Circular Quay to Airport, BestTransport?

[LindaD22]

We will be disembarking from Royal Caribbean’s Brilliance OTS next February and have a flight at 1500 to MCY (Sunshine Coast). What is the easiest way to get to the airport? Online reviews of shared shuttles seem to be mixed. Private cars seem expensive, of course. It seems taxis might be in great demand and difficult to catch. We thought about waiting to ask Guest Services onboard about a RCI shuttle to the airport. I would love to hear about your experience in handling this. My husband is a Reluctant Traveler so I try to make each step of our travels as smooth as possible, so that he will continue (albeit reluctantly) to indulge my love of travel. Thank you very much for your help. 

[Over from NZ]

The easiest - is a Taxi. Not the cheapest.. but the easiest. However.. in $USD it's not going to cost you much 🙂 

[SinbadThePorter]

6 hours ago, LindaD22 said:

What is the easiest way to get to the airport?

 

Train, but only if you have very light luggage.

 

Otherwise taxi.

[LindaD22]

Okay, 2 votes for taxi! I appreciate your help, one less thing to worry about. 

[possum52]

Definitely taxi, particularly as your husband is a reluctant traveller. Make it easy for you both. We usually take the train, but you need to be able to manage your luggage and as we age, it is more likely we will always use a taxi after disembarking. 

 

When you come out of the terminal, on your left will be the escalator and lift (elevator) to the 3rd level where the taxi rank is. 

[cheeky_minx]

Agree, definitely taxi.  They know the ships are in and there is a constant stream of taxis doing the run  from port to airport.  We'll be doing that again in December. I'll come back if there is any change to to what we usually experience. 

[LindaD22]

1 hour ago, cheeky_minx said:

Agree, definitely taxi.  They know the ships are in and there is a constant stream of taxis doing the run  from port to airport.  We'll be doing that again in December. I'll come back if there is any change to to what we usually experience. 

Please do share your experience, that would be most helpful. I’ve made a note to do a taxi from the cruise terminal, but your real-life experience in December would be very helpful as well. 

[cheeky_minx]

Just getting back to you on this. Got off Pacific adventure at circular quay this morning picked-up bags  and then took lift to level 3 taxi rank....   Plenty of cabs and staff organisig passengers into them.  No wait time for us - got off about 8am

[LindaD22]

3 hours ago, cheeky_minx said:

Just getting back to you on this. Got off Pacific adventure at circular quay this morning picked-up bags  and then took lift to level 3 taxi rank....   Plenty of cabs and staff organisig passengers into them.  No wait time for us - got off about 8am

Thank you for updating! What was the cost to get to the airport?

[cheeky_minx]

$90 to terminal 3. Cost was due to Sydney’s one way road system and tolls plus it was peak time.  There is a train from circular quay to airport - we’ll do that next time depending on flight time… 

[Northern Aurora]

We left the Celebrity Edge on December 9th.  We generally take a taxi to the airport Rydges hotel where we stay before we fly out the next day.  This time we had a significant amount of non refundable OBC.  So we booked the Celebrity airport shuttle (using some of that NOBC) to the international terminal and walked across the street to the Rydges.

[cheeky_minx]

Forgot to mention Pacific adventure offered airport transfer from ship $20 each.

[PasadenaDave]

21 hours ago, cheeky_minx said:

$90 to terminal 3. Cost was due to Sydney’s one way road system and tolls plus it was peak time.  There is a train from circular quay to airport - we’ll do that next time depending on flight time… 

Remember that is in Australia dollars converted to USD about $60 which for a world class city is in line with others 

[168G]

Is there a passenger limit via taxi?  Any vans or just passenger cars?  We are a group of 6 adults.  Thanks!

[possum52]

40 minutes ago, 168G said:

Is there a passenger limit via taxi?  Any vans or just passenger cars?  We are a group of 6 adults.  Thanks!

Yes there will be vans, which will of course cost more, but will be cheaper than two taxis.

[cheeky_minx]

Yes there were plenty of vans and the staff directing passengers accordingly re group size and amount of luggage etc... All very organised.

[azbirdmom]

In the past we've done taxis and ship transfers.  This trip (disembarked yesterday) we took the train.  It was so easy and inexpensive too (roughly $7 USD one way per person).  We each had a large suitcase and a rolling backpack.  The train stations at both Circular Quay and the airport have elevators you can use, and you can roll your suitcases right onto the train.  It's a flat short walk to / from the ship and the train ride takes maybe 20 minutes.  Very easy and quick IF you don't have trouble handling your luggage.

