Sunbathing in the Southern Hemisphere~_Brisbane_Blogs_About

Jun 25,2025

Sunbathing in the Southern Hemisphere~

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I went to Australia last December to visit my sister, who was studying for her master’s there, and at the same time we planned a ten-day trip (or however many days, I actually forgot) from Adelaide to Brisbane, Gold Coast, and Sydney. As for travel tips, I’m a newbie myself, so I’ll just share a few random thoughts~
My sister and I traveled independently, not with a tour group. Honestly, I don’t think you need a group even if you’re setting out from China. My sister only really knew Adelaide; she hadn’t been to the other cities either. But a Google Map can take you anywhere—there’s basically no destination you can’t find!
First, to go to Australia, you need to get your visa sorted. I did mine myself—it’s actually very easy, no need to pay a travel agency over a thousand yuan. Even if you use an agency, you still have to prepare all the documents yourself; they just translate them and hand them in for you. The translation part you can totally do yourself; you can find English templates online for things like household registration, business licenses, etc. Just download and edit them as needed, as long as you know a bit of English. Filling in all those forms isn’t hard either—just have some patience and you can do it yourself. Also, don’t forget to sign the last page of your passport!
Domestic flights in Australia are actually quite cheap, perfect for young people or those traveling just for fun. The flights offer nothing special—it’s just a journey from A to B. If you want food, you can pay extra to the flight attendants. Usually they have juice, sandwiches, and the like. The ticket price itself doesn’t include onboard meals.
Looking out the window on the plane, Australia is truly beautiful—the ocean is amazing! I don’t even remember how long it took to get to Brisbane, maybe 1.5 to 2.5 hours? We didn’t explore much of Brisbane because I got sick o(╯□╰)o, but we did visit Chinatown. It was holiday time, so it was pretty quiet, but to my surprise, there was even a Tong Ren Tang (traditional Chinese medicine shop)!
The churches in Brisbane—there are churches everywhere in Australia!