greggoestravelling: July 2015

Day 5

Broadbeach

Good morning broadbeach. Today is the move to sunshine coast (186km journey, approximately 2 hours)

View from Meriton Broadbeach

Breakfast - Kebab

For location, click here

Price:

AUD9

Do try out the kebab when you are in Australia as the kebab are much nicer than the ones in Singapore. They have a wide variety of sauces for your kebabs which compliments with the juicy kebab meat.

Taste:
9/10

Food for the car

In Australia, there are generally 3 types of fuel, E10, Unleaded and Supreme. Supreme are better quality fuel and you can choose that option if you are feeling generous to the rental car. Special E10 consist of a small percentage of ethanol in the fuel. Although it is cheaper, it usually burns faster than the unleaded. Hence, there might not be any cost savings from using E10. I generally pump the unleaded 91.

I have surveillance the different petrol stations and found that Mobil offers the cheapest rate. Other petrol stations like Caltex usually requires loyalty card for a 3-4 cents discount that would bring the prices down to the price that Mobil offers.

You can refer to motormouth to find which petrol kiosk has the cheapest rate. Different petrol kiosk of the same brand have different prices.

Total price: AUD33.29 for half a tank

Tanah Merah spotted!

There are pit stops along the M1 motorway. Just in case you or your car are hungry, there are fuel and dining options at the pit stop. There is a possible toll road that you will take via GPS for the journey to Sunshine Coast from Gold Coast. To avoid the toll, you can drive into the Brisbane city and exit again without taking the direct bridge that connect the highways.

Ramada Hotel and Conference Center Marcoola Beach

For location, click here

This hotel was booked on an offer, SGD150 for 2 nights. It is located just opposite the Sunshine Coast Airport. The airport is pretty inactive at night, so no worries about the airplane noises. There is a pokies (aka jackpot machine) and bar within the building that opens late so you do not need to worry about no food as well.

View from the balcony of the room

You will get to enjoy the daily ocean view from the balcony of the apartment as well. However, do note that this hotel is not a full service hotel. There are no daily change of bedsheets and if you need anything (e.g. additional towels), feel free to approach the staff at the reception. They have a stock at the reception and they will be more than happy to help.

Noosa

Next stop is Noosa National park. There are 2 entrances to the national park. I visited the one that is closer to Hasting Street. GPS search Park Road or Hasting Street.

When parking the car, you can park inside the Noosa National Park with no timing restrictions. When you park in lots outside of the Noosa National Park, parking is only free for 2 hours and if you exceed, you will be booked.

Ever wondered how they are able to check if your car has parked more than 2 hours without any meters in the area? I have asked the locals and they tell me that the parking attendant will use a chalk to mark on the tyres of your car and if they find the same marking 2 hours later when they return, your car will be booked.

For location, click here

Parking inside the park

There are a few trails within the national park. Due to time constraints, I only walk on the coastal trail to enjoy the sea breeze as well as the beautiful view of the ocean.

Walking trek

People sun tanning

The area is popular with people who surfboard.

Lunch at Betty's Burger

Opening Hours:

1000 - 2200

For location, click here

Betty's Burger on Hasting Street serves really juicy burgers with their thick cut beef clamp between two crispy sweet bread. One portion of the burger costs around AUD10 with Coca Cola from the tap costing AUD4.

Taste:

9/10

Hasting Street

Opening Hours:

0900 - 1700

For location, click here

Hasting street at Noosa heads consists of many boutique shops and is the main shopping belt in Noosa. Have a tranquil walk down the street and see if any merchandise catches your eye.

Noosa Woods

Walk further west from Hasting Street to reach Noosa woods. You will be able to see houses with yacht parked by the waters.

Woolsworth at Noosaville

Opening hours:

0800 - 2100

For location, click here

We decided to go to the nearby Woolsworth at Noosaville to stock up on our snacks and also the cheap alcohol at nearby Dans Murphy.

Day 6

Sunshine Coast

Hotel Lobby

Australian Nougat Company

Opening Hours:

0800 - 1600

For location, click here

Free Sampling

Australian Nougat Company is located along the Eumundi - Noosa Road. All their nougats are Macadamia based and in my opinion taste much nicer than the Golden Boronia Brand. Can consider getting this as a souvenir for your friends and family back home since this brand cannot be found in Singapore.

Taste:

9/10

Australia Zoo

Opening Hours:

0900 - 1700

For location, click here

Parking is free at the Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo and you can easily spend 4 hours here. There are many animal shows with some (e.g. tiger feeding) that is not listed on the park map, so do look out for them. The crocodile show at the renowned Crocoseum is a must watch show. Grab your lunch and munch away as you watch the crocodile show.

Venomous snake

Kangaroo Land

There is an open area with all the kangaroos. Visitors can feel free to buy the Roo food (AUD2) for feeding and pose for pictures with the Kangaroo. It's free.

