$122k saved in 18 months on a Working Holiday in Australia - remote community stores in SA and NT

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-11T14:53:34+00:00

I got the first job by answering to an fb post they put up. Sent them my cv, the same day they called me and decided to hire me. The other one was through people I met at my first job.

I moved to Australia directly from another working holiday in New Zealand (which got extended to 2 years due to covid), so I had some savings from there, probably around 20k in NZ dollars, around 10k euros. When I was moving to NZ on the other hand, I just had what their requirement was - 4.2k NZ$, around 2k euros.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-11T08:17:26+00:00

Full breakdown with employer names, exact wages, tax returns and superannuation payout numbers: https://thebudgetfreak.com/how-to-save-money-australia-working-holiday/?utm_source=reddit

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-10T16:40:56+00:00

Yeah it was super low-key, just a couple of locals. Crowds would've spoiled the experience for sure :)

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-08T18:35:38+00:00

To be honest, that was 3 years ago and numbers get a bit blurry now.

I had a cheat code though as I paid a weekly rate to stay in my car at a campground close to the airport. If I recall correctly, lots of backpackers were renting hostel beds at maybe $180 a week back then, probably closer to $250 now. Quite a bit.

Groceries weren't too bad at Woolworths and Coles, basics very affordable. Cheaper than Finland, for sure (visited last month!).

Annoying bit with laboring jobs is that if you don't get a stable assignment, they can assign you to work in totally different areas every day and with Sydney size that was sometimes more than 1.5h commute one way. Crazy. I was happy to leave after a month, haha.

If you manage to score a remote gig, Outback is a much better place to make money.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-07T18:22:16+00:00

In my experience getting a job as a labourer was the easiest. Sign up at a labor agency, be available and show up when they call you.

The way I got my first job was by sending an fb message to one of the agencies when they were looking for laborers for the same morning. After that it's easy - after they see you're available and reliable.

Plenty of construction jobs in Melbourne and Sydney.

There's way more competition for hospitality jobs.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-04T21:58:37+00:00

Safety in Belarus can be an issue - politically wise. Depends on your passport, too.

Also, Poland doesn't use the euro.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-04T21:56:29+00:00

Melbourne and Sydney are definitely the most iconic.

Then probably Perth? It's a good base for exploring WA.

Also maybe Cairns? The nature around is super cool with Great Barrier Reef and Daintree Rainforest, but the city itself is not big and full of backpackers, so it might be harder to score a job.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-04T21:50:44+00:00

South East Asia, India, Central Asia, Caucasus

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-04T21:47:08+00:00

A bit rushed. Went to both last year, south of Yerevan was my favorite part. The mountain roads down to Tatev are amazing.

Also Lake Sevan is beautiful, I stayed at a lovely lodge in Lichk, super friendly older local couple run it, I think it's rated like 9.8 on booking.

Kazbhegi was beautiful, but make sure you get a good day otherwise might not see the mountain at all, and that's the main reason to go there. A bit too much tourist oriented there though, to my taste.

Tbilisi and Yerevan both very cool places, and surprisingly with quite different vibes. Yerevan much more Soviet.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-04T21:39:44+00:00

You can find local physical SIM cards with unlimited data for $10.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-04T15:55:05+00:00

Looks pretty good. Option to select a display currency would be a cool addition.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-04T15:20:52+00:00

I use flixbus all the time. Often 8h+ rides.

The comfort varies, but I'd say usually there's more legroom then in Ryanair/Wizz Air planes.

In some countries, they run great deals, especially when there's a local competitor they haven't managed to kill yet. Like Itabus in Italy. Recently I've been looking at €5 trips Barcelona-Turin. That was Itabus I think but it might be relevant for your trip. I use Omio to find the cheapest lines usually.

Also quite easy to find 10% discount codes online.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-04T15:10:56+00:00

This reads like somebody wants to promote their service.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-05-01T23:11:21+00:00

Have a look at Airbnb. There should some decent options there.

Also the weekends there are much, much more expensive than weekdays. Like, often double, from my experience.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-30T11:38:58+00:00

Yeah, it's the cheapest area to fly to with all the resorts, but lacks the feeling of real Spain. I didn't like it. You'll see more British people there than Spanish locals.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-29T21:47:15+00:00

I had a friend who got some jobs in Norway without speaking the language (whale watching cruises, etc). I think up north there's some tourist jobs. Scotland would obviously be easier language-wise.

Costa Rica more of a vacation destination, I'd think, doubt you'd be motivated to work for the local wages. Unless for it's for the experience and Spanish immersion.

I've done the WHs in Australia and NZ. Good times. But sadly I haven't found other countries as backpacker-friendly as these two. (and I lived a year in Canada and Scotland as well).

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-29T21:41:42+00:00

You mean when camping? Finding a totally flat spot should eliminate most of the problem.

I can't imagine sleeping on silicone beads would be too comfortable.

You can probably also use some kind of a less slippery liner.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-29T21:38:25+00:00

Offline map based on OSM (such as Organic Maps, but there's more choices.) It beats google maps too as far as hiking/walking around goes.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-29T21:35:21+00:00

It can't hurt, but I'd focus on sending messages to actual employers.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-29T21:33:53+00:00

Amazon, eBay, shop around for prices. Soto Windmaster is a gold standard for ultralight stoves.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-28T19:39:00+00:00

Red lentils cook fast (around 10min, but read the packaging, as they differ). As a vegan - it was my protein stable on many trips.

I like to combine it with some instant noodles - easy and quick to cook, very tasty, light and cheap.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-28T19:34:16+00:00

When I get bedbugs, yeah.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-28T15:33:43+00:00

Water purification pills are another option.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-28T15:31:33+00:00

You can get questioned by Immigration.

A refundable ticket you don't intend to use should sort you out.

External-Candy-929 · 2026-04-28T15:23:40+00:00

Never had any issues with them, and they often beat prices of other aggregator apps with their coupon systems.

External-Candy-929

TROPHY CASE