Schoolies is an important rite of passage. For the majority of people, the prospect of letting loose and having fun after a tumultuous year of hitting the books is what pushed them through the final weeks of the HSC. However, across Australia there are many schoolies destinations to choose from and how do you know which schoolies package is best for you and your friends. In Australia, the Gold Coast is one of the most popular schoolies party destinations, but now, with the lure of an overseas adventure, Bali and Fiji are becoming increasingly more and more popular.
Whether hitting the classic Gold Coast celebrations, or adventuring it overseas, there are always a few factors to consider to guarantee you’ve made the right choice…
Gold Coast Schoolies
schoolies.com
As mentioned before, the Gold Coast is Australia’s most popular schoolies party spot, averaging 50,000 students per schoolies period. The celebrations are split into two weeks, and they vary dramatically in party atmosphere.
Week 1 is usually filled with local Queensland students and hosts a week-long festival on the beach. This is perfect for under 18 year-olds as you can still enjoy the fun as it’s not exclusively in clubs and pubs. This can’t be said for the second week. In the second week, more students from across Australia, journey up to party, and this week celebrations are mostly held in the local clubs, so if you’re underage it might not be the perfect choice. Most clubs have designated student sections blocking you off from the general local public.
During the week of partying you receive a specific pass showing you that your a school leaver. This grants you access to free transport to and from your accommodation as well as other specific services. When staying in your apartment, it’s always best to stay safe and keep off the balconies (some places lock the balcony doors). Most places also have guards and you cannot usually bring up people that have not paid to stay there.
There is heavy policing in Gold Coast schoolies. To ensure the safety of the young and inexperienced students, police have said to be rather intrusive and issue a lot of fines in an attempt to control reckless behaviour. There is a zero tolerance at the Gold Coast schoolies.
Even though there is a high police presence, schoolies can still be a dangerous and hazardous place, full of drunk and drug-filled students so it’s best to never be alone, look out for your friends and always go places in a large group.
Bali Schoolies
news.com.au
Bali is steadily making a name for itself as a schoolies party destination, averaging over 6,000 students per schoolies period. As there are many companies and travel agencies including inexpensive all-included travel packages, it can often be seen as a cheaper alternative than travelling within Australia.
Bali can boast beach parties, fantastic surfing spots, bargain shopping, restaurants, bars, nightlife, daytime adventures and live entertainment. With the increase of Bali as a schoolies hot spot there are also more and more schoolies related parties on offer. If you have a large group of friends Bali can seem like a much viable option as you can often hire out whole villas.
There are some important factors however if you want to consider Bali as a schoolies destination. Drinking and partying in a foreign country can be dangerous and usually requires some form of insurance that can also add up in price. Further more, since Bali is within a Muslim country, alcohol is very expensive to purchase and the locals know this. If you are offered cheap alcohol on the streets chances are that it’s too good to be true and is dangerous to consume.
Furthermore, drug-related crime is very serious in Bali so always be careful of what you consume and purchase. There are often locals trying to sell you cannabis, hashish and other types of drugs on the street, so always be wary and stay safe! Lastly, even though the police presence in Gold Coast can seem overbearing, in a foreign country, you will not have that extra protection, so keep in mind to stay in a group of friends when walking about.
Fiji Schoolies
wanderingdonut.com
Another increasingly popular destination for the school-leaver is Fiji. If you want a similar tropical holiday but would like to reduce the potential dangers of Bali, then Fiji is an excellent option. There a wide selection of adventure packages to choose from that cater for schoolies partiers, usually including an alcohol-free and alcohol permitted options so you can have the holiday that you want.
Though still having a fun beach party atmosphere, Fiji can often be seen as a safer option than Bali and the locals and adventure organisation take good care of the students. You can often stay in beautiful villas or small huts and after nights of partying you can also go on local adventure and sight-seeing.
Fiji holidays are usually not too overcrowded either as there are plenty of islands to choose from, each catering a different but classic feel.
In conclusion, it’s always best to weigh up the pros and cons before choosing any schoolies destination. If you’re just back from schoolies 2016, let us know what you recommend, visit out friendly forum and let our community know.
