In April 2015, we visited five countries: Colombia, United States, Canada, Fiji, and Australia. Two weeks ago we summarized Colombia, and now it is time for the remainder of the month. After Colombia, we visited the Pacific Northwest, before spending an unexpected day in Fiji. We settled down in Melbourne, but not after we briefly visited Sydney.
The Good
- We got a free, all included stay in Fiji by volunteering to leave the next day due to an overbooked flight,
- In expensive Sydney we stayed with friends so we could rent a car instead and travel around New South Wales.
The Bad
- Accidentally, we parked in the Opera House garage in Sydney. We thought it would cost about 4$, but we missed the night parking rate signs: 31$ was the final bill,
- Sydney in general is very expensive. Due to our free stay in Fiji we could increase Sydney’s budget, which turned out to be just enough.
A detailed list of expenses per country is listed below. The amounts per person are based on our two-person journey. Flights are listed separately (and are not included in the countries’ budget) as we booked these in advance.
Flights
- Los Angeles to Seattle (return): $328 ($164 pp) on Southwest Airlines,
- Los Angeles to Sydney: $1,113 ($556.50 pp) on Fiji Airways,
- Sydney to Melbourne: $166 ($83 pp) on Tigerair.
United States & Canada
As we were traveling with Herta’s parents, we do not have a detailed breakdown of all our expenses.
Fiji
As we received spending money from the airline, we actually made money on Fiji.
- Days: 1,
- Budget: $0,
- Expenses: -$12 (-$6 pppd),
Sydney, Australia
- Days: 2,
- Budget: $450 ($112.50 pppd),
- Expenses: $446 ($111.50 pppd),
- Additional visa costs: $800 ($400 pp).
Next Month
On April 30th, we arrived in Melbourne after a long journey of over six months. The next month we will look for an apartment, job, bike, furniture, and everything else that comes with being responsible adults. We plan to stay in Melbourne for a year or so, as on first sight it seems to be an extremely livable city.
