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Day Trips/ Hikes in NSW, Australia

Palm Beach

The perfect day trip from Sydney, approximately 1hr 15m drive from Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs.

Things to do around Palm Beach:

1. Hike up to Barrenjoey Lighthouse

The Lighthouse 113 metres above sea-level, the highest point of the Barrenjoey Headland.

It’s very short but steep steps / hill up depending which route you decide to take.

We always go up the steps and come down the other side in a loop. I recommend you do the loop so you can take full advantage of the different view points.

It’s not the longest, toughest hike but the beautiful panoramic costal views & the lighthouse make it a must do!

2. Take a picnic to the beach

Pack your swimmers & a sandwich. After you finish your walk around the lighthouse set up for a chill afternoon on the beach.

3. Home & Away Set

Palm Beach is famously known as Summer Bay in Australian TV Show Home & Away. The outdoor set includes the beach area, the outsides of some of the houses, the exterior of the Surf Club and Alf’s Bait Shop.

Filming takes place Mondays, Tuesdays & sometimes Wednesday’s. If you go on at the beginning of the week there’ll be a high chance of seeing the cast, production & filming.

You could also book onto a tour if you’re a super fan! The Tour departs from Sydney, the guide will share all the inside knowledge & facts about the show whilst taking the scenic route to Whale Beach, Avalon Beach and Bilgola Lookout. All while passing famous filming locations and beautiful costal views.

4. Surfs up!

Take surfing lessons at the southern end of Palm Beach. This end of the beach is sheltered, calm and provides constant gentle waves making it one of the best spots around Sydney to learn to surf.

5. Ride the ferry to Ettalong from Palm Beach Wharf

Take the ferry from Palm Beach to Ettalong, a pretty beach town. The ferry departs hourly from Palm Beach Wharf and takes 25 minutes, passing between Barrenjoey Headland and Box Head.

6. Pittwater Discovery Kayaking Tour

Just a 15 min drive from Palm Beach you can rent kayaks and go to remote beaches. You can opt for a half or full day guided tour exploring bush & beaches.

7. Newport Arms Hotel

We always stop in here for food on the way home from Palm Beach. It offers a variety of different cuisines throughout the venue, from wood fire pizzas, bar food, steakhouse, seafood.. there is plenty to choose from.

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Day Trips/ Hikes in NSW, Australia

Curra Moors Loop Track, Royal National Park

Trek through bush to ocean views & Eagle Rock. I highly recommend this adventure just be sure to bring plenty of water & suncream if you are doing it on a hot day. I also recommend starting it early morning before the midday sun.  

The terrain is mostly sandy/ slightly uneven in places, particularly at the beginning. Overall its quite flat, not too challenging and the views are absolutely stunning.

  • HIDDEN GEMS: Curra Moors

Destination: approx 44km drive from Eastern Suburbs (50minutes).

Distance: 10km

Difficulty: Medium, mostly flat land.

Getting there: Drive to Curra Moors carpark on Sir Bertram Stevens Drive, Royal National Park NSW.

Parking costs: $12 per vehicle; free for NSW National Parks annual pass holders

Essential Gear

  • Comfortable footwear/ hiking shoes
  • Water
  • Hat
  • Suncream
  • Sunglasses
  • Snacks
  • Camera
  • Swimmers (optional if you fancy cooling off)

If you wish to attend a HIDDEN GEMS event please sign up to the email list and join the Facebook Group here for upcoming adventures.

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Information for travelling to & from Australia.

Update as of 2/2/22

Current rules for travelling to Ireland:

– Fill out Passenger Locator Form linked here

– International vaccine certificate

– if you have proof of vaccination or proof of recovery from COVID-19 in the prior 6 months you do not have to do a PCR pre-departure COVID-19 test. (This it for arrival in Ireland please check your airline requirements & countries you are transiting through as some airlines/ countries may require a negative PCR to fly/ transit)

You can keep up to date with government requirements in Ireland here

Current rules for travelling to UK:

– From 4am on 11 February all testing requirements will be removed for eligible fully vaccinated arrivals, that being said I recommend checking your airline & transiting country requirements

Passenger Locator Form (PLF) now required (click here for form)

– Arrivals who are not recognised as fully vaccinated will need to take a pre-departure PCR test and a PCR test on or before day 2 after they arrive in the UK.

