So here you are on the land Down Under. Fantastic! How do you know where to buy things in Australia and how much it would be? The shops in Australia may be a bit different than the ones found in Europe and may be named differently too. On my very second day in Australia, I wanted to buy a notepad to write down my travel diary, “go to the newsagent” said the hostel receptionist. As a French traveler: “sorry, but what is a newsagent?” Well some of you might laugh at me; however it is not that simple when you are not an English speaking person and try to understand the guy who is trying to kindly explain to me whilst I could only understand 2 words of what he was saying LOL

 

Here, I have combined the most popular shops in a list per category in alphabetic order. These shops might not be located everywhere in Australia. You can check on their website to find out more about their location.

​

ALCOHOL

Alcohol cannot be purchase at a food/grocery shop. You need

to go to the bottle shop (“Bottleo”) which specialises in alcohol.

You will find the following shops: BWS, Cellarbrations, Thirsty

Camel, Dan Murphy’s. Dan Murphy’s is by far the cheapest

option with drinks being sometimes half price as anywhere

else. Have you heard of “goon”? Basically it is the name given

to cheap cask wine and is very popular among backpackers, I

personally prefer either to pay a bit more to get a nicer wine

or not get anything at all! Alcohol is quite expensive in

Australia as it is taxed more than food because of the sad high alcoholics rate.

 

BAR/PUB/SPORTS

You can watch sports on a big screen at the pub or at the bar. A pub is usually where you go for a casual drink and have a meal (wear casual clothing), whilst a bar is normally to have a drink with a bit more vibrant atmosphere (kind of ready to go clubbing afterwards, wear nicer clothes). Back to sports, generally speaking, the TV would be on for popular sports events such as finales of football, rugby, soccer, tennis…

 

CAMPING GEAR

Whether you need a gas stove or a new tent, you can visit BCF (Boating Camping Fishing), Anaconda or Ray’s Outdoors. You will be spoiled for choice in the major cities but bear in mind that smaller towns might only have very small shops with a small choice (not ideal when you need that specific $50 tent).

 

CAR RELATED PRODUCTS

Whether you are after a new car battery, tools or some windscreen cleaner you can go to SuperCheap Auto. This shop should have everything you need. If you need to replace your tyres you could go to Kmart Tyres, Bob Jane Tmart or Beaurepairs. They always have special offers going on.

And to wash your car or van, you can put it through an automatic wash at a car wash or wash it yourself at the car wash with a high water pressure gun. You can pay cash or card for the automatic wash ($8 to$25 for a wash), but always cash for the manual one ($1 or $2 per minute). If you drive on sand on the beach (like sand dunes, Fraser Island or other sandy National Parks), you will need to wash the under body of the vehicle to avoid rusting.

 

CIGARETTES

Where to buy cigarettes in Australia? You can find these at supermarkets, fuel stations, some newsagent, tobacconists and bottle shops. A pack of cigarette costs around $25-$30.

 

CLOTHING/SHOES

There are a few main shops where you can buy great value for money clothing and shoes.

Target, big W and Kmart should be your main ones whether you are looking for business, everyday, sport or working outdoor/tradies clothing or shoes. The quality is usually better (so more expensive) at Target, then Big W, and finally Kmart.

There are 2 main “op shops” in Australia. Op shops are second-hand shops which are ran by volunteers in order to give the profits to charities. Their names are Salvation Army (“Salvos”) and Vinnies. Plenty of bargains there!

Obviously there are a lot of other clothing and shoes options which are more “fashionable” . Some of them are: Cotton On, Just Jeans, SpendLess Shoes and H & M men/women; Valley Girl and Supre more for young women ; YD more for young men; City Beach and Jay Jays more for young people. And you can also find small businesses especially in major cities.

 

COMPUTER/ELECTRONICS

So your camera or your tablet is broken? You could go to JB

Hifi, Harvey Norman or the Good Guys for a wide range of

products. Specials run on a regular basis, you can check their

websites to compare the prices.

