Noosa Holidays

Traveling baggage

Next, our discussion turns to luggage. What exactly do you need to pack into your suitcase and how? What goes into your suitecase is important too.

• Shop for the items you need several days before your trip to avoid last minute convenience buying
• Empty cheap dollar-store equivalent plastic bottles filled with products like shampoo and liquid soap will go a long way to save you some money. Buyers beware of travel size items. Typically, you do not find these items economically priced. Mostly people can consider them a luxury and specialized item. Soap dish and toothbrush cases are also handy items to store your wet bathroom utilities in and keep your clothes dry.
• Invest in a customized and general mini chemist with various basic items like aspirin, band-aids, antacids, and cold remedies when in need the hotel convenient store or local pharmacy prices can be astronomically and notoriously over-priced.



• Back-to-the-basics: always have an extra pair of socks, pantyhose, and underwear somewhere. Be prepared for anything and everything, including delays. If there are delays on your return trip, for any reason, it is reassuring to know that you will at least have fresh undergarments to wear!
• Pack wisely and include a couple of extra outfits. Hotel dry-cleaning is expensive and having a quick change of clothes for a spill or other inevitabilities is always a good idea. Pack more than you need seems to be the rule of thumb.
• Liquid laundry soap can be a good investment for clothing that needs a little spot cleaning or laundering, hand washing it in the sink will also save you a dollar or two while en route.
• A trusted toiletry bag, stocked with all you might need, ready to go is always a good idea. Having your toiletry and bathroom essentials ready at all, times will reduce the likelihood of forgetting something important like your toothbrush and having to buy one.

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Road trips

• Maximize fuel mileage and efficiency. A well-maintained vehicle will go a long way to ensure carefree driving. It is advisable to travel in a small economy car. It could be your own or a rental car. However, bear in mind, the smaller the vehicle, and the better it will be on fuel. Minivans are practical if transporting a large family and lots of equipment or luggage.



• Keeping yourself and others entertained while on the road is no small task. Music or books on tape or CD, signed out from your local library, can be a lifesaver. Solo driving can become extremely boring especially when all others have nodded off and all falls silent. However, when you are actively listening, on the edge of your driver's seat so to speak while listening to a novel or mystery, the time passes by quite quickly.
• Pack-a-snack. Bring your own refreshments and snacks. Fuel prices in queensland are high, drinks and snack food are even higher if purchased from fuel stations. Avoid these during a pit stop, if you are counting your travel dollars. A cooler packed with lots of cool drinks, water and ice and/or a thermos of coffee or hot water for tea, some fruit, granola bars, or a sandwich, goes a long way to still the hunger and save you money by avoiding all high priced stops en route.
• Fuel fill-ups. For filling up your car en route, avoid pushing to the limit until the petrol runs out or filling up at or in remote locations. The rationale in this statement: fuel will obviously be more expensive, the more remote or isolated the station is. If you miscalculated and the light on the dashboard indicates that you are really in need, opt for filling just half a tank until you reach the next more densely or major populated destination, where gas might be a little cheaper.
• Travel necessities. It is advisable to be traveling with basic value-add necessities, like a cell phone and a first aid kit. Both can prove to be essential in emergencies.
• Communication needs. A handy short-term cell phone rental might be the answer for and on your trip. The peace of mind it offer's, might just be worth the price, trouble and investment. Cell phone long distance calls are still cheaper than ones made from hotels or resorts. They typically add some hefty surcharges and tend to charge higher long distance rates.

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In the air

• Confirm ground transportation to and from the airport if you are not driving yourself, if you are flying why not use the park-and-fly service. Allow lots of transit and en-route times, confirm your bookings and remember to always let hotels or resorts know if you are running late, delayed and or if your trip is cancelled altogether.
• Explore offerings online, comparison shop and booking with a discount airline. Virgin Blue flies to Maroochidore airport (20 minute drive to Noosa) every day as do Jet star from most capital cities of Australia. International flights fly into Brisbane where shuttle busses will pick you up and drive you directly to Noosa (2 hour drive). Remember flexibility on your part regarding dates and times will translate into savings. Be sure to book shuttle busses before you leave home.
• Enroll in an air miles, reward or frequent flyer plan that often includes discounts on hotels and car rentals.
• Timing is everything. Avoid peak periods for example, holidays, spring break, and peak business hour time's makes for more travelers en route and supply and demand will dictate pricing and cost - usually higher. Take advantage of shoulder and low season travel periods and fly against the tide of weekenders in and out of Noosa.
• Best airfare rates often involve a Saturday night stay.
• Book flights at least two weeks in advance. The closer the booking to the flight date, the more expensive it will be.
• Log on to the airline booking website and check out unadvertised flight specials.
• Booking on-line usually saves a few dollars too.
• Use a park and fligh service and park your own vehicle at the airport. Driving your car there and back is much cheaper than a taxi if you live far from the airport. There are also airpoirt bus services or shuttles that are cheaper than taxis.
• When boarding the plane, bring your own water. Airplanes are dry and flight attendants do not have time to keep refilling your glass, buying bottled water on the plane is expensive.
• Never eat at the airport. Airport food is twice the price of food anywhere else. Try to eat before arriving at the airport or pack a few snacks to tie you over until you reach your destination.
• Book your transport from the airport to your accommodation in Noosa as soon as you have booked your accommodation.
• Save time and headaches by traveling with a bag, you can carry on the plane. Some airlines have express check-in counters for passengers traveling with carry-on luggage only.
• If traveling on an international flight, re-confirm you're booking 72 hours prior to departure - some charter companies reserve the right to cancel your booking if you do not! When confirmed on a domestic flight, airlines cannot bump you. Try to get plenty of sleep the night before your trip. Call to find out whether there are any delays before leaving for the airport.

