Airbnb is not a hotel

Obviously. The sharing concept has to be properly understood to avoid possible misunderstandings. We regretted not doing proper research or understand the entire concept before making a booking. Lesson learnt.

Introduce yourselves

Create a profile and introduce yourselves to the owners. Likewise, they will have an introduction of themselves and a description of the apartment on their profile. Read through to understand the owner better.

Read the reviews

As above. Reading the reviews by other travelers also helps as it gives you an idea on what to expect there. Look out for positive reviews especially.

Check the house rules before booking

I’ve heard about a horror story from a friend where the owner chased her out of the apartment as she went back late and accidentally woke him up from his sleep. Isn’t that scary? Check the house rules with the owner and ask questions before confirming the accommodation. This will prevent potential conflicts.

Our apartment turns our exactly like the description. The owners were extremely friendly and helpful. However, we feel that there is no privacy and ended up booking a hotel closer to the city area. The hotel room was about an additional SGD45 per night. Pretty affordable considering the cab fare we managed to save. There you go, my thoughts on Airbnb.
I will update about the rest of the trip soon! 

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Upon touching down, we saw Europcar‘s counter and decided to rent a car to drive up to Great Ocean Road (GOR). I am so glad that we did. Driving 600km to and fro is no easy feat. Boss must be secretly happy that I have a driving license haha! However, the issues that we experienced is mind boggling.

Make Comparisons

We paid about AUD300 for 2 days rental including insurance and GPS, not exactly cheap. The more days you rent, the cheaper it is. There are a few car rental companies near the airport and we decided to take up Europcar because of a friendly Asian lady who is working at the counter. Turns out that she don’t know her numbers well. Read on to know why. :X

Do Proper Research

I did some research on car rentals, but not enough. Europcar seemed to have a very bad reputation in Australia. Apart from the experiences mentioned, I am glad that we were not slapped with exorbitant charges. Reviews like these are scary. Moral of the story – do more research and read the reviews.

Check on Hidden Charges

We were slapped with extra charges like one-way car return to the city area. Turns out it was a blunder made by the Asian lady. No one told us that we need to pump the tank to full level when we returned the car. They even have charges like additional drivers which I don’t quite get it. Remember to ask questions before committing.

Rent a Good Car & GPS

We rented a Toyota Camry 2.4L and only pumped the tank once, though there are many rest stops along the way to top up petrol and have your toilet breaks. GPS rental is about AUD14 per day, quite affordable and a must-have. Most importantly, do rent a car that you are familiar with, follow the road signages and drive safely.

Road Signages

Signages along the highway are quite straightforward and similar to the ones in Singapore. The GPS was pretty accurate except for one minor boo-boo. The route given to GOR and back to the city are two different routes. There were lots of intersections, blind spots, curves and bends when we drove to GOR, but it was along the pretty coastal area. Whereas it was one straight road when we drove back to the city. A major test on our driving skills and patience.

However, nothing beats the breathtaking views that we saw along the way. AWESOME!

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