Not true here, particularly with non state capital airports.
Same here, but not relevant to the relative costs.
But he is talking about a much longer trip than that, 15 hours by car EACH WAY, non stop.
It is for him at the non home end.
Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t. With the state capital he is talking about ending up in, its close to useless for events in the CBD or close as is the case with him in his original example. In Sydney we get unlimited travel on very decent public transport all day for just $2.50 for seniors and its much more viable in the CBD than your own car with parking fees alone. Same with Melbourne.
My original plan was for my student to come to Brisbane or Sydney so we could catch up in this state before the graduation in Melbourne. The time frame is too tight so I decided to meet her *International flight* at Tullamarine on the Sunday. We would arrive by car in Melbourne on the Saturday and stay 2 nights at a resort in Ballarat. We most likely will drive down to Tullamarine on Sunday, pick her up and return to Ballarat for the 2nd night's stay. Lots of car travel involved. I have booked a 2 bedroom suite in the heart of Melbourne for another 4 nights, Monday-Thursday. Most of our activities will be focused around the city for those days so the car will remain parked. On Friday a trip to the International terminal at Tullamarine to see the new graduate off. We will likely stay for another couple of nights with friends at Olinda in the Dandenongs, car travel required but on the opposite side of Melbourne. What I haven't mentioned is that we will be carting more stuff down to Melbourne than airticket baggage will allow. We will likely buy a heap of stuff from a wholesalers in Springvale for the return. That is another reason why the 1500 km trip down is a worthwhile drive.
No goalpost shifting whatsoever. I know all my constraints and all my options, you don't. My wife would prefer to fly. It isn't possible nor is it convenient given all the constraints.
As I said, you don't know the full extent of my circumstances.
The plane ticket to here via Sydney was out of the visitor's price range. Coolangatta was $90 each way compared to $500. The fuel for my entire round trip was less than $55. And my dog, who loves going for a drive, had the opportunity to travel with me. A win all round. ;-)
But that isnt the airport that you would be flying to Tullamarine from instead of stupidly driving all that way in a car.
Even madder.
Ditto.
Only because of the stupidity of using Ballarat when the graduation is in Melbourne.
So it makes no sense to stay at a 'resort' in Ballarat. And if that does make sense, it makes more sense to use the very decent train from Melburg to Ballarat.
And it makes no sense to do that by car.
Still makes no sense at all to be driving a f****ng car from Qld to Melburg and back.
Pigs are it is.
Corse there is with the silly line about international airports. That is only Tullamarine, not any at your end.
BUL;LSHIT.
More bullshit.
As I said, you never could bullshit your way out of a wet paper bag.
No but it is the most convenient for *her* given what she will need to be doing. For her to avail herself of any other option, much more than a week off work would be required. She hasn't that option. It was difficult just getting 7 days.
Why? It's a *resort*. A place to relax! That'd be very good after a 15 hour drive, wouldn't it? Works for me. I was needing an extra two days, those days not needing to be in Melbourne city. Proximity to Tullamarine makes it a convenient choice too since I won't have to drive *across* the city. Used to have to do that when I lived in Melbourne and had to go to the airport for any reason. The clincher, the time from here direct to the resort at Ballarat is the same as the time direct to Melbourne Central. By going directly to Ballarat I won't have to face gridlocked central city traffic at the end of a very long drive. That is definitely a win! ;-)
A resort to relax in would be nice for someone who has spent the whole night on a plane, wouldn't it? Still no city gridlock. I will be able to choose my time to enter the city - after morning peak - and check in to the city hotel. Actually, it is a resort too though I have never felt that a central city building makes much of a resort.
No hotel option currently available other than on the 4 days currently booked. I am on a wait list in case of cancellations so it may change but I need to plan alternatives. Ballarat is a very good alternative
I have an option to stay in Ballarat very very cheaply and, if a car is available, it's also an easy and convenient option. Also, hotel bookings are full in the city on those two days. As it is, the 4 nights we are staying in the city are costing the better part of $1.6k but, for what we need to do and where we need to be to do it, it is a viable option and a graduation present for my student since she is like a daughter to us.
So we are forced to use train timetabling then? Hand carry any and all baggage? I don't think so. Remember, Ballarat to *Tullamarine* - there is no convenient direct *train*. In fact, to Tullamarine, there is no train *at all*. So, according to your fractured logic, we will train it to Central and Skybus it to Tullamarine - and return by the same path. Oh, yeah, I can see the logic in that - not. I can take a shortcut from Ballarat directly to Tullamarine and go nowhere near the city at all but I can only do that by *car*. What is more, on return I can take a 25km detour to Hepburn Spa and spend some relaxing time there since our tourist has never seen that place. If we were taking the train/bus combo we would quite literally be spending the whole day traveling.
Oh, so we all travel by airport bus to the airport and 2 of us return, is that it? Looking at Skybus fares, that will cost $100 for the exercise. By car direct from checking out of the hotel - about $10 in fuel. That $90 difference can buy fuel, meals, whatever.
