Australia: How Expensive is it, Really?
When we first arrived in Australia, coming off of one month in Thailand and five months in Southeast Asia, we were immediately struck by how expensive everything here seemed.
Australia is significantly more expensive than Southeast Asia for most of the things tourists need: transportation, food, accommodation, and tourist attractions. However, when we truly started to think about the costs here, we realized that they are actually pretty close to what one would expect to pay to vacation in a world-class destination.
With respect to transportation, one thing we noticed as soon as we arrived in Sydney was that our 20-minute Uber ride to our Airbnb was going to cost significantly more (~35 USD) than what we had just paid for a one-hour airport transfer in Thailand (~25 USD). While this was quite the contrast — especially when we had become used to Grab rides in Southeast Asia that cost as little as a couple of dollars (including tip) — it’s actually quite comparable to what you would pay for an Uber back in North America or Europe. And in contrast to most of the places we stayed in Southeast Asia, there’s also the option of taking public transit, which in Sydney was a quite robust, safe, reliable, and inexpensive alternative.
Food was another spending category that we found to be a lot more expensive in Australia — not only relative to Southeast Asia, but also to our usual costs in Toronto. Shopping at grocery stores in Sydney seemed markedly more expensive than back home. However, as we spent more time in Australia, we came to realize that the place we were shopping (i.e. Woolworth’s Metro) tended to be much more expensive than some of the other alternatives, and that for our everyday shopping needs the larger Coles stores were more comparable to prices back home.
In terms of restaurants and take away, the prices initially seemed to be significantly higher than back home, with regular restaurants typically charging around 30 AUD for their cheapest meal. However, when you consider that the amount on the menu includes your tax and tip (the minimum wage is apparently 20+ AUD here), the cost for a meal out actually tends to be very comparable to what you would pay at a restaurant in North America — it just looks more expensive because your all-in price is quoted up front.
Accommodations here have been quite expensive relative to Southeast Asia and back home, but that said there are decent deals to be had if you look for them. Thanks to a few good deals, including a large monthly discount for an Airbnb stay, we expect we will ultimately pay somewhere around 3,000 USD per month for accommodations, although you could easily spend much more.
Tourist attractions also charge a hefty price here, with each excursion costing at least 250 AUD for a family of four. And while this does certainly add up after a while, you can also spend many days just hanging around enjoying attractions that don’t require admissions. There is no shortage of trails, scenic walks, and public amenities that are absolutely free.
And if all else fails, you can always bask in the knowledge that the Australian dollar trades at a discount to Canadian, American, and European currencies!