Sunshine Coast to Darwin - Jatbula Trip

 Pre Day 2 – Thursday 15 August

Sunshine Coast to Darwin

When I booked the ConXion airport bus is was for a pick up between 4:55 and 5:15pm – perfect for a 4:30pm work finish.  Thankfully we both had some time owing and had arranged to finish work a little early as during the day I was advised our pickup would now be between 4:18 and 4:38pm.  In the end the bus arrived at 4:40pm with only one other family onboard.  

https://www.con-x-ion.com/point-to-point/brisbane-to-sunshine-coast-shuttle-bus

An uneventful trip to the airport and we arrived at the domestic terminal just before 6pm.  As we were unable to check our luggage in until 6:50pm we sat and ate our dinner and relaxed. Our bags caused some puzzlement as to their contents when we were checking in – the hostess thought it might contain a baby’s car seat. Once checked in we made our way through the usual airport security – I had to surrender the insect repellent due to the lack of a cap. It was an uneventful flight and we managed to nap a little on the plane.  Over Darwin we had to fly a holding pattern while waiting to land. We landed about 1:15am, about 40 minutes late. 

We collected our luggage, collected our prebooked hire car and drove to our prebooked accommodation and made it to bed by 2:15am. We stayed the night in a basic motel style room at Hidden Valley Holiday Park Darwin.

https://www.dollarcarrental.com.au/

https://www.lifestyleparks.com.au/hidden-valley/

Melbourne to Sunshine Coast by Public Transport (GOW Trip)

 27 February 2024 (Post day 2)

 

Today was a very early start 5am, daylight saving time. We were away by 5:45am. We walked to the train, waited 10 minutes and then train rode the train to Southern Cross. We had a 10-15 minute wait for the SkyBus, and no significant traffic. We were checked in and in the departure lounge for 8:15. While we waited for our flight we ate breakfast, followed by a spot of shopping at the Lego Store. The plane departed on time and we enjoyed a smooth flight. On arrival at Maroochydore Airport we could feel the humidity on our fingertips as soon as we went outside. We waited for 40 minutes at the aiport for the bus to Maroochydore. Then we caught the bus to near home and walked home in the heat and humidity. We arrived home about 2:15pm very sweaty. Terrific holiday!

 https://southerncrossstation.com.au/

https://www.skybus.com.au/melbourne-city-express/locations/

https://www.melbourneairport.com.au/shop/lego

https://www.sunshinecoastairport.com.au/

https://www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au/living-and-community/roads-and-transport/transport-options/public-transport/bus-and-train/translink-sunbus

1 train, 3 buses,1 plane

4.38km walking

Sunshine Coast to Melbourne by Public Transport (GOW trip)

 16 February 2024 (Pre day 2)

 

We left home at 8:15on foot, arriving right on time for our first bus. We both wore our new raincoats purchased for this walk. We have previously only had cheap raincoats because Queensland rain tends not to leave you cold, but along the Southern Ocean we felt we should be prepared for rain accompanied by cold wind.  The raincoats worked well but everything that was not covered was wet through, including our jeans.  

At Maroochydore Bus Station we waited for our next bus to the Maroochydore Airport.

https://translink.com.au/travel-with-us/around-queensland/sunshine-coast

https://www.sunshinecoastairport.com.au/

Arriving at the airport we queued up with hundreds of Taylor Swift fans heading to Melbourne for her concert.  We were checked in nicely on time for our scheduled flight time, unfortunately the flight was delayed thirty minutes.  By the time it was time to board we were almost dry only to be soaked again getting across the tarmac to the plane.

Our seats were on the emergency exits so while we had loads of leg room, we did not have any view from the windows.  The plane was full of Taylor Swift fans and Drew was definitely in a very small minority on the plane, being male. At the end of the flight one of the hostesses played a Taylor Swift song via her phone through the plane’s announcement system – not exactly great audio, but the fans seemed to love it.  The plane landed in Melbourne approximately twenty to twenty-five minutes behind schedule.  We then collected our baggage and joined the queue for the Skybus.  We only had to wait through two cycles despite the crowds, so pretty quick.

https://www.melbourneairport.com.au/ 

https://www.skybus.com.au/

Arriving at Southern Cross Station we were reminded of Thomas the Tank Engine – with all 16 platforms under one roof.  Being 5:30pm there were a lot of trains running so we only needed to wait for a few minutes before boarding a train .  Then just a short walk to our overnight accommodation.

https://southerncrossstation.com.au/ 

A day full of travel – 4 buses, 1 plane and 1 train

Walking 4.4km