Sydney Ferry and Opal Card

Does anyone know if I can pass my Opal card on to a friend in Australia if I still have money left on it when I leave to go back to the U.S.?

Definitely, may need to top it up though.:D

No. Opal has replaced those, covering all forms of public transport. There are daily and weekly caps for extensive travel.

Thank you for that info! I kept searching for it online and wondered why I couldn't find it.

Yes you certainly can. No problem doing this at all.

 

 

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Thank you!

Yep.

Great! Thank you! :)

Definitely, may need to top it up though.:D

Lol!! Definitely! :p

One thing we have left cards a few times thinking oh we won't be back, yeah less than a year later have to buy them all over again. So think for a while about the possibility of needing it again.

One thing we have left cards a few times thinking oh we won't be back, yeah less than a year later have to buy them all over again. So think for a while about the possibility of needing it again.

One thing we have left cards a few times thinking oh we won't be back, yeah less than a year later have to buy them all over again. So think for a while about the possibility of needing it again.

Definitely will give that some thought. Our three kids are not happy that my husband and I are going without them, so we may end up visiting again (which I would be okay with!). :D

I wonder why they don't give concessions to Kiwi Seniors. I thought Australia and New Zealand had a reciprocal seniors agreement. I know we get all the discounts and benefits of Kiwi Seniors when we visit New Zealand.

Exactly!

This is one of the ways in which Australia discriminates against NZ citizens, while Australians receive full benefits in NZ.

There is supposed to be reciprocal pension scheme, but it doesn't work out quite like that. NZ retirement pension is not means tested, whereas the Australian pension is. Consequently, some NZ citizens entitled to full pension in NZ will not receive a pension if they live in Australia. Australian citizens do receive the NZ pension if they live in NZ.

Well I am so glad I tried to call and apply for an Opal card :eek: After talking to Transport NSW then being referred to Opal customer only to be referred back to Transport NSW again (a department that won't be open til Monday now)........

They still have no idea which card I should get? For some reason DVA card holders who don't live in NSW and aren't a senior citizen or receiving center-link pensions don't fit into any of their rules :confused: We meet all the criteria for a Veterans card except we aren't NSW residents so that one is out and DVA is not listed on the Gold Opal card list so that one is out?

Life was so much simpler when they had paper tickets, it was either free or a ridiculously low amount for a fare (never consistent though?) At this rate I think I may end up giving them the flick and just get a full price paper ticket (which is still available) at the airport for the few times we fly in and out, much easier and less d!cking around :rolleyes:

The DVA gold card should have the same properties as a Pensioner Concession Card, if not more, so I suggest trying again on Monday. Good luck.:D

Well I am so glad I tried to call and apply for an Opal card :eek: After talking to Transport NSW then being referred to Opal customer only to be referred back to Transport NSW again (a department that won't be open til Monday now)........

 

They still have no idea which card I should get? For some reason DVA card holders who don't live in NSW and aren't a senior citizen or receiving center-link pensions don't fit into any of their rules :confused: We meet all the criteria for a Veterans card except we aren't NSW residents so that one is out and DVA is not listed on the Gold Opal card list so that one is out?

 

Life was so much simpler when they had paper tickets, it was either free or a ridiculously low amount for a fare (never consistent though?) At this rate I think I may end up giving them the flick and just get a full price paper ticket (which is still available) at the airport for the few times we fly in and out, much easier and less d!cking around :rolleyes:

what about seniors card?...people who have one of those can get gold opal card and therefore the pensioner rate...

cheers

Belinda

Well I am so glad I tried to call and apply for an Opal card :eek: After talking to Transport NSW then being referred to Opal customer only to be referred back to Transport NSW again (a department that won't be open til Monday now)........

Gotta love the new NSW government privatised customer service.

Thanks Gladys.

Its a while since I used one, and I paid full Adult fare, but I thought its only available to NSW Seniors only.

Dh and myself will be in Sydney for a few days before our cruise in November we applied and have received our senior opal cards. We live in tassie :)

what about seniors card?...people who have one of those can get gold opal card and therefore the pensioner rate...

 

cheers

Belinda

We don't qualify for a seniors card yet Belinda, still have a lot of years to go. Those who do can get the gold opal card and the pensioner rate, but for now we kind of don't fit neatly within any of their categories as we are not NSW residents.

Guess I will find out on Monday what the next department thinks?

Well I am so glad I tried to call and apply for an Opal card :eek: After talking to Transport NSW then being referred to Opal customer only to be referred back to Transport NSW again (a department that won't be open til Monday now)........

