American headed to Brisbane!

[amyren]

Hi Aussies! Anyone from Brisbane?

I know this is kinda backwards since many of you are planning trips to the US but I’m looking for some advice on a trip I’m taking to Australia this June.
My husband and I have a fantastic opportunity to travel with an organization called “Down Under Sports” to Brisbane! The good news is my husband travels for free and I get a discounted rate on the trip. The bad news is we are traveling with like 100 teenagers so it will not exactly be the second honeymoon of our dreams.

Any way most of the trip is already planned for us so there isn’t a lot of flexibility. Here are the “highlights” -
We are staying at Mantra Legends Hotel
We are scheduled to visit - Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, Q1 tower, Dreamland Theme Park
Thoughts, advice?

We do have some free time. Any ideas for day trips? I was thinking about a trip to either Fraser or Moreton island. Any suggestions for restaurants in Brisbane (um... we are vegetarians so we will probably avoid any steak houses).

Thanks in advance.

 

[zaccy]

Hi Amy

I am not from Queensland but I am sure someone who knows more than me will give you some advice.

You may be flying into Brisbane but you accomodation is at the Gold Coast about 1 hour south, its a big holiday destination right on the coast with great beaches - might be a bit cool for the beach though.

The theme park is Dreamworld and that along with all the other places you mentioned are on the Gold Coast. There is lots to do on the Gold Coast and as I said there are others who will point you in the right direction.

Can you and your husband extend your trip to see more of Australia - without the 100 teenagers in tow!!

Anyway welcome and I hope you have a great time.

 

[aussietravellers]

Hi Aussies! Anyone from Brisbane?

I know this is kinda backwards since many of you are planning trips to the US but I’m looking for some advice on a trip I’m taking to Australia this June.
My husband and I have a fantastic opportunity to travel with an organization called “Down Under Sports” to Brisbane! The good news is my husband travels for free and I get a discounted rate on the trip. The bad news is we are traveling with like 100 teenagers so it will not exactly be the second honeymoon of our dreams.

Any way most of the trip is already planned for us so there isn’t a lot of flexibility. Here are the “highlights” -
We are staying at Mantra Legends Hotel
We are scheduled to visit - Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, Q1 tower, Dreamland Theme Park
Thoughts, advice?

We do have some free time. Any ideas for day trips? I was thinking about a trip to either Fraser or Moreton island. Any suggestions for restaurants in Brisbane (um... we are vegetarians so we will probably avoid any steak houses).

Thanks in advance.

Yes your accommodation is in Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast and so are the things listed on your schedule. The Gold Coast is a great holidays destination.

Currumbin Sanctuary is fantastic, that will be a great day out, you will see many Australian animals and get to feel the lorrikeets, they are so tame and such pretty birds with heaps of character, you can have a photo taken with a Koala and you can hand feed the Kangaroos and lots more.

Q1 will give you a great view of the Gold Coast from the top and Dreamworld theme park is fun too and has some great rides, but I hope it won't be disappointing if you are WDW or DL fans as sadly our theme parks are nowhere near the scale of the parks you have in the USA. They are still good, but we don't have the population here to support really large parks like you do in the US (eg, the whole population of country of Australia is about the same as the population of LA alone ).

For a day trip you could go up into the hinterland of the Gold Coast (Mount Tamborine or Springbrook). South Stradbroke Island is closer to the Gold Coast than Fraser or Morteon, there is a lovely resort on South Strabroke called Couran Cove, you may be able to have lunch there. You could also take a boat trip, depending on the time that you are here there are whale watching tours, deep sea fishing tours.

Not sure about restaurants for 100 teenagers. But there are lots of fantastic restaurants at Main Beach and Broadbeach and you shouldn't have too much trouble finding vegetarian foods (even at steak houses).

There is lots to do on the Gold Coast as it is a big area for tourism.

Any questions I'd be happy to answer or to try and find the answer.

 

[amyren]

Thanks for the feedback. Just to clarify when we have “free time” we will be free of the kids so we can do some sightseeing or dining on our own. We have a few afternoons free and one entire day! I wish we could extend the trip but the way it’s set up we are “chaperones” on the plane and coaches on the ground. So we have to fly with the kids to make sure they make there connections arrive home in one piece.

I looked up South Stradbrooke Island, Mount Tamborine and Springbrook National Park. They all look beautiful! I just have to figure out transportation.

A couple of (maybe stupid) general questions:

How is the public transit system in Brisbane?

