Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
and in school vacation periods, which
are always busy, booking as much as 7
days ahead may be smart.
The
Aussie Day Pass
is good for 7,
10, 15, 21, or 30 days of travel, con-
secutive or not, within a 1- to 2-
month period depending on how
many days you buy. The pass is valid
for unlimited travel, and backtracking
is allowed. Fares range from A$781
(US$508) for a 7-day pass to A$1,879
(US$1,221) for a 30-day pass.
Greyhound Adventures
(
&
1800/
800 260
in Australia; www.greyhound
adventures.com.au) has packages that
can be tailor-made to combine bus
travel with accommodations, some
meals, and an “adventure” component.
SAMPLE TRAVEL TIMES
& BUS FARES
Here are some sample bus fares and
travel times, to give you an idea of
what you're getting yourself into as
you step aboard. All fares and travel
times are one-way.
Route Travel Time (Approx.) Fare
Broome-Darwin 27 hr. A$255 (US$166)
Sydney-Brisbane 17 hr. A$93 (US$60)
Cairns-Brisbane 29 hr. A$192 (US$125)
Note:
Fares and some passes will be considerably cheaper if you're a student, a senior,
a backpacker cardholder, or a Hostelling International/YHA member.
If you know where you are going
and are willing to obey a “no back-
tracking” rule, consider an
Aussie
Explorer
predetermined itinerary
pass. These passes allow unlimited
stops in a generous time frame on a
preset one-way route (you are permit-
ted to travel the route in either direc-
tion). There is a huge range of
itineraries to choose from. As an
example, the
Aussie Reef and Rock
pass takes in Alice Springs, Katherine,
Darwin, Mt. Isa, Cairns, and the
whole east coast down to Sydney. The
pass is valid for 6 months and costs
A$1,106 (US$719) from Sydney
including tours to Ayers Rock,
Kakadu National Park, and Kings
Canyon. You don't have to start in
Sydney; you can start at any point
along any of the pass routes, in which
case the pass may be cheaper. In the
case of the Reef and Rock pass that
means you could start further up the
track at Brisbane (in which case the
pass costs A$1,022/US$664), or
Cairns (from where the pass costs
A$682/US$443). McCafferty's does
not serve Western Australia, so if you
want a pass that covers the whole
country, go for Greyhound Pioneer's
All Australian Pass for A$2,403
(US$1,561); it's valid for a year.
The
Aussie Kilometre Pass
allows
unlimited stops in any direction within
the mileage you buy. Passes are avail-
able in increments of 1,000km (620
miles). Prices range from A$321
(US$209) for 2,000km (1,240
miles)—enough to get you from Cairns
to Brisbane—to A$2,258 (US$1,467)
for a whopping 20,000km (12,400
miles).
BY CAR
Australia's roads sometimes leave a bit
to be desired. The taxes of 19 million
people get spread pretty thin when it
comes to maintaining roads across a
continent. Most highways are two-
lane affairs with the occasional rut and
pothole, often no outside line mark-
ings, and sometimes no shoulders to
speak of.
When you are poring over the map
of Australia, remember that what