NSW to Melbourne, get it right. I do not live in Qld. Brisbane airport was considered as an option because we are halfway between Sydney and Brisbane. It is also where my wife departs from on OS flights out of Australia and where she will be returning to this coming Wednesday. Yes, I am off to Brisbane again this month.
It is grist for the mill.
I have to present at Tullamarine International Terminal twice, one pickup, one delivery.
Were you looking over my shoulder when I was trying to get a flight ticket out of here on *convenient days*? As I said, I couldn't book those until the international visitor had booked and confirmed tickets for *her* travel. After all, it is for her graduation we are *driving* to Melbourne. Anyway, by that time, there were no convenient flight tickets to be had. Might have had success at Sydney but, if we are going to drive there just to catch a plane, just drive the whole distance since Sydney is just short of half way. Goulburn is near enough to exactly half way. Of course there was always the train option - two days outgoing, two days return. Oh, and the train fares are double what my fuel costs would be for the entire trip. Yes, I looked them up.
You do not know our circumstances so cannot possibly make that call.
Makes no sense when the graduation is in Melbourne.
No such animal in Ballarat.
Corse there is nothing like that in Melbourne, eh ?
But if you flew instead, there would be no need for that.
Thanks for that completely superfluous proof that you actually are that stupid.
Why ?
Melbourne traffic isnt gridlocked and there isnt a very long stupid drive if you have enough of a clue to fly.
Plenty of places in Melbourne to do that.
No city gridlock involved when you use the train there.
Don’t need to when not driving.
There is no 'resort' in Ballarat.
Don’t believe that if you had booked it as early as you could have.
It’s a shit house alternative and even if it wasn’t, it makes much more sense to use the train between Melbourne and Ballarat than the stupid 15 hour each way drive from your place.
Its even more convenient and cheaper to use the train between Melbourne and Ballarat.
Don’t believe that if you had booked early enough.
Still makes no sense to be driving 15 hours each way from home instead of flying and using the train to Ballarat.
Better than being forced to waste 15 hours each way driving, stupid.
There doesn’t need to be. You are going from the 'resort' in Ballarat to the hotel in Melbourne, stupid.
<reams of your even sillier shit flushed where it belongs>
You would be wrong. It is not *in* Ballarat, just outside of town, 7 kilometres from the heart of Ballarat to be precise. Hey, near enough for me.
There is and we will be staying there for the following 4 nights. Couldn't get an inner city booking for the first two nights in Melbourne.
I can't get air tickets from here on the days I need to travel. Whichever way I go, I need to travel some of the distance to the next nearest airport by car.
Because the only day I am free to travel is 2 days before my inner Melbourne resort booking commences. Ergo, I need two extra nights of accommodation and it isn't critical that it be inner city. It does need to be convenient to the airport since we have a pickup there on the Sunday.
Seems it has been a long time since you were there. I was there a year back and it was gridlocked. It has become much worse since we moved out about 8 years ago.
There are and they are all booked out on the nights we need. Ballarat is a suitable alternative.
You really need to get out more. You might learn something.
I booked it as soon as I had confirmed dates and confirmed flight times. I knew the graduation date early enough but the powers to be were tardy in declaring my student eligible for the graduation. Luckily she was using my address as her Australian residence so the notification came to me. That was when I started putting in bookings but initially only had 2 days. Someone cancelling gave us 2 more days and that covered the time we really needed to be in the city centre. The location of the rest of accommodation bookings isn't important save for proximity to the airport, as already mentioned.
Huh? I go from here *direct* to Ballarat on *Saturday* by car. No need to go near Melbourne initially. The next day, Sunday, I go to the airport for a pickup and return to Ballarat - by car. On Monday, at whatever time is convenient, we check out of the resort at Ballarat and drive the hour or so in to the heart of Melbourne and check into the resort there (same resort chain).
Not if we need to travel from Ballarat to the airport and return.
I was ready to book a month earlier. I didn't know the dates I needed. By that time the options available vanished, as it had with air ticketing possibilities from here.
I can see you're not getting the picture.
No, we will be going from the resort in Ballarat to Tullamarine to pick up an international passenger. We will then be *returning* to Ballarat.
Hey, here's a clue for you. Go to Google Maps, type in "resort" & "Ballarat" and see what *you* come up with. It is quite possible this may be a real, and rare, learning experience for you.
Now you are dropping to type.
There is if I can't get bookings for those two nights prior in the city area. The 4 dates in the city I have are adequate for us to fulfill required tasks in the city area. No need to be in the heart of the city for those two other nights. That said, I am on the wait list for cancellations.
Can't make bookings until you have *dates*. Those dates I didn't know until RMIT sent me confirmations and my student sent me her flight dates. Once I had that, a simple phone call had all the bookings within minutes.
Ah Rod, you make it so obvious you've lost the call when you do that!
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