Current rules for travelling to Australia

– Official certification of double vaccination.

– Negative pre departure PCR taken within 72 hours of flight departure time

⁃ Travel Declaration Form completed 72 hours before linked here

– Rapid Antigen Test when you arrive

– No quarantine for international arrivals into NSW, VIC, NT, QLD, SA

I can’t believe I’m **finally** back writing another blog post for help and tips on TRAVEL!!! 🥳 ✈️ At long last!

Here are the steps I followed leaving Australia to make the long awaited return home. First off my flight was Sydney > Doha > Manchester > Dublin

What was required?

Negative PCR

PCR can’t be any earlier than 48 hours before departure.

You can either:

Book a PCR with Medlab, research your nearest location. Cost: $120

OR

Do the PCR at Histopath in the airport it’s cheaper and you get an instant result (within 90mins you can queue for checkin whilst waiting) $79

You can register for the test here. There is no need to make an appointment, just show up in good time to airport and do it before checkin!

Applies to Sydney, Melbourne & Brisbane Airports. Histopath is just across from Gate D at Sydney International Airport.

PLF : Passenger Locator Form

We had to do a passenger locator form for UK & IRELAND because we were transiting through Manchester airport.

Here are the links:

Ireland can be completed 72 hours before departure linked here .

UK can be completed 48 hours before departure linked here

If you are transiting through the UK or it is your final destination you will be required to book and pay for a day 2 PCR (£45 was the cheapest we found through the link on government website, when you get to the section about your PCR booking number on the PLF you’ll see a clickable link directing you to all the purchasing options, we went with Vital)

International Vaccination Certification

You need to download your international vaccine certificate from the Medicare app.

If you are having any issues go into Medicare and they will print it for you. If you do get them to print it off for you, take a picture so you can keep a digital copy too.

Tips

– Print out all documentation.

– Allow extra time for checkin. It took us 1.5 hours just to get checked in & bags dropped off.

We got to the airport 4 hours before. It gave us plenty of time to get everything sorted and organised. There’s a lot of queuing as everyone is experiencing international travel for the first time in 2 years (ALOT has changed!), Many people hadn’t all the correct documents which slows up the checkin process. Make your life easy and arrive with all your documentation printed out and ready to go.

– I also recommend you keep an eye on the official government website of the country you are travelling to & your airline for any changes to rules & requirements as they do change often.

All in all it wasn’t stressful on the day. We had a smooth journey home to the Emerald Isle just in time to spend our first Christmas in five years with our beautiful families! 😭🥰

The return journey to Australia

I will update with links/options and added tips when I get myself organised for the journey back to Australia.

Requirements thus far;

– Valid Visa (you can apply for a Working Holiday Visa here, tourist visas aren’t available at the moment)

⁃ Negative PCR within 72 hours* before departure (I will be booking with Randox it costs £55)

⁃ Travel Declaration Form completed 72 hours before linked here

⁃ International Vaccination Certificate

⁃ PCR; fully vaccinated international passengers arriving in NSW must get a PCR (nose and throat swab) test within 24 hours of arrival and self-isolate until they receive a negative result. Take another PCR test on day 6.

⁃ At the moment there’s no quarantine for fully vaccinated arrivals from Ireland/UK, however Australia change things quite rapidly so keep an eye here to find out any change in details.

*keep an eye that it doesn’t change to 48 hours as the UK changed theirs the day before our flight home from 72 to 48hours.

Happy Christmas everyone 🎅 Wherever in the world you are spending the holidays I wish you all the joy and happiness. For those of us not so fortunate in being able to leave Australia, I hope all your Christmas wishes come true in early 2022. Big love to everyone and especially those finding it tough.