 

FUEL

Although Rewards and Flybuys cards (see Food/Water section)

can be swiped when you purchase fuel at participating fuel

stations, I wouldn’t go out of my way to fuel up as they usually charge you more to give you a so-called discount only if you have the card and a coupon. Non-Woolies Caltex, BP and non-Coles Shells fuel stations usually have the best fuel prices when you don’t have a loyalty card. Always make sure you have enough fuel until the next petrol station.

 

 

FOOD/WATER

Food has to be the most important thing. Australia has a lot of supermarkets usually located in every suburb and in the city centres. The 2 main ones with best prices and choice, are Coles and Woolworths (“Woollies”).

You will also find IGA and Foodworks throughout the country,however I find them a bit more expensive than the 2 main shops, especially when you are in a tiny town. There are also very well priced Asian grocery stores available for those like me who like their Asian food and condiment.

Australia has drinkable tap water in populated areas, however water tanks are used in some more remote areas, it is therefore important to ask whether it is drinkable or advised to buy water.

 

                                                                        MY TIPS

​

• If you are going to stay in the country for a year or longer, you could subscribe for free to a loyalty card called Flybuys at Coles and Rewards at Woolies. The cashier will ask you whether you have Flybuys or Rewards card at the checkout (first time you will probably say “pardon?”).

- Flybuys accumulate points at the following shops: https://www.flybuys.com.au/collect/#/

- Rewards accumulate points at the following shops: Woolworths, BWS and Caltex fuel outlets.

Both have a system of $1 spend = 1 point; 2,000 points = $10 all redeemable on line.

• If you pay with a debit card, using “saving” not “credit” (option only available with an Australian card), the cashier will ask you if you want any cash out which is cash you can withdraw from your account, so no need to go and look for an ATM.

• All states, except New South Wales, are meant to ban plastic bags by 2018 so make sure to bring your own.

 

HARDWARE

For screws, bolts, plumbing, electrical… you can definitely try Bunnings, Mitre 10 or Home&Hardware. Bunnings is the biggest store with the most choice; they usually have a sausage sizzle for $2 outside for charity findings. So don’t be surprise to smell food when you are about to enter the shop!

 

LUGGAGE/BAG

So what if you need to buy a new backpack or suitcase? Try

Strandbags, they have good quality gear and always some

specials going on.

 

POST CARDS/BIRTHDAY CARDS/STATIONERY/MAGAZINE

This is when you go to the “newsagent”. You can also find all

the above at the supermarkets; however the newsagent will

have a wider choice.

 

SIM CARDS/PHONE CREDIT

If you need a SIM card or some phone credit, you can easily purchase these at one of the main supermarkets, at some post offices and also at the phone retailers (Vodafone, Optus or Telstra). There are a lot of option available depending on whether you only want national calls + internet or if you need international minutes. If you have a phone from overseas, make sure it is compliant with Australian SIM cards before you travel.

 

STAMPS

Yes people still send the good old post card! You can purchase stamps from the Post Office but also from some newsagents.

 

TOILETRIES

All toiletries are available at all supermarkets and chemists. I find Chemist Warehouse being the cheapest for toiletries so I always stock up when I go there. If you like perfumes, Chemist Warehouse always have awesome specials going on.

 

OTHER TIPS

​

Kmart, Big W and Target have a variety of items ranging from clothing, beauty products, camping, stationery, car products, bags, electronics and hardware. However keep in mind you won’t have as much choice and sometimes the quality might not be as good as a specialised shop.

 

Which websites to use to buy second hand? I highly recommend Gumtree as well as the Facebook groups called “name of place where you are located”Buy Sell, for example “Hobart Buy Sell” or “Sydney Buy Sell”.

 

 

I hope this post gives you a good insight of the variety of shops you can find in Australia which can always come handy when you are new to the country. 

​

​