, balloon chasing over the country, breakfast serves (Hot and cold) with Champagne, expert pilot, and tour guide, and also you can get a commemorative flight certificate for free. After a long day trip riding in the hot air balloon, there will be a Cairns Airport Transfer. You still have AUD 3557 or USD 3093 in your pocket (Schneider, G., 2007).
A trip back
From Cairns Airport, since you availed of the roundtrip ticket way back from New York to Sydney, you don’t need to pay any more for the airline tickets. All you have to do is to pay for the ticket from Cairns to Sydney that costs AUD 174 or USD 152. To New York from Sydney, of course, you spend for your food at the Newark Airport costs more or less USD 15 and if you want to buy some souvenirs in New York such as the “I Love New York” t-shirts and chocolates then you must have a budget of USD 150. From that spot on, you’ll be riding a bus from Pennsylvania Station going to the New Jersey’s Airlink Bus. The transportation fee would cost USD 3.50 again. The train will be running again for a day or 24 hours from Pennsylvania to New Jersey. You still have USD 2772.50 in your pocket. Therefore, from your budget of USD 10,000, you can save a lot if you avail yourself of the less expensive packages on your Australian tour. Deal with the less expensive and extravagant tours that you will only experience at the heart of Australia (Schneider, G., 2007).
References
- Angus and Robertson. “Australian Encyclopaedia” Volume 2, p 524, Limited, 1926. Web.
- Cervero, R.B. The transit Metropolis: A Global Inquiry, 1998. Island Press. Web.
- Schneider, G. Electronic Commerce 7th edition. 2007.