Hey,
Hi Mel
I'm not planning to travel around Australia again any time soon (sadly!) but I can totally relate to your post. I'm not into drinking and clubbing either, and enjoy the same kinds of things you mentioned. I think the key when you're travelling is to choose your hostels carefully, so that you avoid the party places and go for the quieter ones where you are more likely to meet like-minded people. Read the reviews or how the hostels describe themselves- often it will be pretty obvious if somewhere is more focused on partying. I've travelled extensively on my own in Australia as well as other countries, and I've never found it hard to meet like -minded travellers who aren't into drinking all the time, even when I was at a much younger age. The East Coast of Oz is very party-oriented, and even there I managed to find hostels that suited me, and met plenty of people to travel onwards with or hang out with. For every traveller who is into getting drunk etc all the time there is probably another who isn't, so I don't think you'll have a problem.
Hope this helps, and have a fantastic time!
Thanks so much!
Any recommendations for non-party hostels?
Hi Mel,
Sorry to hear about your contract...you were meant to go travelling instead.
Im travelling south east Asia from June onwards for six months, planning to go new Zealand, if your plans tine, it be great to travel together, I'm also looking to sight see and explore, not just drink n party..maybe the odd day here n there but not full on.
Let me know how your plans are, can discuss.
Thanks
Hina
Hi Mel
A similar thing happened to me around six years ago, except I was on my way back from a long weekend in Madrid, coming back to England to sign the contract for a flat I was buying. On the flight back I was thinking about the weekend I had just had, and realised that if I were to buy a place of my own, then I would be much more strapped for cash and weekends away in Europe would be a rare occurrence. By the time I had touched down in England I had decided not to buy the house and to use the money I had saved as a deposit to go travelling. I left in September 2009 and arrived back in England in March 2011.
It was the best 18 months of my life and I am so pleased I did that rather than buying a house. In short, I think this will be a blessing in disguise for you!
I agree with Bex, pick your hostels carefully and you’d probably be better off getting the Greyhound rather than something like the Oz Experience bus. Generally I found the YHA hostels in Australia to be slightly more sedate, and generally of a higher standard than most other hostels. You are probably best off avoiding the BASE/Nomad chains and staying in either YHA or independent hostels.
Again as Bex says, the East Coast is party orientated. I wish I had spent more time exploring the West Coast as I really liked places like Perth, Fremantle and Margaret River and I thought Tasmania was beautiful, and regret not seeing more of Tasmania.
Oh and please make sure you try and get to New Zealand, I enjoyed it more than Australia and think there is far more to see and do!
Thanks for the advice guys. It's great to see that there are other people like me out there.
Hina- your trip looks amazing. I'd love to visit some of the places on your itinerary, but as I'm travelling by myself, I'm not so sure. When do you intend to reach New Zealand? I'm trying to decide which country I go to first: Oz or NZ. Maybe if we're both there at the same time, we could meet up. It'd be fun to hear about your travels
Steve - Thanks for the advice about the YHA hostels. I'm going to have a look at them now. The Greyhound sounds more my type of thing as well One of my workmates has suggested today that I spend more time on the West Coast. She said the beaches were amazing and as I'll be hitting the shores at the start of spring/summer, it sounds like the best place to be
Thanks everyone x
Hi Mel,
Although I am probably a little older than you and did do a more partying orientated trip in NZ when I was 24, my two OZ trips were totally different.
Travelled together with my gf, so could split the cost of a rental car, but that way you can really explore the continent, because basically that's what it is: a huge country aka continent, with magnificent areas to explore. And although some cities and beaches/coastlines are nice, it is not much different from what you can explore elsewhere in the world (well, sort of, you get the point).
To me, the highlight of Australia is to get into the outback, the deserts and explore that region. And the good thing is: you don't need a 4wd car to get you to some of the nicest areas. And during the toughest 4wd trips, you probably won't meet anyone in the first place, which might be a bit too boring I guess.
Check my two trips and photos here on TP, you can see that I did visit some cities and coasts, but most of it was travelling inland.
O, I do like a beer or wine at night, but just a few to end the day....
Cheers and have fun!
Michael.
As everyone has said, you're certainly not alone in wanting to explore places that aren't on the main tourist route and not wanting to spend your nights partying. As Bex mentions choosing your hostels will help you, usually their websites give you a hint on what to expect, try to avoid the ones advertising wet t-shirt contests.
Because I live in Australia, normally I have travelled with friends but have met like minded explorers in campsites and often at tourist attractions. I travelled with a group of Dutch backpackers throughout Litchfield National Park after meeting them in the campground.
In the past I've also posted an advertisement on for a ride share with my interests and intended route (like you have here) and found some awesome people to travel with.
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