What's the easiest way to get around in Australia (While WWOOFING)?

Question

What can I expect to pay? I've never done it before, and I won't have a whole lot of money

Answer 1

the easiest way to get around would certainly be by buying a car...

but buying a car can be complicated...

if you are arriving and departing Australia from the one place, say sydney, then you want to buy a car that is registered in that state (NSW if you are arriving and leaving from Sydney)

NSW cars are most expensive and difficult to re-register every year as the costs are higher than other states and you have to take your car for a saftey inspection before they will register it. Things like rust and worn tyres must be fixed to pass the saftey inspection. Its hard for old (cheap) cars to pass without needing some work done (and money spent) to fix them a little.

But its also difficult to sell a car outside the state which it is registered in.

Ideally if you land and leave from sydney,. you would want a NSW registered car with enough registration to get you through your trip plus a bit more to sell it on with.

other states are easier to re-register (no inspections) and cheaper...

A 20 year old car might cost you $1000au and re-registering it will cost $500-1000 a year (depending on your age and the state)

Roadside assistance - emergency help if you break down - is about $100 a year.

Insurance which covers the cost of another persons car (not your car) if you hit them in an accident is about $150-200 a year (its called 3rd party propery insurance)

Its a very complicated issue, you need to look into it as all states are different.

The other alternatives are busses and trains
http://www.greyhound.com.au
http://www.railaustralia.com.au/trains.htm
http://www.cityrail.info
- you should find prices on those web sites.

But getting to out of the way places would be difficult by public transport. Maybe your wwoof hosts will agree to pick you up from the nearest train/bus station, or there might be local busses that go from the train/bus station.

Answer 2

Hitchhiking is still safe (Ivan Milat notwithstanding) and many people do it. The problem with it now is that most capital cities have freeways going out of them and hitching is illegal on freeways. Buses are the next cheapest option and there are buses going to lots of obscure places where Woofers tend to be found. Buying a cheap car and driving used to be a good option but the price of petrol makes it expensive over long distances unless you are sharing expenses. A small car could still be worthwhile as fuel consumption would not be so high. If you buy a car, join a motoring orgnisation such as the NRMA or RACQ. At least if you break down you get a free tow to a town.

If you have a mobile phone it could well not work in the country unless it is CDMA.

Answer 3

well, MATE, YOU'LL HAVE TO HIKE THEN! IF YOU HAVE NO MONEY! go and play with the lovely crocadiles and kangaroos!