Telephone, Post & Web
Telephone services
Public payphones
Public payphones that accept coins can be found in airports, post offices, railway stations, shopping centres and in the central city. Local calls are untimed and cost 50c from a payphone if you use coins. Long-distance and international calls are charged by the minute.
Home (fixed) phones
Calls from home (fixed) phones cost 25c for a local call. Interstate and international calls are timed and usually are charged by the minute.
Mobile phones
You can buy mobile phone services from a range of telephone companies. They offer various phones and payment options. Depending on the network in your home country, you may be able to connect your own mobile phone to an Australian network by buying a new SIM card. Mobile call costs may be more expensive than fixed line calls and many students find it easier to purchase pre-paid mobile phone packages to budget for telephone costs.
Phone cards
A wide range of overseas phone cards offers cheap call rates. You can buy these phone cards from most newsagencies and convenience stores.
Postal services
Australia Post
Australia Post is Australia’s national postal service. Australia Post delivers letters and cards to your home. Small and large parcels addressed to you are usually kept at your local post office; the postman leaves a card in your letterbox, and you take the card to your local post office to collect your parcel.
Australia Post offices and shops sell:
- Local and international postage stamps
- Envelopes
- Packing boxes
- Cards
- Other stationery items
Australia Post offices and shops are open Mondays to Fridays between 9:00am and 5:00pm, and many offices are also open on Saturdays from 9:00am till 12:00pm.
It is easy to send letters or packages to your family in your home country. Australia Post delivers letters and parcels by airmail to most countries within one week.