The Trip

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Why?

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Over the years I’ve slowly grown fond of rail travel, from the suburban rail here in Brisbane to the Spirit of Queensland and the Metro and Shinkansen in Japan the feeling of rolling along the rails, staring out the window watching the world pass by is sweet. Planes are cool but once you are up in the sky there isn’t much to look at except the distant expanse of the land and ocean.

One day I was sitting at home and the thought popped into my head… I wonder where I can go by train? After googling “rail map of Australia” I was presented with this image…

This little brain worm has stuck with me for a few years and has slowly got me more and more excited. I was thinking about saving this trip for later but recently I’ve been feeling like If I think too much about something without doing it I will never get anywhere.

The Plan

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After looking at the various trains I quickly realised the Indian Pacific was going to be what I planned this trip around. Starting at $2,690 (yikes) during September to November but dropping to $1,990 during June/July I knew I was going to have to travel during winter if I didn’t want to bankrupt myself. Fortunately, I have some family along the route so after making some calls I have a few couches to sleep along the way.

I’m starting off by catching a Flight from Brisbane to Perth where I’m staying with my Grandma for a few days. Then I have the 3 day trip across the Nullabor on the Indian Pacific to Adelaide where I’m staying with my Dad for a few more days. After this, I’m off to Melbourne onboard The Overland, a 10-hour ride through the South Australian and Victorian countryside.

In Melbourne, I’m taking a break from my break and catching up with my colleagues for a week. Another 11-hour train ride on the XPT and I’m in Sydney where I will stay for the shortest time possible so I don’t bankrupt myself in Australia’s most expensive city. Then it’s a night train from Sydney to Brisbane on another XPT arriving at 5am at Roma Street station where I will rush home to no doubt do 3 loads of laundry.

Finally, back in the land of 50c fares, I’m taking the Spirit of Queensland on a two-day trip up to Cairns (not 50c 🥺). I’m spending two nights in Cairns to soak up whatever sun I can before heading back south to Townsville to catch up with the rest of my family and some friends for a week before I fly back to Brisbane.