Exploring the Aussie East Coast

by Laura Docherty, University of New South Wales, Australia

One of the only downsides to studying at UNSW is that as it follows a 3 term system, the holidays are much shorter than almost every other university in Australia; for example USYD have over 3 months off over Christmas, whereas we have 7 weeks. This means that any travelling you want to do has to be meticulously planned to fit everything in, as Australia is so huge. Hence, for the past 4 weeks I have been backpacking down the East Coast and have just arrived back in Sydney in time for Christmas and New Year. Here are some of the highlights (and mishaps…) of the trip!

We started out by flying to Townsville where the first bit of back luck happened; Annabel’s suitcase didn’t make it onto the flight. After a few tense conversations with airport security, we made our way to Magnetic Island where Annabel had to buy herself some essentials to see her through the next few days whilst Jetstar tried to figure out where her case had got to. We rented a topless car on the island and got exploring – we saw our first wild koalas! After 4 days here we were ready to move on to our next stop, luckily with Annabel’s case in tow. 

We boarded our first Greyhound bus to Airlie beach where we met two other friends who were joining us for our Whitsundays sailing trip. Three days of sailing, swimming and snorkelling… What could go wrong?! Well, the generator on our boat broke, leaving us with no air conditioning, power, running water, toilets or showers. While this sounds bad, the Whitsundays was actually my favourite place along the whole East Coast; the beaches were stunning, we saw so many fish and turtles whilst snorkelling and the group of backpackers we met on the boat made the whole experience absolutely amazing. If you are coming to Australia I would 100% recommend doing a Whitsundays 3 day, 2 night sailing trip, we used the company Sailing Whitsundays which was amazing value for money – maybe just say a few prayers that the generator on your boat doesn’t break! 

Next was a 16 hour overnight coach journey to Rainbow beach, which was as fun as it sounds. I think we managed to sleep about an hour in total, which set us up nicely for the next day of relaxing by the beach. The next day was my 21st birthday, which was one of my favourite days of the trip – we went out for brunch, went to the beach and in the evening went to an amazing sand blow to watch the sunset. It was quite strange being away from home on my birthday, especially because of the time difference; it seemed like the day lasted for about 48 hours. The next part of the trip was K’gari (or Fraser Island), where we did a 2 night camping trip, drove around the island in 4WDs and spotted a lot of dingos! Our car did break down within the first 2 hours, meaning once again we were stranded and needed somebody from the mainland to save the day, but it certainly didn’t ruin the experience. However, there was a huntsman spider on the outside of my tent which did put a slight downer on the trip…

The next stop was Noosa, which was absolutely stunning. We rented a boat with some friends and had a BBQ on the sandbank and explored the local hippie markets. Next up were Brisbane and Surfers Paradise, where it was nice to be surrounded by people again and be able to swim in the sea! Stingers and crocs don’t really come this far down the coast, so it’s safe to go in. Surfers Paradise has a bad reputation for being the Zante of Australia, but I really wouldn’t say it was that bad at all; however the clubbing scene was… questionable. We finished off our trip in Byron Bay, which is known for its laid back vibe, surfing and famous Piano Bar which I have posted a photo of. 

Overall the trip was amazing; a good mix of relaxing, exploring and adventurous activities. If you are planning to come to Australia, this trip is definitely a must-do.