“Australia is a driving country,” says Natalia Kozlov, a lawyer and mother-of-three living in regional New South Wales.
“We all love our road trips,” the 40-year-old says. “We don’t have our high-speed rail that Europe and other countries have – we all drive.”
But Kozlov is among the Australians now planning alternatives for the Easter holiday after abandoning travel plans due to the energy shock caused by the war in the Middle East and subsequent skyrocketing prices of petrol and diesel.
Even prime minister Anthony Albanese acknowledged the impact of the fuel crisis on the great Australian Easter road trip during his speech to the nation on Wednesday night.
“Enjoy your Easter. If you’re hitting the road, don’t take more fuel than you need – just fill up like you normally would,” he said, as he urged people to consider using public transport.
Easter is usually one of the nation’s busiest periods for domestic travel, with an estimated 600,000 additional cars driving through regional Australia in April compared with March.
Kozlov and her partner, who live in Coffs Harbour, cancelled their trip to Sydney after deciding the $800 cancellation fee for their accommodation was worth it compared with the additional $2,000 they expected to pay for diesel.
Kozlov, who booked the trip before war began, doesn’t consider having to cancel a holiday comparable to the suffering experienced by those directly affected by the conflict.
“But in terms of little impacts, this is an impact,” she says. “It’s showing how privileged I am … but, for the first time, I’m really noticing the money leaving our bank account.”
If they aren’t able to tack on to a friend’s camping trip close to Coffs Harbour, they’re planning to stay home and do “all the free stuff” – bushwalks, beach visits, anything that’s on at the local library or gallery, visiting friends, baking at home.
And they aren’t the only ones working out alternatives for the Easter break. Here are some of the other approaches Australians are taking as the fuel crisis hits.
Planning a fuel-free way to get there
Sales of electric vehicles have soared in Australia since the start of the US-Israel war on Iran, and car rental companies have reported a surge in interest.
While unleaded and diesel prices fell on Wednesday after the Albanese government announced it would halve the excise tax on fuel to 26.3 cents a litre, they remain elevated.
Melbourne aged care worker Claire Harvey says her drive to Adelaide in an EV this weekend will cost less than $75 each way.
It would have cost about $183 each way if she was still driving her old “fairly small, efficient” manual car.
Harvey says she and her 16-year-old daughter, who will be behind the wheel as an L-plater, will only be navigating “range anxiety” instead of astronomical petrol prices.
“I know where the charging infrastructure is,” Harvey says. “I’m planning to stop more often than not and top up just because it’s the long weekend.”
Catching public transport amid long-haul train boom
With regional areas in particular expected to take a hit from cancelled bookings, the tourism industry has been encouraging people to go ahead with their plans – even if they don’t drive there.
More people have caught long-haul interstate public transport on Australia’s east coast since the war started, data provided by the New South Wales regional service TrainLink shows.
Overall patronage on all NSW TrainLink services increased by about 11% in March compared with February, with coaches up 1% and train trips rising by 15%.
Patronage for the Sydney and Brisbane – and return – train service increased by 36% in March this year, compared with March 2025.
Over the same period, there was a 19% increase in patronage on the service between Sydney and Melbourne.
Trains or coaches can be a good alternative, as long as you can find one that’s going where you want to go, says Daniel Bowen, a campaigner with the Public Transport Users Association.
“It really depends where you’re depending to travel to and if there’s a viable option,” he says.
Bowen says suburban trains are “quite good” for getting across Australia’s major cities and even for taking a short trip. In Melbourne, for example, he says you can take a train to “the edge of suburbia” and on some lines even connect through to national parks and other destinations.
If you’re travelling outside the major cities, Bowen says selecting a destination you can reach by train makes for a pleasant journey, without the hassle of driving.
While NSW and Victoria have the most established regional rail networks, according to Bowen, you may be able to catch coaches if you can’t get to your destination by train.
However, public transport isn’t always an option. “It does vary,” Bowen says. “You’ll need to look at what’s available in your area”.
As Monash University’s Prof Graham Currie, a world expert on public transport, told Guardian Australia earlier this week, only about half of urban Australia has access to public transport of any quality, and it’s worse in regional and rural areas.
Staying home to be a ‘tourist in your own community’
Cathie Warburton, the Australian Library and Information Association’s chief executive officer, says it’s a great opportunity to find out what’s happening in your local area and, if you have children, to make an itinerary for the school holidays.
It’s also a good way to save money.
Warburton says library events have become increasingly popular since the end of the pandemic and she expects the conflict-fuelled rise in the cost of living to accelerate the demand for free community events and activities.
While many libraries are closed on the Easter weekend, Warburton encourages people to look online and plan what free school holiday activities they might want to attend at their local branch. This applies to city and country dwellers of all ages.
For those looking for something to do this weekend, Warburton recommends checking out what your local council has on as they often run free Easter activities and other events.
“There’s more happening in your local area than you’re probably aware of,” she says.
“Just do a little bit of research online and you’ll discover this fantastic world of things – it’s almost like being a tourist in your own community.”
Lisa Petherick, 63, and her husband plan to explore their local community. The couple, who live in Warrnambool in south-west Victoria, had grand plans to take off on a five-month caravanning adventure after Easter.
After putting their plans on hold due to the cost of diesel and feeling as though they “can’t justify going on holiday” when farmers and emergency services need fuel, Petherick says they’re going to take advantage of living in a rural area.
“We’ll just do some regional tourism,” she says. “We don’t want to travel too far … But I was thinking if everyone just spent the money in their own little region that would boost the tourism in their own area too.”
