A trip to Australia promises sunshine, beaches and an easygoing lifestyle and has long been a staple for “gap year” Britons seeking new experiences. Australia welcomed almost 700,000 British travellers in 2019, many of them young backpackers.
But as visitors return after the pandemic they are facing higher costs and fewer accommodation choices, meaning the laidback lifestyle they dreamed of is further from reach.
“My best mate came travelling before Covid and said it was so cheap, you could rock up to places [hostels] and book on the day. It’s nothing like that now… we have to book a week in advance to get anywhere to stay and pay so much money for it,” says Mia Blum, 23, from Cornwall.
Hostel prices across Australia have increased significantly since 2019, as owners seek to recoup losses from the pandemic, which saw hostels across the country close as demand plummeted. Tourism Adventure Group, which owns the Nomad group of hostels across Australia, closed six hostels. It reports that its prices are up as much as 50 per cent.
YHA and other major hostel groups have also raised prices. One industry figure, who did not want to be named, said they estimated that as many as half of hostels had closed in some Australian tourist hotspots during the pandemic.
For many, travelling to Australia is a chance to escape the cost of living crisis back home and a reprieve after a tough few years of pandemic-related restrictions. However, confronted by higher than expected costs when they arrive, many are now being forced to change their plans.
Rachel Carr, 24, from Northumberland, had wanted to visit Australia for some time but her trip was put on hold as borders remained closed due to the pandemic. This allowed her to save more money while at home, but now she has arrived she has had to start working in her hostel in return for a bed, as well taking on as another job, to make ends meet.
Kerstina-Louise Macleod, 25, had saved enough money for a deposit for a house back home in the Isle of Skye. She expected to be able to complete her year-long trip to Australia, also delayed due to Covid, with enough money to return and purchase a property.
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“I had to use some of my house deposit that I’d saved up for just to pay for hostels,” she said. She started working as soon as she could when she arrived. “Each day I worked I just thought: that’s two nights’ worth of accommodation. I cancelled all my plans, didn’t see anyone… I was trying to work as much as possible just to cover the costs.”
Inflation in Australia, whilst not as high as the UK, is still significant. Although young travellers say that they didn’t expect a life of luxury on a backpackers budget, many are surprised just how expensive things are, including food.
“Back home you can get a Premier Inn for £21 a night – that’s a private room with en suite – but some of the hostels I’ve seen here I’ve been paying $65 [£34] a night for a room with nine other people with no air conditioning and really bad conditions. It’s shocking,” says Ms Macleod. She has put on hold her plan to go to the east coast in order to save more money, as she’s concerned about high costs.
Travellers also report significant increases around big events, such as the Grand Prix in Melbourne earlier this month, which makes planning even more difficult. Some have had to move hostels several times a week as availability is so low.
“During the Australian Open everything was getting booked up so fast and there was no availability in the hostel we had been staying in… we had to pay a higher price for a few nights in a worse hostel than we would for a week in our other place,” says Ms Carr.
Travellers are returning in their droves and many backpackers take advantage of the Working Holiday Maker (WHM) visa scheme, aimed at younger travellers, offering a year’s visa and the chance to work along the way.
A UK/Australia free trade agreement (FTA), signed in 2021, promises to make travel between the two countries easier, with fewer restrictions. Changes to the WHM visa scheme include raising the age at which Brits can apply for the WHM visa to 35 – up from 30 previously – which means Brits who were previously too old to take advantage may do so.
The FTA has been given Royal Assent by both Governments but is yet to come into effect, much to the consternation of some travellers.
K’Dee Melfi, 31, from Manchester, is too old to apply for a WHM visa under the existing rules. During the pandemic she re-evaluated her life and decided to take a round-the-world trip.
She visited Australia at the start of the year and loved it, but could not stay any longer on her tourist visa. Currently in Japan, she says she is “desperate” to return on a WHM visa when the rules change, but is frustrated by the lack of information from both governments about when the changes will come into effect.
“I feel like I’m in limbo, I’m constantly refreshing the news. I know so many other people who feel the same,” she says.
A spokesperson for the Australian Department of Home Affairs said the changes to the WHM scheme would be implemented “within two years of entry into force of the FTA”.