 

They still have no idea which card I should get? For some reason DVA card holders who don't live in NSW and aren't a senior citizen or receiving center-link pensions don't fit into any of their rules :confused: We meet all the criteria for a Veterans card except we aren't NSW residents so that one is out and DVA is not listed on the Gold Opal card list so that one is out?

 

Life was so much simpler when they had paper tickets, it was either free or a ridiculously low amount for a fare (never consistent though?) At this rate I think I may end up giving them the flick and just get a full price paper ticket (which is still available) at the airport for the few times we fly in and out, much easier and less d!cking around :rolleyes:

Leave the phone and doit all on line they will post the opal card to you and all you need to do to get the seniors rate is give your seniors card number on the form

Leave the phone and doit all on line they will post the opal card to you and all you need to do to get the seniors rate is give your seniors card number on the form

Apparently they don't have the seniors card as yet, but the DVA gold card may work.

Apparently they don't have the seniors card as yet, but the DVA gold card may work.

Well that took a bit of a wait... official answer is "DVA Gold card will not get either the veterans Opal card or the Gold Opal card, in fact interstate veterans will no longer get any concessional transport in NSW period. Would you like me to transfer you to Opal support and we can arrange a regular Opal card for you."

Guess we will have to wait until we make it to senior status for NSW all of the other states seem to be fine still.

Well that took a bit of a wait... official answer is "DVA Gold card will not get either the veterans Opal card or the Gold Opal card, in fact interstate veterans will no longer get any concessional transport in NSW period. Would you like me to transfer you to Opal support and we can arrange a regular Opal card for you."

 

Guess we will have to wait until we make it to senior status for NSW all of the other states seem to be fine still.

That is no good, I would have thought they would honour it as a concession card.

That is no good, I would have thought they would honour it as a concession card.

It always has been, right up until they switched to Opal cards only. Now they have decided only NSW resident veterans will be eligible. It's the choice of the NSW govt as to who they give concession to and who they don't, not really something for us who don't live in the state to make a fuss over as we don't live there. At least they still recognise the veterans that do live there, if they didn't then it would be worth outsiders making a fuss.

Dh and myself will be in Sydney for a few days before our cruise in November we applied and have received our senior opal cards. We live in tassie :)

Note that the interstate seniors card comes with restrictions. I am assuming that your cruise is within 60 days now:

You should only submit your application two weeks before you need to travel, as your application will be processed immediately and your card will only be valid for 60 days from the date of issue.

If you need to travel in NSW for longer than 60 days, you will need to submit a new application when your card expires. A new card will be mailed to you.

Please ensure the mailing address you provide on your application is the mailing address you will be at to receive the card.

We looked at the seniors gold card but in the end decided that the difference in fares wasn't huge so we just bought the adult ones.

The other thing to be aware of is that if there are more than one of you it becomes a bit 'line ball' as to whether it is worth using from the airport as there is an extra fee which makes the trip about $16 pp so a taxi is easier and not too much dearer IMO.

 

The other thing to be aware of is that if there are more than one of you it becomes a bit 'line ball' as to whether it is worth using from the airport as there is an extra fee which makes the trip about $16 pp so a taxi is easier and not too much dearer IMO.

I agree, the airport tax really makes the train to pricey and inconvenient compared to a cab except at certain times of the day.

I agree, the airport tax really makes the train to pricey and inconvenient compared to a cab except at certain times of the day.

Travellers should be aware that morning peak hour (from airport stations, about 7.30/7.45-9.00am) is not a good time to catch the airport train to the city - worse on Mondays!

Return trips (City to airport) are much better even in peak hour.

Saturday mornings are not good to catch a taxi to the airport, there have been extended traffic delays every week around the international terminal for months now.

Unfortunately the pricing structure for Airport station access does make it far more expensive than it should be, especially if you have two or more travellers. We are on the same train line as the airport, but we get a taxi there (2A + 2C) - say $40 compared to over $60 for train. That same train line continues to Circular Quay (near OPT) - another 6 stations - we do get the train there for about $12 total.

Very true, timing of the trip and number of travellers would certainly determine which method is more economical and in some cases easier as well.

We rarely go to Sydney, but keep our Opal Card topped up to $20 via the on line facility.

Important for those considering Opal card vs paper tickets - the paper tickets as you know them from the past are no longer available at all. It's all Opal cards, and they are very easy to get your hands on at newsagents, petrol stations, etc. There are some paper single pass tickets they don't make very publicly known, but they aren't as cost effective and really Opal is the only way to go now.

Yes, Opal is good all the way to Lithgow (and to Bathurst if you happen to take the Bathurst Bullet train). During peak times there will often be trains to and from Lithgow once every hour or half hour, on off peak times it can be 2 hourly so just keep an eye on the time.