How Much Does Backpacking Australia’s East Coast Cost? Full Budget Breakdown
- Margaux
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
Australia is not the cheapest country to backpack, yet it remains a very popular destination. So how much should you budget for a backpacking trip to Australia? This blog post will take you through how much hostels, transport, activities, and food costs along the east coast of Australia, to help you determine a budget for your trip.
For a full guide to backpacking Australia’s east coast, see my post here.
Contents
My Daily Budget in Australia
My daily average spend for the east coast of Australia was £114 over 20 days. This included a skydive, which obviously raised the spend, so without that, it would have been £100/day. Activities were definitely the biggest category. The Whitsundays and K’Gari tours, plus a tour in Cairns every day, were a large chunk, so you do have to budget a bit more for that. Needless to say, this was quite a rushed and packed schedule, so it is definitely doable for less if you spend more time in each place and aren’t packing every day with activities. Here is a full breakdown of how much things cost in Australia.
Total East Coast Australia Trip Cost
Depending on how you approach your East Coast Australia trip, your spend will vary. Here is an estimation:
Budget backpacker: £80–£100 per day
Mid-range backpacker: £100–£130 per day
Big activity-heavy trip: £130+ per day
For a one month backpacking trip to Australia’s east coast, you will want to budget between £2500 and £3000.
How much does Accommodation cost in Australia?
I would strongly recommend staying in hostels during your backpacking trip to Australia. Every other backpacker does, which makes them a great place to meet people, socialise, and find people to do activities with. They are also the most affordable form of accommodation in Australia. Hostel prices vary significantly, but most are between £25 and £50 per night. Compared to hostels in southeast Asia, they are nothing special, but they all have kitchens which also makes it easy to save money and meet people. The nicest hostel I stayed at was Bounce in Noosa, but this was also the most expensive. See my East Coast Australia guide for my advice on the best hostels to stay in.
How much does Transport in Australia cost?
I did my entire East Coast Australia itinerary using buses and could not fault them. Greyhound Australia will be your go-to option to get around. The buses stop at all the major backpacker destinations, including Cairns, Airlie Beach, Rainbow Beach, Noosa, Brisbane, Byron Bay, Sydney, Melbourne, and many more.
My recommendation is to buy a Greyhound Australia bus pass for your trip. You will have the option of buying a 15 or 30 day bus pass, which allows you unlimited travel between all stops during that time. Currently (2026), the 15 day bus pass is AUD$405, and the 30 day bus pass is AUD$489. See my guide to getting around Australia without a car for more on transport.
How much do Activities in Australia cost?
A lot of things to do in Australia are free, including beach days, coastal walks, and general exploring in some of Australia’s cities. However, what makes Australia’s East Coast such an incredible experience are the tours that you go on. These include K’Gari (Fraser Island), the Whitsundays, day trips in Cairns, and adventure activities like skydiving. Unfortunately, these will set you back. Here is what I spent on these tours and activities.
I did my K’Gari tour with Pippies Beachouse, who I really recommend. The 3 day 2 night tour costs $569 (approx. £294), or $629 (approx. £325) including 2 nights accommodation in the Pippies Hostel the night before and after the tour. The tour is all-inclusive once you’re on it.
I did a 3 day 2 night sailing trip with ProSail in the Whitsundays, who again I would really recommend. The price of this tour was AUD$869 (approx. £450), and again is all inclusive once you’re out on the boat.
I did my skydive in Noosa. It cost AUD$339 (approx. £175) for the skydive and AUD$179 (approx. £93) for the photo and video, so include this in your budget because you won’t want to miss out having the evidence!
I did three tours in Cairns: a Cape Tribulation day trip, a waterfalls day trip, and a Great Barrier Reef snorkelling day trip. Again, these are all inclusive (transport, food, and drinks) once you get on them, and I would not have skipped any of them. The prices vary depending on the tour company, whether you scuba dive in the Great Barrier Reef, and other things, but as an average, I would budget around £90-£100 per tour.
How much does Food cost in Australia?
If you’re staying in hostels, you will be able to use their kitchens and cook to save money. By doing this, I was eating for around £7/day for 3 meals. A meal out will cost you around £10-£20 depending, which adds up fast. Limit your alcohol consumption as well, as it is very expensive in Australia.
To save money, I would recommend making a strong list of priorities before you go to Australia. You will find that a lot of the stops along the East Coast are very similar to each other, which means you don’t necessarily need to go to all of them, or do the same activities in each place. Figure out what you are looking for in your backpacking experience and focus on that. If you spread out your activities, you will also lower your daily spend. Take a look at my complete guide to backpacking Australia to help you decide! Where your money will slip away is on alcohol and nights out, so make sure you set yourself a budget for this and stick to it.
I hope this helps you plan your East Coast Australia backpacking trip. As always, look after the places you visit and remember to only leave your footprints behind :)
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