Koala Encounter

Similarly, there is an open area with all the Koalas huddling up on the trees. Visitors can also pose for pictures with the Koalas, free of charge, unlike other zoo that charges.

Lunch at the Australia Zoo

Bought a pasta salad and a sushi roll for lunch! Total cost about AUD15

Crocodile Show

The show is about 30 minutes. It features the harassing and feeding of the crocodile. Worth to watch.

Excitement:
8/10

Tiger Show

The tiger is like a domesticated cat. This show is not featured on the brochure. It was told to us when they are recommending places to visit on the tram ride. There are not enough seats to accomodate everyone. I sat on the steps.

Excitement:

7/10

New Bindi's Island

Take the Safari Shuttle round the Zoo

There are not many animals at the New Bindi's island. It is the newest attraction for the zoo. There will probably be more animals in months to come.

Africa

Iconic Crocodile Picture

Mooloolaba

For location, click here

Dinner at Mooloolaba Fish Market

Very Sweet Prawns

I will recommend this place if you are sourcing for a good fish and chips outlet. Similar to the harbourside market at gold coast, this place serves very fresh fish. You can choose the type of fish and have it battered or crumbled. Total cost for this feast is around AUD40.

Taste:
9/10

Sunset

Day 7

Westfield North Lakes Stopover

Opening Hours:

0900 - 1700

For location, click here

Westfield provides a shopping point for many of their locals who stay far away from the city centre. At 9am, this place is already swarmed with people. What's more, you get to enjoy free parking privileges at Westfield. This is a stopover en route towards Brisbane City.

Lunch at Westfield

Meat Platter
Taste:
7/10

Fish and Chips
Taste:
6/10

Ibis Budget Brisbane Airport

AUD 105 per night

For location, click here

I have to catch my morning flight at 9am hence prefer to stay in a hotel that is closer to the airport so that I can wake up later. Ibis budget and Novotel Airport hotel are the 2 closest hotel to the airport and both provides FREE parking. Parking in the city will amount up to an average of AUD40 per night. Besides, there is a nearby DFO (Factory Outlet) that is just located opposite the hotel. Great convenience!

Small but sufficient room

Small but personalized toilet

Some hotels in the area uses communal toilet. So do check up on the hotel before booking.

The hotel front desk is not open 24 hours. However, they have a booth located outside the hotel for 24 hours check in services for the issuing of room keys. Also, you can conveniently drop off your hotel room card for quick check out.

Stay:
7/10

Skygate Direct Factory Outlet

Opening Hours:

0900 - 1700

For location, click here

There are many food choices here at Skygate. Average prices here are around AUD10 for a meal.

The most worth it store here is ADIDAS. The prices there are generally already reduced by 50% and you can take a further 40% off which set the prices of your shoe to around AUD40. Cheap grab!

The diesel store is not so worth it. They have no sales for their shoe. There are not many people in the store as well.

Espirit here is cheap. You take a further 50% off on top of the discount.

Woolsworth

You can purchase your last minute groceries from Woolsworth, just adjacent to Skygate. It is the one and only 24 hours supermarket in Queensland! There is also a Dan's murphy beside woolsworth where you can purchase alcohol for your tax free alcohol. It is cheaper to buy here than the duty free in Singapore. Besides, there are a wider variety of Australian wine.

I will recommend the mascato from Gossip sweet lips. It is considered a dessert wine but the taste is great! Easy to drink! It is only AUD3.99

Taste:
9/10

Car Return at Brisbane International Airport

Opening Hours:
24 hours

For car return, simply drive into the car park for the international airport. There are signs to guide you where to park. If you have rented a car from Hertz, you will have to park your car in the Hertz lot.

Before you leave the car, take a picture of the odometer as the Hertz personnel will need to verify the distance you have travelled. Also, you need to show the receipt of the refuelling and it must be 15km from the airport. During the rental, they will offer a free refuelling at a discounted rate. Do not take that as it will be cheaper to refuel on your own since they will charge the price of a full tank. Why pay for the petrol when you did not even use them!

Next proceed to the Hertz counter to drop off the Key and off you go!

Breakfast

I had a hearty big breakfast at the airport. It cost around AUD20 and an additional AUD4 for my cappuccino. If you have not tried their big breakfast, give it a try at the airport.

Departures

Australia is pretty strict on the on board hand luggage. If you have one, make sure it falls within the 7-8 kg limit as there will be a guard at the luggage inspection are checking the weight of your luggage.

SQ 256 BNE - SIN

They serve breakfast and brunch for the morning flight back to Singapore. During the full journey, the inflight entertainment system was done for about an hour.

Breakfast

You have a choice of sausage with eggs or chicken with noodles.