Xxx

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10 Things in 10 days – Sydney

I often get asked to make up Sydney itineraries for you guys. Whilst I do try message you all back with individual suggestions based on your timeframes, I thought it best to do up a blog post of my top 10 recommendations.

Below you will find some of my favourite ‘must see & do’s’ around Sydney. Ofcourse you can tailor the itinerary to suit your needs/ budget. If you only have 10 days to see Sydney this is a good place to start!

1. Bondi to Coogee Costal Walk

This walk gives me goosebumps every time I do it! You can stop along the many beaches of the coast line for a dip in the ocean or beautiful photo opportunities. When you finish up the costal walk grab a beer or pizza in Coogee Pavilion and chill on Coogee beach.

2. Bondi Icebergs

You all know the photo of the beautiful Bondi Beach & ocean pool. That would be Bondi Icebergs. For $8 you gain admission to the ocean pool and sauna. You can do a few lengths or chill around the pool and sunbathe. When you get peckish Harry’s Bondi is a beaut brunch spot. Fancy an ice-cream, try Anita’s *drool*, or if you want to skip food and hit the fun juice have a drink in the Bucketlist.

3. Sydney Opera House & Harbour Bridge

THAT iconic view! Grab yourself a drink at the Opera Bar and take in your surroundings. Sit on the Opera House steps, take pictures in front of the bridge or take a walk around the near by Botanical Gardens.

4. Ferry to Manly

Taking the public ferry is an amazing/ cheap way to see Sydney’s iconic attractions without paying for a private tour. Hop on at the Circular Quay terminal, it’s just a 20 minute Fast Ferry ride (return ticket $18.90 must buy ticket at terminal as they don’t accept Opal cards). When you arrive in Manly you can paddle board, have lunch, relax on the beach or do part of the costal walk. You are free to return on which ever fast ferry you wish, try time it around sunset so you have the sunsetting over the Opera House & Bridge.

5. Blue Mountains (Day trip)

The Blue Mountains is a national park where you will be immersed in nature. Perfect for those who are adventurous or love a nature walk/hike. If you don’t have a rental car you can take the train from Central Station (1hour 50 mins) straight to Wentworth Falls. You will find the ‘Three Sisters’ at the Echo Point Lookout along with other stunning lookouts, waterfalls, and hikes to fill your day with adventure.

6. Palm Beach (Day Trip)

Palm Beach, or as Home & Away fans would know it ‘Summers Bay’, is just over an hour drive from Sydney. You can walk up the Barrenjoey Head to the Lighthouse for beautiful views over the ocean and the bay and when you finish grab some food in The Boathouse.

If you are an Avid fan of Home & Away you can do a tour checking out all the sights around Summers Bay. Or you could ride the ferry to Ettalong, which departs every hour from Palm Beach Wharf & takes 25 minutes passing between Barrenjoey Headland and Box Head.

After your day out at Palm Beach I highly recommend stopping by The Newport Arms en route home. This is one of my favourite places to have food and drinks, it really is such a cool vibe’n outdoor beer garden.

7. O BAR – 360 Bar & Dining

THE VIEWS! Get yourself up here for a cocktail and enjoy the 360 degree view of the Sydney. Go up and have a drink before a night out in the city, or have a liquid lunch towering above it all.

8. Taronga Zoo

Zoo with a View! Go to Circular Quay and hop on a 12 minute ferry to Taronga where you can see all sorts of beautiful animals including Kangaroos & Koalas!

9. Luna Park

The best way to get to Luna Park is by ferry to Milsons Point Wharf. This place is great for children & adults alike, not to mention the views of the bridge that surround it. The entrance is free and opened the whole year round. There are different passes you can purchase, always search online for the discounted ones. It’s fun to walk around and release your inner child!

10. Helicopter Ride

This is possibly my favourite activity!!! Niall and I done the Helicopter Tour back in January with Sydney HeliTours. It cost $220 per person. We saw Sydney city & the coast from the sky. Flying over Bondi was the highlight for me. Such a beautiful view from above, and a ‘pinch me’ moment that this is my second home!

Thanks for reading, let me know if you use my recommendations and as always, message if you want to know any further details.

