Brisbane

Route

Brisbane Airport to CBD (Central Station)

Standard Route

Train via AirTrain ($18.50, around 20 mins without waiting, up to 50 mins with waiting for train)

Optimised route

Bus/public train ($3.96, ~60 mins)

Transport Card

Go Card (https://translink.com.au/tickets-and-fares/go-card). Purchase one at the train station if starting at at the airport or at convenience stores or newsagents if elsewhere

Brisbane’s got two airport terminals, Domestic and International, physically separated but connected by road (free bus connection) or a train line (paid).

Leaving either terminal is the same cost and is typically by way of the AirTrain, a private segment of railway that connects into south-east Queensland’s TransLink network once you leave the airport area. Whilst convenient and easy, the train is expensive because of the “private” part of the line. You can avoid this though by using a combination of other methods.

From the airport:

1. Take the free orange Skygate/T-Bus from your terminal to Skygate shopping centre, otherwise known as DFO), ensure that it is the Skygate bus and not the International Transfer Bus. The Skygate bus stops right at the public bus stop so just get off and wait.
2. From Skygate/DFO, catch the public 590 Bus to Toombul Interchange.
3. From here, walk a short distance across the road to Toombul Station.
4. Take any south-bound train (Cleveland Line) and that will get you into the CBD. If you’re CBD-bound, get off where you so choose, such as Central Station. If you’re Gold Coast-bound, change at Eagle Junction and jump on the train coming from the airport.

For getting back to or going to the airport, do the same as above, just in reverse:

1. Get yourself to Toombul Station from wherever you are (via the Shorncliffe Line). Changing at Eagle Junction is easiest if coming from the Gold Coast.
2. Catch the 590 bus to Skygate/DFO. The bus dropped me at Skygate Brisbane Airport Stand 2 so it’s a very short walk back to Stand 1 to get the next bus.
3. Catch the free orange Skygate bus from Skygate Brisbane Airport Stand 1 to the appropriate terminal.

The only catch, aside from the additional time and transfers required, is that the Skygate bus runs from around 6am to 6pm. If you have an earlier or later flight, your only option is the train, up until around 10pm. After that time your only options are taxi, ride sharing or private vehicle.

The Skygate bus is well-equipped to carry baggage but the public bus to/from Toombul is less suited for large bags. It’s not a very long trip though, just two stops, so you could make it work with luggage if you had to.

Sydney

Route

Sydney Airport to CBD (Circular Quay)

Standard Route

Train via AirportLink ($18.70, 20 mins)

Optimised route

Bus/public train or bus/bus ($2.67 with bus, 30-40 mins; or $2.47 with walk, 60 mins)

Transport card

Opal Card (https://opal.com.au/). Purchase at most convenience stores, including ones at the airport.

Sydney’s got two airport terminals, Domestic and International, physically separated but connected by road (now a free bus connection) or a train line (paid).

Leaving either terminal is the same cost and is typically by way of the AirportLink, a private segment of railway that connects into Sydney’s city train network once you leave the airport area. Whilst convenient and easy, the train is expensive because of the “private” part of the line which leads to a “station access fee” being charged if you exit at either the Domestic Airport or International Airport Stations. You can avoid this though by a combination strategy.

From the airport:

1. Find the Public Bus stand outside Terminal 3. You’re looking for a yellow vertical sign that says Public Bus or separately marked by the standard blue Ⓑ TransportNSW symbol indicating a bus service.
2. Take the 400 PrePay-Only - Sydney Airport to Bondi Junction via Eastgardens bus or the 420 Burwood to Eastgardens bus from the airport.
   • If you’re super-stingy, want the exercise and want to save 20 cents, walk from the airport to Mascot instead. With this, add at least 20 minutes to your travel time or longer if your bags are heavy.
3. Get off at Mascot Station, Coward St, Stand A (ask the driver to stop or use your phone to know when to press the button) — it’s only a short trip, around 4 mins.
4. From here, walk to Mascot Station just around the corner behind where the bus drops you off.
5. Take the train from Mascot to the city (such as to Circular Quay).

