Best place to learn Sky-Dive in Australia?

[alvk 0]

Hi folks,
I really need help here. I am planning to travel on a holiday to Australia next month. My plan is to visit Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide only.
I plan to take the AFF course in as little time as possible, e.g. like a stretch of over 4-5 days.
While searching through training centres in these regions thru the web, I found them rather unsatisfactory, e.g. some operate only on weekends, some have much lower exit altitudes say 10,000-12,000 ft.
So far, the more established one seems to be Sydney Sky-Diving Centre. However, their cost are rather exhorbitant coming to $2200 for the whole AFF 9 stage course.
I have found however in Brisbane, Skydive Ramblers ($1745) and Brisbane Sky-Diving ($1595). But that would mean I would need to alter my holiday schedule including one more city to visit and flying in between the cities.
I hoping to find a learning place that operates 7 days a week, to teach whole 9 stage AFF over a 4-5 day period, reasonably priced, better still if accomodation are available at a low cost.
Thanks for any replies recieved.
I would to hear too for anyone who have learn Sky-Dive in Australia, particularly in the places I have mentioned to give me some light about their training conditions.

[Michele 1]

Are you converting your currency to the Australian dollar?
The American dollar is about twice that of the AU dollar (I think). I have a friend here from Australia, and she was saying that for 300 AU she got 150 US. If that's right, then the 2200 AU would be 1100 US, which would be pretty good, I think (if you're in US dollars, that is). The US dollar is trading pretty strong against the EU, too, last I looked at the market (midweek). I don't however, know what the AU is against the EU. And it is too early for me to go find out.
That's all the help I can offer.
Ciels-
Michele
"What of the dreams that never die? Turn to your left at the end of the sky".
~e e cummings~

[vmsfreak 0]

Hi There!
I did my AFF course in OZ, not so strange seeing as i live there ;)
The training conditions are fine, do you mean "do they have new student rigs?" not usually.
OK, DZ's to jump @!
I did my AFF at the New South Wales Skydiving Centre (Cessnock) 2 hrs drive from Sydney, unfortunately they don't do AFF atm, stupid local council situation, though this can change at any time, try ringing them, phone number here www.tandemskydive.com. This is the best DZ in NSW by far, they have a Cresco 9 seater, 14k in 10 mins (not bad eh?), last i heard the package was 2 k for 20 or so jumps.
the bunkhouse is 10 dollars per night. I knew a guy who did his AFF in 3 days there. they are open every day of the year, even xmas i think.They will even come to Sydney to pick you up.
Ramblers is in Qld (Brisbane), prolly the better option, as i know they run the AFF course, the price for a 20 jump package is similar to Cessnock, though you get packing lessons, i beleive they have a few aircraft that go to 14k, my friends jump there, it comes recommended. If Cessnock isn't available then change your plans coz this place is ACE.
Sydney Skyding centre, i have no info other than, you will get more personal attention at either Cessnock or Ramblers, SSC is also VERY commercial
I think you do three hopn pops to graduate.
Neway, I hope i've muddied the waters for you :)
Best of Luck!

[michael 9]

Hi alvk.
Unfortunately Cessnock is no more - thank the local council (http://www.cessnock.nsw.gov.au if you want to complain).
Sydney Skydivers probably could cater to what youre after, but theyre very commercial. The facilities arent too wonderful either.
Ramblers is a 7 day operation, and has excellent facilities as well as a Cessna Caravan, but havent heard much re their AFF.
Check out the APF's web site -- http://www.apf.asn.au/apf_clubs/clublink.asp for links to DZ web pages.
Michael

[vmsfreak 0]

Michael,
Hi, When did Cessnock go under?
They were operating as of a few months ago....
Cheers

[michael 9]

Hey vmsfreak,
Cessnock unfortunately went out with a wimper about four or five weeks ago. Technically they were operating as a DZ for the past couple of months, landing into what used to be the car park in between the DZSOs place and the road after the coucil threatened a six figure trespassing fine if anyone landed in the old area. Of course, the car park was tight and you needed an E license and display B to land there, so needless to say it wasnt popular with funjumpers, so most of the jumps I did there in the last months were filming tandems.
The operator got an offer on the motel and facilities which he took - the cost of fighting the issue with barristers and lawyers was too prohibitive.
Now we're all waiting to see whats happening with the Cresco - no word yet.
Michael