Do you tip restaurants servers, taxi drivers or hotel staff? We basically tip everyone here in the states LOL. When we’ve traveled to Europe or Central America we always tipped some but not as much as here. Just wondering what people might expect.

We typically don’t bring a lot of cash on trips and prefer to use our Visa card. Should that be okay?

My husband always gives me a hard time about buying stuff when we travel because he doesn’t want to lug it home. Are there store fronts that ship packages? Here we have a UPS store, Pakmail, Mailboxes Etc on like every corner. Since we are leaving our daughter with the grandparents I want to be able to buy her something while on the trip. I’m sure my husband would complain about a carrying a giant stuffed kangaroo onto the plane.

That’s it for now… I’m sure I’ll come up with some other questions. I’m SO excited to visit your country. It’s been a dream ever since I saw Crocodile Dundee in 1986 (seriously)

 

[aussietravellers]

Thanks for the feedback. Just to clarify when we have “free time” we will be free of the kids so we can do some sightseeing or dining on our own. We have a few afternoons free and one entire day! I wish we could extend the trip but the way it’s set up we are “chaperones” on the plane and coaches on the ground. So we have to fly with the kids to make sure they make there connections arrive home in one piece.

I looked up South Stradbrooke Island, Mount Tamborine and Springbrook National Park. They all look beautiful! I just have to figure out transportation. To go to them, a tour would be great and the mountains you could also do a tour or hire a car, a taxi would be very expensive and there is not a train service to those areas nor is there a public bus. There is a ferry service to South Stradbroke Is.

A couple of (maybe stupid) general questions:

How is the public transit system in Brisbane? The hotel you mentioned is on the Gold Coast NOT in Brisbane, they are different cities and about an hours drive away from each other (Gold Coast is 90 minutes from Brisbane Airport by Train). Brisbane is the capital of the state of Queensland (which is where many international flights fly into), then there are many different cities located within the state of Queensland (Think California, most international visitiors fly into LAX but if their hotel is in San Diego, they are not staying in LA, so you are flying into Brisbane from what you have said, but Legends Hotel is Surfers Paradise which is in the City of the Gold Coast, so Bris and the GC are run by different councils, they have different public transport services, they are close by, but they are two different cities ), Brisbane is another day trip you could take from the Gold Coast . To answer your question Brisbane does have public transportation, buses and trains. The Gold Coast's system is not as fantastic, you are limited to buses, the train does run between the Gold Coast and Brisbane, from your hotel it would be about a 20 minute taxi ride to the train station (Nerang would be the closest station), then an about an hour train ride. So if googling things to do whilst you are staying there, it would be best to google day trips or day tours for the Gold Coast rather than Brisbane as if you look into day trips from Brisbane and you are staying at Legends Hotel, you are not going to get the correct information, if you look into Gold Coast day tours, you could get pick up from your hotel.

Are you staying in Brisbane also? or just on the Gold Coast?

To go to South Stradbroke or the mountains it may be good to take a tour or for the mountains you could hire a car. Another fun place for a day trip (it would be a very long day) is you could do a trip to Australia Zoo(the late Steve Irwin's Zoo), there is a tour bus that leaves the Gold Coast daily and goes up and back to there, its about an hour and half to 3/4's drive

Do you tip restaurants servers, taxi drivers or hotel staff? We basically tip everyone here in the states LOL. When we’ve traveled to Europe or Central America we always tipped some but not as much as here. Just wondering what people might expect. We are not a nation of tippers here, you really do not need to tip anybody, not restaurant servers, taxi drivers, tour drivers or hotel staff, (not concierge, housekeepers, bell desk). If you came here and didn't tip one person you would not offend or upset anybody, nobody would think twice about you not leaving a tip. Sometimes people will round up, so if something is $9.75 and you give them $10 then keep the change but this is not expected. If you were at a restaurant and the bill was $49.90 and you paid $50.00, you could take the 10 cents and walk out. The staff here are by law paid decent wages so nobody expects a tip, they will all happily take it who wouldn't but it is not expected nor required, so come away and enjoy not having to budget all this extra cash to tip. An example an adult waitress/er is paid anywhere from about $15 (during the week) to $30 per hour on Sundays and that is paid by the restaurant owner, for you as the customer, you only need to pay for your meal.