For getting back to or to go to the airport, do the same as above, but in reverse:

1. Get onto an Airport-bound train and get off early at Mascot Station.
   • Ignore anyone who spots your luggage and gives you odd looks or tries to tell you it isn’t the airport (you know what you’re doing!).
   • If you mess up and miss Mascot, either suck it up and pay the full fare at the airport station or for the really adventurous, change trains without leaving the station, get back to Mascot and carry on.
2. Exit Mascot Station and walk up to Coward Street, Stand B (make sure it is Stand B or you’ll be going the wrong way).
3. Take either the 400 PrePay-Only - Bondi Junction to Sydney Airport via Eastgardens or the 420 Eastgardens to Burwood via Sydney Airport & Rockdale bus towards the airport.
4. Get off at your relevant airport terminal. If you accidentally get off at Domestic but need to go to the International or vice versa, catch the free shuttle bus to change terminals.

The only catch, aside from the time factor, is that the bus and trains run only from 5am to around 1am, excepting the 420N night service which runs hourly. This bus only stops at Terminal 1 (International) and the free T-Bus service only runs from 6am to 8.50pm. At this point, taxi, ride-share or private vehicle are your best bets to either get to the airport or leave and make your way to your destination. We can only travel hack so far.

Melbourne

Route

Melbourne (Tullermarine) Airport to CBD (Southern Cross Station)

Standard Route

Bus via SkyBus ($16.50 each way online as return journey, 30-45 mins)

Optimised route

Bus/public train ($7.24 weekday/$6.30 weekend or free, 60 mins)

Transport card

MyKi Card (https://www.ptv.vic.gov.au/tickets/myki/). Purchase at the SkyBus terminal at the airport (ensure you do not buy a Skybus ticket!) if starting there, on the bus itself, or at most convenience stores.

Melbourne has two different airports, Tullamarine (the main airport where the international terminal is) and Avalon. Having never been to Avalon, I can’t (yet) comment on its transport methods and so will only be talking about Tullamarine.

Tullamarine is a long way out of town and for whatever particular reason, there’s no train service directly to the airport. This means that the ten-tonne gorilla that is SkyBus more-or-less has a monopoly over the transport heading towards the CBD. However, that doesn’t mean they’re your only option. Here’s how to break their business model.

I’ll note that when I say “free” it’s that your airport trip could be free if you’ve done some other travelling on your MyKi card on that day. For instance, if you’ve just been shooting around looking at the sights outside the free tram zone earlier in the day, you might have hit your “Daily fare” limit already, meaning your travel to the airport is free! Same goes for further travel after your arrive - on a weekeday, you’ll get really close to hitting your daily cap so make the most of it and travel hard through the rest of the day.

I digress. Travel from the airport looks like this:

1. Take the 901 SmartBus to Frankston from near Terminal 4. If you’ve arrived on a Qantas flight in Terminal 1 this is a good 15 minutes walk.
2. Get off at Broadmeadows Station (ask the driver to stop or use your phone to know when to press the button) — it’s about 20 minutes, depending on traffic and others on the bus.
3. From the bus stop here, walk to the station itself and take a train to Southern Cross Station.

For getting back to or to go to the airport, do the same above, just in reverse:

1. Get to Broadmeadows Station in some manner via train. You don’t need to always start at Southern Cross Station, you can start from Flinders Street or elsewhere.
2. Walk out of the station and down to the bus stop for the 901 SmartBus to Melbourne Airport — be careful as there are two different 901 buses that stop here. Make sure yours says “airport” or just ask the driver.
3. Get off at the last stop, Terminal 4 at the airport. If you’re travelling from T1, T2 or T3, start walking.

The only catch, aside from the time factor, is that the bus and trains run only from 6.30am to around 12.10am. After this point, it’s back to the SkyBus for you, which thankfully runs all night. Except, of course, for their hotel transfer service, which ends early in the evening.

Lastly, don’t forget about the Free Tram Zone in the city. You don’t need to tap on or off, just get on and enjoy the free rides. It’s awesome.

Gold Coast

The Gold Coast is easy — there’s nothing special here in terms of transport. You can catch a public bus right from in front of the airport. There’s no rail or light rail located at the airport at the time of writing, but there are future plans to connect the TransLink rain network at some point in the future.

Townsville

Route

Townsville Airport to CBD

Standard Route

Taxi (approx $25, 10 mins)

Optimised Route

Walk + Bus ($3.00, 30+ mins)

Townsville’s public transport options are very limited at the best of times and the airport is no exception. The standard option is a taxi (immediate) or ride-share (if wait times are short enough) from out the front of the airport, if you don’t already have your own private ride. For public transport:

1. Walk off the airport grounds to Meenan Street
2. Catch either the 205 or 215 Bus (northbound) and get off at the end of the line in the CBD.

This bus route doesn’t operate on Sunday (!), weekday evenings after 8pm or Saturdays after 6pm.