Here’s some advise you might find useful.
To start with, the airline tickets.Living in North America you would probably check out the best fares on the internet through www.expedia.com or some other local website. Once that done I suggest you also send an email to info@australiantravel.us so you can compare which one offer the best fare for you.
Once you have your bookings confirmed and paid it’s time to organise a visa for Australia. This is easily done by going to website; http://www.eta.immi.gov.au/Just follow the instructions and you’ll have your visa in minutes .
Your itinerary. You probably have a rough idea of what you want to see and where you want to go and some of you might prefer to do all arrangements yourself by booking hotels through a website like www.australiatravelweb.com where you can book hotels, hostel accommodation, tours and airfares. Others prefers to deal with a travel agency, preferably ours; www.australiantravel.us and our speciality is to work out personal itineraries. . You tell us where you plan to go, what kind of accommodation you prefer, budget, standard, first class or luxury and we’ll send you a suggested itinerary by return email.
Payment: in regards to airfares both international to Australia and domestic within Australia and New Zealand a credit card is preferred. The reason for this is that airlines these days offers specials throughout the year BUT you need to pay immediately and also to keep in mind that most airfares are not refundable so a travel insurance that would cover you in case you can’t travel for medical or personal reasons is essential. For the rest of the arrangements it’s normal to pay about 2 weeks before your departure. With the internet it could not be easier. We normally send all vouchers to our clients before they depart the U.S. Once you have printed them out and checked they are as should be you can go to the bank and transfer the money to
Australia or just pay the lot with your credit card. Please bear in mind there is a 2.9% charge to credit cards imposed by operators.
So what is the difference between doing the arrangements yourself and going to a travel agent? There is a service fee using a travel agency, normally 20 dollars for a hotel booking, 10 dollars for a flight reservation and up to 100 dollars in service fees but you get expert advise from an agency that is actually based in Australia and has stayed at most hotels they recommend as well as having done most of the tours offered.
What should you see? It is of course very individual, Sydney is a favourite both as an exit and departure point in Australia. Combine that with a couple of days up in Cairns to see the Great Barrier Reef and the world heritage areas of Daintree and Cape Tribulation. Should you wish to add Ayers Rock to your destination the most popular option is to arrive in Ayers Rock at lunchtime on day 1, sightseeing in the afternoon and the next morning followed by a transfer to Alice Springs. On day 3 there is time for a morning tour before continuing to Cairns.The extra cost involved here is about 1100 dollars per person so if you been to Monument Valley and other places in Arizona and N.M. you might reconsider. We drive on the left hand side in Australia but roads are good and there should be no problem for you to adept to local regulations.However, the distances are great so we recommend that you fly to your destination and rent a car locally for excursions. One of the more charming destinations for a driving holiday is Tasmania. You should allow about 6-7 days to cover the whole island staying in charming B & B’s and enjoying the fabulous food and wine offered. If you like a Miami-style holiday try the Gold Coast, the number 1 destination in Australia for the natives. Theme parks, casino, clubs, endless beaches and golf. Vineyards of Yarra Valley outside Melbourne, Adelaide with Barossa Valley, Clare Valley and Hunter valley north of Sydney. For this and many many more ideas click on www.australia.com And remember, we are your travel agent in Australia. info@australiantravel.us
At one stage in 2008 the Australian dollar was on par with is American cousin. Now suddenly, you only pay 60 US cents to get an Australian dollar so the cost of visiting us has almost halfed!