We typically don’t bring a lot of cash on trips and prefer to use our Visa card. Should that be okay? Visa is widely accepted in shops and restaurants, so you will be fine

My husband always gives me a hard time about buying stuff when we travel because he doesn’t want to lug it home. Are there store fronts that ship packages? Here we have a UPS store, Pakmail, Mailboxes Etc on like every corner. Since we are leaving our daughter with the grandparents I want to be able to buy her something while on the trip. I’m sure my husband would complain about a carrying a giant stuffed kangaroo onto the plane.
In Surfers Paradise (where your hotel is) there is an Australia Post office a short walk away in the Paradise Centre (Hanlan Street up near the beach end if you looked on whereis.com or google maps you will be able to see how close it is to your hotel). There are also Australia Post offices throughout the area, but there is usually one one in a certain area. There is usually one at the major shopping centres (we don't call them malls) near by, Pacific Fair, Robina Town Centre are the best two. But Australia Post would be the best way for you to post home. Australia Post offices also have packing boxes etc for you to pack up your box. It is possible that your hotel would help you with that, you could always ask them.

That’s it for now… I’m sure I’ll come up with some other questions. I’m SO excited to visit your country. It’s been a dream ever since I saw Crocodile Dundee in 1986 (seriously)

http://www.goldcoast.com.au/about-the-gold-coast.html

http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/2008/05/27/11663_about-gold-coast.html

 

[aussietravellers]

Just thought of something else. There are so many great places for you to eat in Surfers Paradise and the surrounding area (Main Beach, Broadbeach). The surf clubs are great places to have a meal as they are reasonably prices and have amazing views. Southport Surf Club (it's at Main Beach) has a great menu and you sit on the beachfront, it's beautiful, you could take a taxi from your hotel or walk along the beachfront or actually on the beach. Here is there menu
http://www.sslsc.com.au/images/stories/supporters_file/southport_surf_club_menu.pdf

Other surf clubs close by are Surfers Paradise and Northcliffe, both of those are walkable from your hotel.

Another great place for dinner and show is "Australian Outback Spectacular" and for another day tour a little closer to the Gold Coast is Paradise Country.

Have a look at the links to the websites in my post above, there are lots of places there for day trips. A whale watching 1/2 day trip could be amazing if you are there in the right time of year. Seeing these huge whales (often with a calf) out in the ocean is amazing

 

[amyren]

Thank you so much for all of the info aussietravelers! The links were very helpful. It looks like I have some research and planning to do. Thanks too for explaining the difference between Brisbane and the Gold Coast. The group we are traveling with has been advertising the trip as 8 days in Brisbane and I never looked up the address of the hotel so I guess that’s why I was thinking that we were closer to the city but it totally makes sense that we are outside of town. I may have some more questions in the coming weeks.

 

[aussietravellers]

You're Welcome amyren I'm happy to answer any questions, anytime.

Yes it's a little difficult if they advertise it as a trip to Brisbane and you are only flying in to there. It would sort of be like them advertising a trip to Miami, Florida and you fly into Miami and your hotel was in Orlando, same state, near by, but different cities. The Gold Coast is also a city, just not as large as Brisbane as Brisbane is the capital of the state so is a larger city.

You will have a wonderful time though, its a wonderful place with lots to do and a real diverse range of things to do, with the beach and then the hinterland mountains and rainforests so close, great weather. You will have such a great time!

 

[BecBennett]

No need to tip at all, I've worked in several places that tell you you can't accept tips at all, even when rounded up we generally had to put the extra in a donation jar.

You're a bit south, but if you can try and head up south to head out to the Great Barrier Reef. It will be a bit of a trip and may take up all your free time but worth it in my opinion.

I love the Mantra group of hotels, if there's one where I'm going I'll stay there.

 

[queenie82]

A comment on cash...
I would carry some for incidentals. MANY cafes and corner shops do not take a CC unless it is more than 10 or 20 dollars.
Yes CCs are accepted most places but I just find I really need cash in quite a few places still.
AMEX will OFTEN have a surcharge for using it and some place do NOT take it at all. So always have a Visa or MasterCard. And don't bring the Discover or any other CCs...

I would HIGHLY recommend Main Beach for when it is just you 2. Great place and great bakery!!!

I wouldn't bother doing a day trip to Brisbane....not a wildly exciting city.
The other day trip suggestions to the hinterland and Mt Tambourine etc are great though
And a Whale Watching would probably be good too. They aren't cheap but they are generally good.

With Dreamworld...there is an attached Waterpark which is really really good (yes on par with many US waterparks) and fun. Now I would probably focus on Dreamworld but you can get tickets for both parks and if you are there on a quiet day you could do both.
As said...Dreamworld is NOWHERE near the quality of Disney etc...but as I say the waterpark has really modern slides.
Technically it is winter...but winter in Australia is more like Autumn/Fall...especially in QLD.