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family accommodation

• Utilize travel services, that is why they are there, remembering that all extras like valet parking, baggage handling, luggage carts, tips etc. all add up and need to be budgetary items or categories in your overall travel and financial planner if staying in a resort.
• For the budget conscious, select the neighborhood-friendly hotels or holiday apartments found in Noosaville along the river that caters to the local crowd, not the pricy touristy options found in Hastings street. You might be surprised at the value and hospitality you might find.
• Make the concierge and information desks your friends - they are the main link to Noosa tourist operators. Get that special insider and local insights, tips and expertise at your disposal, waiting to make your trip and experience that more special and memorable.
• They can also offer some handy referrals and give ideas on what things might cost, book ground transportation and much, much more.
• Explore other options than hotels - try holiday homes, apartments, guest rooms and houses, B&B's, sub-let or short-term "lease', farmhouses, self-catering apartments.
• It's always best to book your accommodation by location to make sure you are situated in the right area if town.
• Avoid big Hotel bills, try AAA memberships, family-friendly hotels, ask for a first floor room, as most have pools (if you are fearful for little children wandering around and falling in).
• Continental breakfasts are a great money-saver for large families.
• Eating in a supermarket deli-like counter proves to be much cheaper than fast-food locations or expensive restaurants.

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Some tips

Whether making plans early to ensure availability and locking in a price, or flexible enough to wait until last minute and or deeply discounted fares and travel deals, there are options to suit every pocket, taste and travel budget!

Investing in trip cancellation Travel insurance and travel medical insurance are travel necessities you cannot dismiss, discard or under-estimate. This is not the spot to be thinking cost cutting. Protect your travel investment best you can.

Having an "out-the-door checklist' prior to departure and before returning home, with a few miscellaneous items to pack, as a last minute reminder, always proves helpful and avoids unnecessary stressful moments and wasteful and hasty cash purchases. It might contain any, some or all of the following:

• First aid kits should contain, at the very least some band-aids and anti-bacterial ointment, all prescriptions, cold and allergy medicines, dosage spoon and chart. Tylenol for the traveling adults, children and babies is always a good idea as well.
• Foil-packaged, coffee and tea are a necessity. You can also pack, if you prefer a certain type, Sweeteners and Cream/milk or whitener.
• Camera and film supplies
• All relevant travel documents, tickets, passports, birth certificates, travel insurance information baggage, currency and travelers checks (if applicable), Phone numbers and maps, emergency contact and identification cards for the kids and individual travelers
• Addresses for sending postcards, and stamps, Cell phone and/or prepaid phone card
• Favorite books, music, DVD's and videos for the children (most hotels have VCRs now)
• Bathing suits, extra towels, and sunscreen
• Snacks and juice or water for the hotel (every penny counts)
• Finally yet importantly - do not forget the EXTRA pillows and favorite toy or sleeping friend for the kid(s) if required or deemed a necessity!
• Ensure to set and arrange for a couple of alarm clocks or wake-up calls on your day of departure.

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Safety and security

Noosa is a nice safe destination with a very low crime rate. It's always worth being conscious of safe travel practices no matter where you travel. Some tips;

• Do not travel with precious possessions and be discreet with cash and other valuables. Leave sentimental and irreplaceable items at home preferably.
• Protect your essentials like travel documentation, passport, traveler's checks, credit cards and more. Concealing them on-person, in a pouch or somewhere in your clothing is all accepted practice.
• Be watchful but not paranoid about being at risk of becoming or being a robbery victim. You will end up spending excessive money on cabs everywhere as opposed to taking a gentle stroll and or exploring by foot!
• Keep valuables concealed in crowded places. Do not consider hip pockets and dangling bags good places for your wallet!
• Do not carry excess cash you do not need, especially at night and do not flaunt cash in public under any circumstance. Do not make yourself a visible and easy target.
• Divide and spread your cash and other money instruments like traveler's checks around your luggage.- do not carry it all in one place.
• A good budgeting tip is wrapping your wallet with a rubber band or two to make it harder for pickpockets to remove it from your pocket without detection!
• Keep your luggage safe, with you and secure at night when you sleep.
• Never leave luggage and or valuables in a car, bus, taxi, train or other form of transportation.
• Always watch at security screenings or customs checks to ensure that your belongings do not disappear.
• Speaking about customs, when exceeding the duty-free limits, know that it will cost you dearly, up to as much as 10 % on the next $1000 worth of goods.

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Travel wrap-up

Once you get home, with all your receipts, bills, photographs (or film, memory cards these days!) in one piece and your dream vacation has come to an end, spend a couple of minutes on a debrief or post-mortem so to speak.

If you are jetlagged and just simply have no energy to do so, wait a couple of days. However, do not delay or postpone for too long, because we are creatures of habit and fall right back into life, without sparing a second thought of our trips' aftermath and how lessons learnt, money saved and more, can assist us on our next round of travel.

This situation-analysis and post-assessment will be helpful in that the budget-plan now almost takes care of itself and will just need to be adjusted and a new destination , facts and amounts filled in to set you up nicely for the checking off that next dream location or trip you had in mind and listed earlier.