With the help of the RatPack crew you’ve planned to travel Australia, AMAZING! But now you’re thinking, wow Australia is actually bloody massive, how am I going to get around without spending a fortune… so you have a few options to travel around Australia, cheap domestic flights, buy a car/camper, rent a car/camper, rideshare or to really see aussie, by bus service (Greyhound)!
I chose the most popular and social option which was to do it by bus service, Greyhound to be precise… What Greyhound offer is these awesome hop on hop off passes where you can travel in one direction and hop off at any point along the way as much as you like.
These Greyhound buses go a few times a day and are SO convenient for getting you from A to B, not only do they get you where you need to go, but you’ll also get there comfortably. Yep, we’re talking reclining leather seats, usb ports, wifi, aircon, toilet on board and regular stops at servos where you can get food – yay! I travelled all the way from Cairns – Sydney (3,300km) using the Greyhound hop on hop off pass and had an awesome time.
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How does it work?
So when you buy your pass on the RatPack site you will instantly given a booking number and a pin that is your unique log in for the Greyhound website.
You’ll have your own log in area which will take you to the ‘manage my booking’ page. On this section you’ll be able to pop in your dates of travel and where you want to travel too and simply add the buses to your itinerary, it’s super easy! It’s in this section that you can also delete buses too if plans change, because we all know that very often that does happen!
How to choose a pass?
There are lots of combinations of passes to choose from based on your route and what you want to see. Note: any of the passes below you can start in either location.
- Cairns <> Sydney – the most popular choice, choose this if you want to get the full east coast experience and have 3 weeks+
- Cairns <> Brisbane – best if you have less time but want to see all the hotspots aka Fraser Island, the Whitsundays & the Great Barrier Reef (note- this has an extra add on that allows you to go to Byron Bay too!)
- Cairns <> Melbourne – The ultimate! If you have maximum time and want to cruise the whole east coast all the way round to Melbourne this is your best option, value wise it works out all in all as cost effective as flying!
There are also hop on hop off passes which offer travel in any direction on any route with a larger max of travel days.
Getting the bus
Your itinerary will tell you what time and where your bus will pick you up from, I recommend getting there at least 15 mins early, it’s always better to have extra time right? Also allow yourself plenty of time to get to the Greyhound stop.
Once at the stop, when the Greyhound arrives wait for everyone to get off and collect their luggage and then you can put your luggage on the bus where the driver tells you (this is important that you put it in the right spot). Then you’ll be checked in by the driver, have your Greyhound bus ticket, plus a form of ID (driving license is good) once you are checked in and ticked off, you can board the bus yay!
The extra deets
Your Greyhound ticket is valid for 1 year after the date of purchase and then you have 3 months to use it after your first date of travel, you can take up to 20kg on the bus but if you need any extra items aka a surfboard you’ll have to let them know before and you’ll have to pay an additional fee. We recommend arriving 20 mins at least before the departure time. There’s aircon & toilets on the bus so that’s got you covered for those long old journeys.
So all in all, it’s an easy, cheap and convenient way to travel and I couldn’t recommend it more! It’s my go-to way for travelling Australia.
Plus, the RatPack team has you covered, from 15 day to 90 day bus passes:
15 Day Greyhound Whimit Bus Pass
30 Day Greyhound Whimit Bus Pass
About the Author: Sammy
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I had a call with Ryan who was super nice, knowledgable and made me feel really at ease with making my decision. He asked me all about what I want to do and achieve on my trip, although I didn’t really want to pack too much in… nor gave much detail on what I want to do, he gave options and ideas for me to look into. He used his own experience as an example which was really helpful to hear and made me feel like I’m right at home with RatPack, I knew then I was making the right choice by talking to him. He answered any questions I had, even if they seemed like silly questions to ask. The booking process is really easy and straight forward, they do all the hard parts for you. Once Ryan talked me through my options, I made my selection and all I had to do was enter my card details for the deposit and I was done! Thanks to Ryan’s detailed and calm approach I knew I was booking with the right company/team. I can’t wait for the next step!!
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The Ratpack team and specifically Ryan f were great for booking our dream New Zealand campervan trip. Ryan worked hard over several days trying to find the best possible deals for us and the communication was great with updates regularly. He was able to get us 2 vans that out did any other quotes that we received and we are really looking forward to our trip with Ratpack being by our side. Thanks a lot Ryan F!
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I am so stoked with the service I received from Ryan at RatPack Travel. He was so proactive and on the ball to help me with all my questions and variations. He gave me several options and gave me other things to look at to make sure I had all that I needed. Ryan did all the legwork in following up the availability of the type of van I wanted. If you are wanting to go on a Campervan holiday no matter how long or short, I would recommend RatPack Travel! They will be you support in every step of the process, in the lead up and while on the road. Thanks Ryan! You're a legend! They are a one stop shop when it comes to sourcing campervans and motorhomes from different providers! I nearly forgot to say - he got me a great deal on a newer model. ;)
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Greg was superb! We told him what we wanted in a camper van. Even with less than two weeks notice, he didn’t disappoint. We loved our camper van and it was perfect for the two of us!