 

[Mellby]

you will see many Australian animals and get to feel the lorrikeets,

I wonder how the lorrikeets feel about getting felt up!

Sorry....couldn't resist.

I love Currumbin. Expect the birds to be lined up on your arms and head for a feed.

As for Dreamworld, the rides are great, but they also have a native animal section where you can get a photograph with a Koala. And Tiger Island is great as well.

 

[queenie82]

As for Dreamworld, the rides are great, but they also have a native animal section where you can get a photograph with a Koala. And Tiger Island is great as well.

Agreed. LOVE Tiger Island. It is worth the admission alone.

 

[BrizMarc]

I wouldn't bother doing a day trip to Brisbane....not a wildly exciting city.

HEY!

Oh wait your right.

Seriously your not missing much by not seeing Brisbane.

 

[amyren]

So, my trip is coming up soon! We are getting really excited. Thanks for all of the advice. I do have one more question. What do your power sockets look like? I’m trying to find an adapter so that I can plug in my electronics and I’m having trouble finding one online. Have any of you bought adapters for travel to the States?

 

[aussiegirls]

Yep our power sockets are different to yours. Ours have 3 flat prong thingys. If you can't find one online I am sure you will be able to get one at the airport. That's what I did anyway

Have fun!!!

xxx

 

[aussietravellers]

So, my trip is coming up soon! We are getting really excited. Thanks for all of the advice. I do have one more question. What do your power sockets look like? I’m trying to find an adapter so that I can plug in my electronics and I’m having trouble finding one online. Have any of you bought adapters for travel to the States?

Amy here is an image of what our sockets look like. It says it's New Zealand but they are the same in Australia. It was just the best image that showed the prongs on the appliance and then the wall socket. Some adapters only have two prongs, this can be used too, you don't need to have the bottom prong.

http://www.newzealandnz.co.nz/new-zealand/standard-power-socket.jpg

As Aussiegirls suggested they would probably have them at the airport in the US. You may also find them at Walmart or Kmart or maybe even Target if they have a travel section. Your bookstores are pretty big over there too, I wonder if they may have a selection in the trave section of a Borders or a store like that. Amazon probably sell them too and other online travel websites.

I would definatley buy it before you get here though as we have ones for the Australia to USA readily available but you may find it a little more difficult to fine a USA to Australia one here.

Have a wonderful trip, it has certainly come around quickly.

 

[amyren]

Ahh., so it’s kinda like the US one only slanted… got it! We leave June 27th and I definitely want to find one before I leave. I have one for European sockets that I found at an electronics store but it was really difficult to locate so I want to make sure I have the right one before I leave. Thanks, I’m so excited about the trip!

 

[queenie82]

Our stores keep the adaptors in the Luggage section.
So basically look for suitcases and they will be (typically) in the accessories section. Like Luggage tags, sleeping masks, luggage locks etc...those kind of racks.

For example we were at the Samsonite store somewhere in the US and they had them. These are the kind of people to ask anyway.

The only thing though is I wonder if our 240 volts causes any trouble for your 110 volt things? I have no idea so I hope someone knows...but I'm just wondering?? Would anything melt? overload?

I know we have the opposite problem in that things charge slower in the US...which is annoying but not disastrous.

 

[aussietravellers]

Ahh., so it’s kinda like the US one only slanted… got it!

Yes and they are. Also our power sockets have an on and off switch too. I have a feeling that the ones in the US don't but I may be thinking of the UK or Europe.

Yes Queenie makes a good point with the voltage. It is possible for things to burn out (fry) with the higher voltage but you should be right with something like a phone charger. It is things like hair straightners and hair dryers that can burn out. Often on the appliance you are going to plug in it will say input or power source and it will say either 240 or 120. If it say's 240 then it will be fine. If it say's 120 then it's possible that it may burn out.

 

[amyren]

The only thing though is I wonder if our 240 volts causes any trouble for your 110 volt things? I have no idea so I hope someone knows...but I'm just wondering?? Would anything melt? overload?

I know we have the opposite problem in that things charge slower in the US...which is annoying but not disastrous.

Good point. My European adapter kit has converters. I’ll look for an Australian kit with both the adapter and converter. I did plug my phone charger straight into the adapter (without the converter) once in Prague and it basically burned up my adaptor LOL. So I’m aware of the voltage difference. Thanks for the reminder.