[skyhawk 2]

Now we're all waiting to see whats happening with the Cresco - no word yet.
we will prob get it not as if we dont have enough planes already lol
go ramblers great place great aff great ppl and im there all great resons :-) and brisbane is a great place to better than those other cities you mentioned :-p
if u have any questions about bris or ramblers just priv msg me
:-)
i live my life 14000 ft at a time, nothen else matters, in that 60 seconds or less im free

[des 2]

yes, i have to say you cannot go past ramblers dz,in toogoolawah .qld.
they have very high quality instructors,the best dzo,and chief instructor i've ever met,fulltime facilities for accommodation(either bunkhouse or private rooms,some with ensuites), fulltime caravan,all jumps at least 12000 agl,fulltime herd of kangaroos,with many visiting koalas,cafe,swimming pool etc.
it is really a world class facility,not to mention really,really friendly,happy people.
they have great weather ,comfortable all year round.
shit! now i wanna go back!
sydney skydivers at picton is also very good.
ramblers has excellent equipment,all cypress equipped ,of course,and 140 acres of nice clear rolling country in the brisbane valley.
it is 1 1/2 hrs nw of brisbane ,but can organise pick up and transfer to the dz.haven't been there for 3 years,but i am 100% sure it is better than i left it.
it's really some place!go there!
des

[alvk 0]

Hi all,
thanks for all the info that I have recieved over the past few days.
Maybe just to clarify some points. Actually I am from Singapore, so the cost I quoted are in $AUS.
I am already book my air-ticket to Brisbane to do my sky-dive.
Tentatively, I have narrow to 3 places to do: Ramblers (Toogoolawah), Brisbane Sky-Diving (Willowbank), and Sky-Dive Queensland (Kooralbyn).
Here is an outline of the 3 places.
Ramblers: AFF Package only $1745, 'A' License $3200 includes video and goggles (I wonder how much a free pair of goggles can cost), accomodation in bunkhouse included.
Brisbane: AFF Package only $1595, don't know abt 'A' license
Sky-Drive QLD: 'A' License package $2900, video included too, don't seem to have AFF package only, accomodation in resort included.
Of the three placees, Sky-Dive QLD looks like the best package. Wonder anyone did there b4?
I am actually still quite undecided on how I am going to do this Sky-Diving.
On one hand, I am interested to get a 'A' license, but to do it continously over a 7-10 days is like rather stressing. But Australia would most probably be the only place I can do at the moment. After I get the license, I do wonder whether I will still jump at my country. Singapore do have a sky-diving group, and they usually go to neighbouring Malaysia to jump instead.
Doing Sky-diving this time round is not just an experiential thing. I definitely want to do the full AFF course to learn sky-diving, but I wonder after jumping thru the 9 stages, how I would feel? Will I want to continue to get the 'A' license?
Kinda of confused. Would really appreciate help and advice from sky-diving folks.
Thanks.

[skyhawk 2]

id go t-wah i have jumped at both kooralbyn and ramblers, they r both very nice places korralbyn escpeically however korralbyn is small and flies/flew a 182 whereas t-wah has a caravan and is very big
also obviously you will be jumping during the week t-wah has alot of ppl living there some instructers some students and just plain fun jumpers so that can work in your favour
i live my life 14000 ft at a time, nothen else matters, in that 60 seconds or less im free

[des 2]

kooralbyn is very good,but is definately 2nd best. i know it sounds good,but go to ramblers.
either way you will not regret your decision.
it will be a great experience.you are 100% correct about "a" licence in 10 days ,or so ,very stressfull.i would recommend,
5-6 days for aff course,(9 jumps in oz),take a weeks holiday at the barrier reef or something,then go back for your "a" licence qualification,which is way less stress than the aff course.enjoy.
des

[apoil 0]

Alvin,
There is a community of local jumpers in Singapore, some expatriates and some local.. I've sent you a private message containing my handphone number - please feel free to contact me. I've done much jumping in Australia and can advise on locations as well as help you out with jumping in Southeast Asia after you graduate.
(I am not affiliated with the "Extreme Sports Cafe" or "Skydive Adventure" - I recommend that you avoid both of those organizations).