[dbirds]

Is there space on the train for the suitcase storage or do you just keep them in the aisle?  

[possum52]

On 12/17/2023 at 10:38 AM, azbirdmom said:

In the past we've done taxis and ship transfers.  This trip (disembarked yesterday) we took the train.  It was so easy and inexpensive too (roughly $7 USD one way per person).  

The cost is nearly twice what you quoted on today's current exchange rate at $13.12-$13.98. The cost in AU$ is 19.48 offpeak and 20.68 peak per person. one way. Sydney Airport Train Costs

 

7 hours ago, dbirds said:

Is there space on the train for the suitcase storage or do you just keep them in the aisle?  

When you step into the train, you will be in an open area and have always found a seat and placed our luggage in front of us. 

Edited December 20, 2023 by possum52

[azbirdmom]

44 minutes ago, possum52 said:

The cost is nearly twice what you quoted on today's current exchange rate at $13.12-$13.98. The cost in AU$ is 19.48 offpeak and 20.68 peak per person. one way. Sydney Airport Train Costs

 

Sorry about that.  The price I quoted was what my credit card was charged for the trip from SYD to Circular Quay and I assumed it was the same for the return.  It took a couple of days for the charge for the Circular Quay to SYD trip to hit my credit card and I see that it is a little more than $13 USD.  Still a bargain based on the cost of a taxi which at peak times can be insanely high (we paid around $140 AUD for a taxi from SYD to the Sydney Harbour Marriot in 2019 during rush hour and learned our lesson).

[gdlamberth]

Is there a place to store luggage at the the train station? We dock at 8:00 a.m. our plane is about 4:00 p.m. if we could store luggage at the train station and walk around town a bit that would be nice.

Thanks,

Greg

[azbirdmom]

5 minutes ago, gdlamberth said:

Is there a place to store luggage at the the train station? We dock at 8:00 a.m. our plane is about 4:00 p.m. if we could store luggage at the train station and walk around town a bit that would be nice.

Thanks,

Greg

There is a place at Circular Quay for luggage storage.  I believe it is called Bounce but someone can correct me if I'm wrong about that.  I saw it on the Quay side of the station but we didn't use it so I'm not sure about what they charge.

 

ETA:  It is Bounce, here's their website https://usebounce.com/city/sydney/sydney-circular-quay?utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=pmax&utm_campaign={campaignname}&hsa_grp=&utm_term=&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAvoqsBhB9EiwA9XTWGTPG_mGg3hNP-598ZJPhHwuqK5Derdio9kD2Bk_f6PGQr9DfJd3B3xoC3eAQAvD_BwE

Edited December 20, 2023 by azbirdmom

[caseum]

On 12/11/2023 at 2:09 PM, cheeky_minx said:

$90 to terminal 3. Cost was due to Sydney’s one way road system and tolls plus it was peak time.  There is a train from circular quay to airport - we’ll do that next time depending on flight time… 

Thank for your information.  Our ship will return to Overseas Passengers Terminal on a Sunday at 630am, and our flight is around 1130am.  Assuming we can get off the ship at around 7am.  At that time of a Sunday, the traffic in Sydney should be light and it will be cheaper?  Also, someone in another thread suggested to ask the driver to avoid toll roads.  Wonder how much time, if any, it will add to the trip when we can avoid the toll roads.

[caseum]

On 12/16/2023 at 3:38 PM, azbirdmom said:

In the past we've done taxis and ship transfers.  This trip (disembarked yesterday) we took the train.  It was so easy and inexpensive too (roughly $7 USD one way per person).  We each had a large suitcase and a rolling backpack.  The train stations at both Circular Quay and the airport have elevators you can use, and you can roll your suitcases right onto the train.  It's a flat short walk to / from the ship and the train ride takes maybe 20 minutes.  Very easy and quick IF you don't have trouble handling your luggage.

Thank you for your information!  How about the walk from the train to the departure check-in counters?  Is it also a flat, short walk?  Thanks.

[caseum]

On 12/11/2023 at 2:09 PM, cheeky_minx said:

$90 to terminal 3. Cost was due to Sydney’s one way road system and tolls plus it was peak time.  There is a train from circular quay to airport - we’ll do that next time depending on flight time… 

One more question: Did you pay by credit card?  And if yes, was there a credit card surcharge?  Thank you.