Chat soon, Gem xx

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9-5 To Across The World

Hi my lovelies,

This blogpost details the exact steps I took to get me from behind an office desk to a beach far away!

I hope it helps any of you who are considering or are in the process of the big move.

GemKen x

 

Why Travel?

Niall and I always talked about traveling , we were both in agreement that it was something we needed to do as soon as we had our degrees behind us.

Our reasonings for travelling? To culture and educate ourselves from something other than a book. To experience life, see the world and embrace the endless opportunities and new friendships. To see what the amazing change of lifestyle had to offer, to learn about ourselves as individuals and about our relationship.

And i mean, who doesn’t want to live by the beach?

 

Deciding To Go

An easy decision to make- right? So many people talk about it, dream about it and wish about it. Anyone you talk to encourages you to fly the nest and see what’s out there, what it’s all about.

For me it wasn’t deciding to go that was difficult, it was when. When is the right time?

Honestly there is no ‘right’ time. You’ll forever wait if you keep passing up your travels because of events; weddings, birthdays, a lads/girls holiday.

The truth is there is no time like the present, book it, do it, go, go, go.

Book your trip based on when you want to go, don’t book it around suiting other people.

We all have a tendancy to be ‘people pleasers’ and have serious fear of missing out on occasions when the realtiy is there will be plenty more in the future. Whether it’s a few months, a year or a few years longer, with the help of God our friends and family will have many more celebrations to come.

Tip: When booking your trip be sure to set a realistic time frame you feel is comfortable to save your funds.

 

Applying for a Visa

The very first thing we did was book our Visa. We completed our applications online and the next morning we had confirmation back of acceptance. The application took approximately 30 minutes to complete and by doing it yourself through the Australian Government Website you can save £70 per person.

The visa we are here on is the Working Holiday Visa 417. They cost $440 per person- (£275 approx depending on exchange rate). Australia has recently made changes to the visa meaning its may be slightly more difficult to get one granted depending on your job sector as they are now skilled visas. Be sure to do your research on the visa changes and restrictions.

 

Booking the flight

We booked our flights in February 2017 to leave in the July. Seemed like ages away at the time but the weeks and months soon rolled in and it was no time to we were boarding the flight.

We booked through STA Travel to a cost of £580 per person. We chose to stop of in Dubai for a few days as the flights were super long.

We flew with Emirates who have a 30kg baggage allowance, maximum weight they will allow is 32kg.

Be sure to research how much weight each airline will give you to get more bang for your buck. Our friends recently flew here with Qantas who have a baggage allowance of 2x 23kg checked on bags per person (46kg!).

 

Temporary Accommodation 

We booked to stay in an Airbnb because I couldn’t face staying in a Hostel with all my life belongings! It would be different if I was backpacking, but we had so many valuables I didn’t want to risk getting anything nicked. We booked the Airbnb for 2 weeks so we would have enough time to look for new places. The Airbnb also worked out $2 cheaper per night than what you would pay in a hostel.

 

Join Social Media Groups

Utilize social media, the Irish Around Sydney Group is incredible for jobs, housing, furniture, cars etc.

There are so many Facebook Groups and depending on which area you are going to there is a specific group you can join. (Irish Around Brisbane, Irish Around Perth, Irish Around Melbourne, Irish Around Darwin)

 

My Australian To-Do List Before Leaving Home

  • Give Notice To Workplace
  • Create a ‘Travel Folder’ to keep all your documentation together
  • Update CV for Australian Market (Resume)
  • Gather up any doctor, dentist & optician files
  • Notify Bank
    • Appoint a trusted Power of Attorney so they can access and control your funds at home.
  • Cancel Outgoing Bills
    •  Car insurance
    •  Car Tax
    •  Gym membership
    •  Automated payments/direct debits
  • Pay off phone contract
  • Pay off any debits (Student Overdraft)
  • Compile important documents and make photocopies
    •  Passport
    •  Visa Confirmation
    •  Birth Certificate
    •  Driving Licence
    •  Qualifications
    •  Employment References
    •  Bank Statement
    • P60 from Employer
    • Travel & Health Insurance 
  •  Print a hardcopy of hotel/ Airbnb bookings and any transportation confirmation.

