Noosa or Whitsunday Islands - which is better value??

Question

Coming home to Australia in a few weeks and am planning a trip up north with the girl.

We are in Byron for a week before heading north for a week before flying into melbourne then to my home in Sydney.

The only question is which is going to give us better value for money up north - the whitsundays or noosa.

To fly to whitsundays to melbourne to sydney is $532.
To drive to Noosa (free), fly to melbourne to sydney is $206.

Also worth remembering we're both young and on a budget!!

Answer 1

You'll spend money on getting to the islands and around. Noosa is a great spot, and very "towny", whereas the islands have more of a resort feel.

Better value - Noosa.

Answer 2

The Whitsundays would probably give you a different experience, but in terms of costs Noosa would definitely be cheaper! You have a bigger choice of places to stay - there is still reasonably priced places around Noosaville and general living costs will be lower.

It tends to be very expensive on the islands as they all charge resort prices. So not only have you got higher accommodation costs, you also pay more for food & activities.

If you would still like to go to the Whitsundays though, a great experience is a sailing trip for a couple of days. You can get reasonably priced trips where you sleep on the boats overnight and during the days sail around visiting islands and snorkelling. They generally include all meals and there really isn't anything else that you have to spend money on while you're on the boat. And you could also stay on the mainland at Airlie Beach and do day trips out to the reef & islands...

Answer 3

On the islands, even as a day tripper you are a captive market and the prices charged will reflect that. If you think hamburgers cost too much in Noosa you can always clear off to Tewantin for one. That keeps prices down to a dull roar. Accommodation will be cheaper than on the islands and you don't have to stay right at Noosa where prices are highest, Tewantin might be cheaper. They charge you to breathe the air on Hastings Street, Noosa.

From Noosa or Boreen Point, not all that far away, you have the option of doing the boat trips to Lake Cootharaba and the boardwalk. You can also drive up to Nambour, Palmwoods, Montville or Maleny for a look about if you get sick of looking at the sea. Very nice it is up there, too.

Whitsundays you get the reef but if you are on a small island you are a bit stuck for things to do after a few days.

Answer 4

Noosa and Byron are a very similar experience. Go Whitsundays.

Answer 5

Whitsundays