Travel Tips @nz | Transfercar Blog

Uluru, Northern Territory Australia

Uluru (also known as Ayers Rock) is the world’s largest monolith or rock formation. Situated in Australia’s Northern Territory, and set amongst the awe inspiring Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park, this enormous Sandstone wonder stands 348 metres tall and 9.4 km in circumference with two thirds existing below the ground.

The rock undergoes dramatic color changes with its normally terracotta hue gradually changing to blue or violet at sunset to flaming red in the mornings as the sunrises behind it.

This spectacular creation is an Australian icon and major tourist attraction, enticing thousands of travellers with its magical hues that change from fiery red to delicate mauve, blue, pink and brown, and when there’s rainfall the entire rock turns an amazing silver.

Kata Tjuta and Uluru are the two major features of Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park which is listed as a World Heritage Site. The surrounding area is an ancient sacred place for the Anangu (local Aboriginal) people and is home to a plethora of springs, waterholes, rock caves and ancient paintings made over many thousands of years by the Anangu.

In 1985 the entire area was handed back to its indigenous owners and its sights reassumed their traditional names. The climb to the top is a treacherous 1.6 kilometre, 1 mile climb and climbers follow a track that is both ancient and sacred to the Anangu people. Visitors to the site are therefore asked to respect the area by preferably choosing the trails around and near Uluru and not by climbing it.

If you are planning a road trip in one of Transfercar’s free relocation vehicles and want to stop off at Uluru then you will be looking at relocating between Adelaide and Alice Springs or further. As relocation are more often picked up and dropped off in major towns these are the two most likely destinations for this venture.

7 websites that could change the way you travel

True, there are tons of travel websites out there, and sometimes it seems like it’s only worth our time checking the giants in that space: TripAdvisor, Booking.com, Airbnb, Kayak… who isn’t addicted to those already? The good news is that among the thousands of travel websites and apps, there are a handful of interesting ones that are still worth our time. They can actually help you travel smarter. Here are some of our favourite new ideas.

1. Oyster

This has to be one of our favourites. Oyster (pictured above) is the only hotel site that sends special investigators to visit, photograph, review, and rate each hotel. It is especially handy to have a look at the detailed photos of each room to see which one to choose. There’s usually more information of this type there than on Tripadvisor. Oyster have gained quite a reputation with their photo fakeouts, where they reveal the reality behind the glossy pictures of the travel brochures. Hilarious and useful.

2.TripExpert

This website is like the anti-TripAdvisor: TripExpert offers hotel reviews from travel pros. Yes, travel pros like in the good old days, not just regular travellers. The company has partnered with 20+ travel guide services such as Frommer’s, Conde Nast Traveller, Lonely Planet, Fodors Travel and Travel + Leisure. In a sense, it’s like Rotten Tomatoes (the website specialised in film reviews) for travel.

The website displays a “TripExpert Score”, calculated by a number of parameters including rating and review given by each travel guide partners, and also the number of travel guides that have written about a hotel. It is a good addition to Tripadvisor when you’re in doubt or when you want to narrow down your search. Useful.

3. Roomer

roomer Here’s a useful website if you love getting great hotel deals, and who doesn’t? Their tagline is: ‘’Book your hotel room from people who can’t use theirs!’’ What does that mean? It is allowing travellers who are unable to use their hotel room to list it at a discounted price, thus giving people a chance to grab a last-minute deal. The problem is, though, when you browse the website, it’s hard to tell if you’re getting a regular discount or if you’re getting a special deal. As more people start to use the website, the deals will get better we think…

4.VoulezVousDiner.com

Voulezvousdiner

VoulezVousDiner is a peer-to-peer reservation service that allows users to connect and share meals in each other’s homes. Think Airbnb for restaurants. Instead of going to a restaurant, get an authentic experience of eating some delicious home-made food prepared by a talented local.

Mealsharing.com, Vizeat.com and Eatwith.com are similar websites, and some of them actually vet the quality of the chefs. Like any marketplace, local chefs are then reviewed by the community. We think this concept is going to become big some day, but right now all those websites are struggling to have an interesting offer outside of the most touristy cities in the world like Paris, London and New York. Hopefully the offer will get bigger soon.

5. Triptuner

Deciding where to go isn’t always easy. With so many appealing destinations in the world, how do you choose? Pictures help, obviously, but a website that helps you understand which destinations are suited to your needs is helpful too. That’s what Triptuner does: the website is designed to inspire you. Define if you’d rather have a bikini or a parka holiday, or if you’d rather have a relaxing or active holiday, and Triptuner will find the destination that’s right for you. Frankly, the website could be improved with more settings and better results, but the idea is fun.

6. Adioso

Adioso

‘’Flight search reinvented for humans’’. Indeed, Adioso is really helpful when you want to fly to a region but don’t necessarily know all the airports name there, and when you are quite flexible on the dates. You can type in a request such as, ‘Auckland to San Francisco leaving next week under $2,000’ and see what comes up, and you can choose a data range. The website is intuitive, fun to use and nicely designed, with the same prices that you would find on other meta-search websites. Interesting.

GetyourGuide

getyourguide

GetYourGuide is a booking platform for tours and activities, and to most of the world’s best attractions. It claims to have more than 27,000 things to do. Here you can book tickets for experiences as diverse as visiting the top floor of famous skyscrapers, bus city tours, and whale-watching tours. It can be convenient in some crowded destinations as it enables you to skip the line, and it comes with a best price guarantee.

Australia’s winter: skiing, snowboarding and snowy mountains

Australia isn’t the first place that comes to mind when planning a winter holiday, especially when skiing, snowboarding or snowmen are on the cards.