 

The remainder of the things listed were completed when we arrived in Sydney.

 

Sim Cards

We bought pay-as-you-go sim cards and topped them up with $40. We chose ‘BOOST’ network as it had the best offering on Data.

 

Bank Account

We made our way to the ANZ Bank and set ourselves up with individual accounts, a joint bank account and our Superannuation. Our reasoning behind the joint bank account is due to sponsorship. We have no idea if we want to stay a second year yet but we are keeping our options open and if one of us gets sponsored, the other can go De Facto (basically means a couple can use the same sponsorship). In order to do so you need to prove a genuine relationship, therefor opening the joint bank account would strengthen our proof of relationship.

Tip: Be sure to bring your passport to open your account.

 

Tax File Number 

We applied for our Tax File Numbers online as soon as we arrived using our Airbnb’s address. It took one week to arrive.

Tip: When filling out your TFN form with your new employer, the answer to the “Are you a resident for tax purposes?”question is ‘Yes’. Answering ‘No’will result in higher taxes and you are not breaking any rules by selecting ‘Yes’, so you may as well avail of a lower tax rate.

 

Transport

You will need to get an Opal card. It makes getting around super easy and cheap. You simply tap-on and tap-off public transport with a pre-loaded card. You can purchase the cards for $2 in most shops and then you top it up. You can download the app and register your card, if you ever lose it your balance will be transferred to a new card. The app also allows you to top up your card and set up a direct debit meaning no more queuing at peak times to top it up in the stations.

When on a working holiday visa you can drive on a full driving license until your 12 months runs out, I have heard a few people say its only 3 months, but according to the government website legally you can drive until you get residency.

 

Medicare

We went to the Medicare Centre and filled out the forms, presenting our passports, visas and utility bills with home addresses.

We are both holders of Irish Passports but we technically reside in the UK so we do qualify for MediCare. All we had to do was prove that we resided in the UK with letters stating our home address (utility bills, counterpart of driving licence).

Tip: Bring a few different letters with your home address along with your passport and visa.

 

Transferring Money

We used an app called TransferWise to get our cash from our Home accounts to our OZ accounts. Our banks were giving us crappy exchange rates and charging fees for international transfers.

Tip- Be sure to bring your card reader if your bank has issued you one, otherwise its impossible to make large transfers to TransferWise.

 

Getting a House

We got our house through the ‘Irish Around Sydney’ Facebook group. In Australia you pay a bond which is similar to a security deposit. Our rental bond was $1950 so you do need to factor this into your budget.

Rent is shown per week. Make sure you consider the monthly rent, which is the price per week times 52 weeks divided by 12 months. (i.e. our rent is $500 per week which actually works out at $2167 per month, so its really over $500 per week).

 

Equipping Our Room

Thankfully our house was fully furnished except for a bed. We ordered our bed from Tommy Swiss which is a relatively cheap website. We got our King Size bed frame and mattress delivered for just under $500.

As for all our other pieces; candles, photo frames, mats, towels, bed sheets, quilt, pillows, makeup organisers etc we bought them all from KMart for around $350.

 

Uber

If you haven’t already got it, download the Uber app for Taxi journeys.

 

Shopping 

We generally do our groceries in Coles as it is cheaper than the majority of the other supermarkets.

I definitely recommend picking up a few bits in Primark before you leave (especially underwear and swimwear) because even the cheap underwear here isn’t that cheap & it’s not overly cute.

Oh, and teabags- take your fave. My mummy packed me some Punjana and there is nothing quite like a tea from home.

 

 

I hope this blogpost helps anyone who is buying a one-way-ticket! If you are moving soon check out my stages of emotion blog, maybe you will be able to relate!  I will have future blog posts soon on recommendations on what to do, where to go & where to eat around Sydney!

Shoot me a message if you have any further questions and I will be happy to help.

Lots of love,

GemKen x