Oz Experience Bus - DON'T DO IT!!

I can see that this forum has turned into Oz Experience vs Greyhound. I am travel agent in Australia and will give you the same advice on that which I also give to my customers - honest advice.

Greyhound (G)

G is great for those travellers that are on working holiday visas and wish to work while they travel around Australia as it will give them a great flexibility and the fact that it has the most destinations covered into their network around Australia than compared to OzEx.
Also, another great thing about it is that you can get kilometre passes that allow you to backtrack, go up, left and right and can be used all over Australia on G network and that you can also top them up if you run out.
G also, has traveller passes (valid 45 days or 183 days)which allows to travel from selected cities in one direction (eg. syd to cairns or vice versa) which are great for those people that are pressed for time and want to see the main highlights quickly or just planning to do one part of the Australia and are not planning to side or backtrack.
Another thing that separates G from OzEX is that G is only a bus that is for backpackers/tourists and aussies travelling from A - B so do not expect much help on travel queries.

Oz Experience

Oz Experience are for those travellers that has a lot of time to travel that want to see as much as possible (eg. 1 month or more to do the East Coast) and really experience what Oz has to offer. Ok, maybe few things they choose to do will not appeal to everyone, but honestly different things things appeal to different people just make the best out of it most of you guys are here once in your life might as well enjoy it!!!
Also, on OzEx you will meet a lot of fellow travellers whit whom you can swap your experiences and tips on places where to stay longer etc. and possible meet travel buddies.
Also, the drivers are experienced guides that can help book accommodation, tours and more information on places you want to visit (it's like having a travel agency on a bus).
To sum it up with OzEx its all about the experience!

So, these are the differences between G and OzEx in my opinion. I think that any trip/tour should be suited to the type of person is and other factors like travel time, things wanting to see, expectations.

To conclude some pointers about travel agents:
Please note that not most travel agents are paid a wage and commission is only a nice bonus so not all travel agents will sell the most expensive product, but most of us actually try to sell you the most suitable product for your budget and products we believe in!
Also, please remember that we travel and travelled before around the world and that we were in your shoes!

Another one is that there isn't such thing as 'champagne on a beer budget'.

In my career I have come accross to quite a few rude customers the tip is maybe if you would be a lot nicer to us your chances on scoring a discount would be greater. A smile and politness goes a long way!

Hope this helpful to anyone (otherwise I might change my job😊 Reply to this

Hey.... All this crap about OZ expereince is somewhat true..... Just do you home work FIRST!!! Reply to this

Oz Experience is a rip off. I know as a driver for over 2 years. Some drivers are the horniest, dirtiest and vilest people I've ever met. All they want to do is shag. Then they post photos of the event and brag about how many they got on each trip. Same goes for the places they stop, like Dingo in Queensland. The people at the ranch are scum. If you really want a great Aus experience, buy or rent a car or catch rides with others. If you want, you can follow the OzEx buses to see where they go but let me tell you that 90% of the stops are a waste of time. Take for example going north to Cairns, we bypass Cairns to go to the bungy jump basically kidnapping all aboard to go to the bungy jump. Doesn't matter is you don't want to do it. We were not allowed to drop off before. There are deals made with 'destinations' as when 50 tired, hungry and thirsty backpackers get off a bus, they have cash for food and drink. So where OzEx goes is very important. Kick backs to the driver or OxEx are commen so it's not always what's best for the traveller but what pays the driver or company. The food served at the places is always the same. BBQ (poor options for vegetarians) and as a driver who eats at them EVERY day gets sick of the poor quality food. Reply to this

All of these comments really put me off using Oz experience! I'm going travelling in March 2010, will be in australia in about April/May. However reading through the majority, greyhound doesn't seem like its going to suit me at all. I think that it probably depends on each individual. I am only 18 and travelling alone for the first time in my life! So I think i'm gonna go with Oz Ex. I'd also like to point out that not every 18-19 yr old on a gap year is merely wanting to get pissed every single night. If I wanted to do that it'd be cheaper to stay at home! I'm going travelling to gain an amazing experience and meet some really cool people, and I'm hoping Oz Ex does that for me! Greyhound may be cheaper but oz ex puts my mind at ease a little. Although I am slightly concerned about having to stop off at places that may not be of interest to me.

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I'm planning to travel the East coast of Australia in June 2011 to mid Septemeber. I'm the 18 year old taking the gap year that no-one wants to be around! But to be honest the thought of being stuck with people my own age for the long makes me want to pull my hair out as i get on an awful lot better with older people. I was meant to be taking a full gap year in which i was going to travel the whole of Australia but this had to be cancelled due to the uncertainty surrounding university fees so i really am looking to get the absolute most out of this short trip. I think, after reading a hell of a lot of the comments on this forum and also many on other forums surrounding the Greyhound vs OZ Experience debate, that i will probably go with OzEx as it seems what most people are describing on here as being a disadvantage is exactly what i'm looking for. I want to make it my own unique experience full of things i wasn't, and could never have, expected. Which seems to be what OzEx will provide. I want it to be 'a party experience', i mean come on, i have to prepare myself for uni! But i think the idea of being pushed into taking part on the journeys will really help me, i want this trip to not just be for enjoyment, but to help me increase my confidence and to gain the ability to say yes to more things without thinking about them too much.

I would really appriciate it if anyone that has done this trip would contact me so i could talk to someone about it who wasnt trying to sell me it. I realise there are negatives to pretty much everything and i would like to hear these as well as the positives, but i have pretty much decided on OzEx as the one thing i really want to avoid is boredem.
Also if anyone if planning on travelling the east coast around this time please get in touch! Reply to this

I'm travelling in oz may/june 2011 and I just booked my greyhound pass after months of debating over Oz Ex and greyhound. In the end I decided that I want to be flexible and do things my own way. plus greyhound was much cheaper! i'm sure oz ex is good, but i'm not in a hurry so would rather take my time going down from Cairns to Melbourne. (plus got 10 nights accommodation at base hostels included with my pass.) Reply to this