What comes to mind are sun drenched beaches, wild kangaroos and babes in bikinis along with vast expanses of outback terrain and reptiles!

The fact is, skiing is definitely a happening thing in OZ, with around 15 ski resorts that offer anything from the basic cross country trails to full commercial villages!

The ski season generally runs from June until October, with the largest commercial resorts being found in Victoria and New South Wales. Most resorts are equip with serious snow machines so the seasons are pretty guaranteed to be a blast no matter what.

Let’s take a quick peek at some of the popular spots in New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria (VIC) keeping in mind that there are other fantastic spots in Tasmania (TAS) and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT): Continue reading Australia’s winter: skiing, snowboarding and snowy mountains

New Zealand Winter: Skiing, snowboarding and extreme fun

People travel from all over the world to ski in New Zealand and it’s not surprising why.

Blessed with snow kissed mountains that stand as high as 3,700 metres and huge volcanoes covered with fresh powder, New Zealand is a ski and snowboarding paradise.

The ski season starts around mid-June and closes around the beginning of October, offering 4 months of play time for the serious and not so serious riders.

Slopes range from the totally novice to extreme black diamond skill levels and if you want that something special, heli-skiing will take you to remote slopes and glaciers far from the reach of road transport.

What’s even better is what the French call apres-ski. When your body needs a bit of a rest from the slopes, the local resort towns of Queenstown and Wanaka nearby the ski-fields offer anything from a blast in a jet boat, a swing from a bungy or a night out at one of the many bars and clubs that pump until the small hours of the morning.

Here’s a little run-down of some of the best ski fields on offer: Continue reading New Zealand Winter: Skiing, snowboarding and extreme fun

The world’s most luxurious supervans!

You don’t like being on the water, but you want to live that superyacht lifestyle? Get a luxurious supervan!

Our favourite supervan has to be the amazing eleMMent Palazzo mobile home. This visual feast of extravaganza and luxury is actually of German craftsmanship, so made to last! The Palazzo features two floors of entertainment with a giant master suite, multiple bars and a liftable “flybridge” lounge up top. You can even extend a slide-out, increasing interior space by 80% when not on the road. The new eleMMent series 2015 is coming out soon, and we wonder what improvements will be provided to what is already an amazing motorhome, by all accounts.

Another supervan that would be nice to try is the Futuria Sports and Spa Motorhome. Another German invention! This mansion on wheels contains everything for luxury travelling: bathroom, bedroom, roof terrace with Jacuzzi and even sports car garage (equipped with the custom Toronto garage doors).

Guess where the third best supervan comes from? Germany as well!!! The Volkner Mobil Performance Bus comes equipped with a large fridge-freezer, dishwasher, microwave, Bose-Dolby-home Entertainment Surround System and a widescreen TV which can be concealed in the cabinet when not in use. Pretty cool, uh?

Think this is out of reach for you? Maybe… but do you know that you can find some supervans on Transfercar? Especially in the USA where you can drive brand new RVs for next to nothing. .. Check it out.

Reference: Hunretsville NC Garage Doors.

How to Save Money on the Road

Yes! You can save money while travelling! Just look at how much money you’ve saved with your free Transfercar rental. And then follow these rules and you’ll save even more money…

Food Rules

Most travellers spend way too much money on drive-thru food. Not only is it expensive, but it’s going to make you feel tired and sluggish, two things you don’t want to feel while driving a Transfercar! Bring a cooler with you so that you can make grocery runs along your trip. Bring the necessary cutlery and treat yourself to nice cheeses, salamis and breads while you’re on the road, instead of spending your money on average food from diners on route. If you’re absolutely desperate for a cooked meal, veer off the main road and into small towns for cheaper, and often better, meals.

Snack Attack!

Snacks are an absolute killer on road trips, especially when you’re stopping for gas. Before you leave town, pack your car with snacks from the grocery store. You can easily make your own treats and store them in your cooler. Fruit stands on the side of the road are always great in summer, too.

Mean Gasoline

Following a few simple gas-saving tips can help you save a lot of road trip money:
Turn off the AC: just open the window!
Ease off the pedal well before a stop sign and coast to a stop; take off in a mellow manner. Burning rubber burns gas needlessly.
Inflate tires to close to max — carry a teeny tire gauge and read the tire’s side.
Avoid cruise control.
Don’t speed. Wastes gas and one ticket can destroy a summer road trip budget.

Sneaky Tips

A prepaid credit card can help to keep you within your budget. Just make sure it doesn’t have excessive fees associated with it.
To avoid going into debt, experts at Crediful.com suggest that you can save money with a detailed budget for what you’ll spend on lodging, meals, activities and gas.
Carry some cash with you in case you need it.
Limit your time away to less than 10 days.
Pack the right necessities.
Book accommodation in advance.
Book a free Transfercar rental car.

We don’t want to toot our own horns, but travelling with a free rental car is obviously going to save you more money that paying for one. Also, if you’re looking for an even cheaper trip, why not rent an RV or campervan, thus eliminating the need to pay for exorbitant hotel rooms especially if you’re travelling as a family?! And with the introduction of payment platforms like Flexipay, it has only gotten easier paying. Some of our deals even come with ferries and a free tank of fuel, which means you save even more money! I know it sounds too good to be true, but thousands of travellers all over the world have cracked onto our services, saving money as they ride with us, and making their trips last longer. If you haven’t registered, you’re not saving money. So get amongst it. And let’s hit the road.

And my last great advise: read how to choose banks with the best free checking! Believe me, it is also very important to know where to open account and what benefits some banks have compared to others.