[cam 0]

reckon most places in australia r probly ok - professional, safe and u will learn good skills. ya tend to get more personal attention at smaller dzs tho -- sydney skydivers is known for pushin big groups thru in a fairly impersonal way.
and when you've done aff (if not before), contact apoil to get in touch with jumpers in singapore....
cu

[nimbus 0]

Hey there Alvk,
Nagambie is one and a half hours drive north of Melbourne and is where I'm learning. It's one of the biggest dzs here (although small compared to US ones!)... we have a Cessna caravan that goes to 14 000 ft for AFF. The AFF course is 9 levels, with the 9th level a) and b) hop'n'pops. Level 1 is one whole day's training, then jump the next day: here are the jump prices:

The AFF Body flight program.
Stage 1 $468
»6 or more people $450
»10 or more people $435
Stage 2,3 $220
Stage 4,5,6,7,8 $175
Stage 9 (Two Jumps) $72 each
Video (Optional) $75
Video and Stills (Optional) $105
I think you also get a discount if you pay for all the levels up front. These prices include all gear. It's also a really friendly place to go.
They will sometimes do week long courses or have week day jumping depending on pilot availabilityb. The website is at: http://www.skydivenagambie.com.au/ ..... they have bunks for accommodation, which is free if you're doing AFF, and the countryside around Nagambie is really nice. Also, if you come over the summer months it will (usually!) be very warm, esp. towards the end of summer here.
Good luck with your searching, let me know if you decide on Nagambie!
Larissa
p.s. just read that you're going to Brisbane... I've heard a lot about Ramblers... they share Caravans with Nagambie (and the pilot Pete from Toogoolawah was at Nagambie over our winter...) so they sound good.

[skyhawk 2]

did pete have fun down there???
alvk nagambie is like ramblers sister dropzone why i dont know there not owned by the same ppl or nothen but theres lots of goen back and forths
i live my life 14000 ft at a time, nothen else matters, in that 60 seconds or less im free

[flyingdodo 0]

Quote

(I am not affiliated with the "Extreme Sports Cafe" or "Skydive Adventure" - I recommend that you avoid both of those organizations).

Evidently not. And comments like that without any foundation are damaging to a lot of people who put a lot of hard work in to try and promote not only this sport, but other extreme sports.

Extreme Sports Cafe has been running for over 10 years and works with some of the best Drop Zones and people in the business... They educate over 500 skydivers a year at Drop Zones around the world, and work with many ex-world competitors.

They were also the group that set up and got Skydive Thailand established from nothing. Which is currently the only civilian Drop Zone running in South East Asia, and also has an unblemished safety record.

So I would be interested as to why you would suggest stearing clear of them......

Some usefull information and facts rather than innuendo please, and perhaps qualify your identity and information rather than hiding behind a 'handle'.

Flying Dodo
'Always on the edge of extinction!'

[bob.dino 1]

That message is from 2001. Why bring it up now?

[btucker 0]

sweet memories...

Such a shame about Cessnock, that was an awsome place and great people.

Blue dreams, Benno

[ockers 0]

Ramblers wins this race every time. It's set up for students and learning rather than tandems. 1000 carton shouts a year can't be wrong!!

Just did a week's learning curve camp there to remind myself how good the place is. PM me if you want more info

[nael 0]

Quote

Just did a week's learning curve camp there to remind myself how good the place is. PM me if you want more info

Hey Paul - this thread is from 2001 (as Dave said), I'm thinking that the original poster no longer needs any info!

I was wondering where you and Jacky have been! Hope you had fun!

See ya at the DZ!

www.TerminalSports.com.auAustralia's largest skydive gear store

[ockers 0]

DOH!

We'll be back at Picton 6/7 Aug

See you soon