How much does a trip to Australia cost? Daily budget and prices

These are per-person, per-day figures for 2026, assuming mid-range and comfort travellers share a room. They cover bed, food, local transport, paid sights and small extras. They do not cover flights, visas, car hire, or reef and outback tours, which are the items that most often blow a budget.

Backpackers who cook in hostel kitchens and use public transport can hold the line near the bottom of the range. Mid-range travellers who eat out twice a day and take a paid tour every few days sit in the middle. Comfort travellers paying for 4–5★ rooms, restaurant dinners and taxis should plan for the top of the range.

Everyday items are easy to price once you know a few anchors. Coffee, bakery food and pub meals are the three you will buy most often. A flat white runs A$5–6.50, a meat pie at a bakery A$6–9, and a pub meal such as a parma or burger A$25–35. A schooner of beer in a pub is A$10–14.

Big-ticket activities are where budgets diverge. A Great Barrier Reef day trip from Cairns is A$200–300, and a three-day Uluru-Kata Tjuta park pass is about A$38 (check). A Sydney ferry ride is A$8–10, one of the cheapest sightseeing trips in the country. Domestic flights average around A$180 one way with a bag included, and car hire adds A$60–120 a day plus fuel.

Sydney is the priciest city for accommodation and eating out. Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth sit a little below it. Smaller towns and regional areas are cheaper for beds but can be dearer for food, because there is less competition.

The real jump is remoteness. In Uluru, the Kimberley and on reef islands, expect 30–60% more for everything, from a room to a sandwich, because stock is trucked or flown in. Fuel in the outback is also higher, and distances are long, so a driving trip through remote country costs more per day than the same number of days in a city.

Tours are the other variable. Reef and outback tours run A$150–300 a day extra on top of your daily budget, and multi-day tours can exceed that. If a reef trip and an Uluru trip are both on your list, price them before you book flights, because they change the shape of the whole budget.

Travel in shoulder season. School holidays, the Christmas–January peak and major events push city hotel prices up sharply, while May and September are usually cheaper and still pleasant in most of the country. Booking accommodation and internal flights a few months ahead locks in lower fares.

Self-cater some meals. Supermarket food is good value, and most hostels and many motels have kitchens or at least a kettle and fridge. Mixing self-catered breakfasts and picnic lunches with one restaurant meal a day keeps a mid-range trip near the bottom of its band.

Use public transport in the big cities rather than taxis, and pick free sights: beaches, coastal walks, botanic gardens and many museums are free or gold-coin donation. If you are driving, share the car and fuel between two or more people, and plan a loop rather than a one-way hire, which usually carries a drop-off fee.

The currency is the Australian dollar (AUD, A$). Contactless cards and phones are accepted almost everywhere, including public transport in the big cities, and some small cafes are card-only. Carry a small amount of cash for remote areas and markets, where signal and card machines can fail.

Some businesses add a card surcharge, so a card is not always the cheapest way to pay a small bill. Tipping is not expected; rounding up for good service in a restaurant is enough. Prices include GST, and the Tourist Refund Scheme lets visitors claim GST back on eligible goods at the airport, subject to conditions.