With SO much to think about as you enter your senior school years, we thought we would make one thing a bit easier for you – organising Schoolies! It can be hard to know where to start, so we have pulled together our most-asked questions and provided all the answers you need to get your Schoolies sorted!
1.) What are the Steps to Book Schoolies?
OK, it can seem overwhelming figuring out where to start, so let us break it down for you. The first thing you need to do is figure out who you want to share a room with. This way you will know how many people you will be looking to accommodate in a hotel room. And then choose WHERE and WHEN you want to go: week 1 OR week 2 (see below for an explanation on which week is which). Once you have those three things sorted, jump onto Schoolies.com and start browsing the accommodation available in your chosen destination and in your chosen week.
ONE person is then in charge of being the Group Organiser. They make the booking and oversee making any changes etc once you have booked. To lock in your room, ONE person must pay their $150 deposit, then everyone else in the group has 7 days to pay their deposits. And that’s it! You are locked in! You then have up until the final payment day to pay the rest of the trip off, you can also put the rest on a layby payment plan and pay it off in small monthly amounts. EASY!
2.) What is the Difference Between Week 1 and Week 2?
This one is easy. Week 1 is traditionally Year 12 graduates from Queensland and Week 2 is graduates from NSW, VIC, and any other states. You are welcome to come whichever week you want, but the majority stick to these weeks for their states.
3.) How do I Choose Where to Go for Schoolies?
With so many destinations to choose from on Schoolies.com, how do you know which one is best for you?
The Gold Coast is by far the biggest Schoolies celebration. If you want to be celebrating with 30,000+ other school leavers at the original Schoolies celebration, then the Gold Coast is where you want to be. If you want to stay more local for your Schoolies, there are lots of small (but still awesome) celebrations dotted around the country in places like Lorne, Airlie Beach, Rye, Byron Bay and Port Stephan’s. Schoolies.com only have parties in some destinations, so if that's on your list for must-have at Schoolies, check out where we have parties on our Schoolies parties page.
Then there are the international destinations, Fiji and Bali. Download our Schoolies Fiji Brochure or check out our Bali Packages to see what's on offer for overseas Schoolies.
4.) What’s the Deal with the $150 Deposit?
The good news is you don’t have to pay all your Schoolies upfront. Everyone just needs to pay a deposit to lock in their spot at Schoolies. When you book, one person pays their $150, and then everyone else in the group has 7 days to pay their $150 deposits.
5.) What if Someone in my Room Pulls Out?
Don’t panic! If someone in your room pulls out you can either replace them or transfer to another room if you fall below the minimum number of people required for that room. We know that things change, and so we try to be as flexible as possible to make it work. You can always call or email our team if things change and you need to sort out changes to your booking. We are here to help!
6.) Do I have to Book with Schoolies.com or Can I Book Privately or Stay with Friends?
Schoolies is a once in a lifetime experience, you don’t want to miss out on any of the awesome stuff available. If you want to attend the Schoolies.com events you HAVE TO book your accommodation with Schoolies.com. This includes the Schoolies Nation Festival, Nightclub parties, All Ages parties, Hilton Surfers Paradise Pool Party plus heaps of other parties across all our destinations. We DO NOT sell tickets to these events to anyone who hasn’t booked their accommodation with Schoolies.com. It’s also important to note that some accommodations don’t accept Schoolies, and may turn you away at the door when you arrive and they find out you are Schoolies, leaving you stranded #FAIL.
Also, you won’t get the official Schoolies.com photo ID, singlets + merch and a ton of other benefits. To make sure you get the full Schoolies experience and don’t miss out on anything, book with Schoolies.com!
7.) Do you have to be a certain age to go to Schoolies?
Schoolies isn’t about being a certain age, the year you go to Schoolies is the year you graduate year 12 (or would have graduated year 12 if you have dropped out). You only get one chance to go to Schoolies – don’t miss it!
8.) I dropped out of school – can I still go to Schoolies?
YES! If it is the year that you would have graduated, you can book with Schoolies.com and go to all our Schoolies.com events. Some destinations have Government run events, they have their own rules for entry to these events, and you will have to check with them on rules of entry.
9.) Is Schoolies safe? How Can I Put My Parents at Ease?
Schoolies.com and all partnering organisations put a lot of thought, planning, time and effort into making Schoolies week very safe. We work very closely with the Red Frogs, who are EVERYWHERE at Schoolies having your back and making sure everyone is doing ok. There is also a range of support services from the Government that work year on year at Schoolies to keep everyone safe. Another benefit of booking Schoolies with Schoolies.com is that we have a 24-hour helpline for parents to call throughout the event. Check out our Schoolies Parent page for more helpful info for the rents.
10.) When is the Best Time to Book?
We cannot stress this enough. Book EARLY to avoid disappointment. There are only so many rooms in each destination that allow Schoolies, and they do sell out.
11.) What are the Options on a Tight Budget?
Broke AF? We got you! There are SO many options for Schoolies, from luxury 5* hotels to budget-friendly apartments and everything in between. If you need help finding something in your budget, you can email our team at info@schoolies.com with how many people you have in your group and the budget per person you have to work with, and they can send you some options.
You can also take advantage of our layby payment plans which make paying off your Schoolies easy. After you have paid your deposit, you can put the rest of your trip on layby, and pay it off in small monthly amounts, you DO NOT have to pay all your Schoolies trip upfront, so don’t let that stop you booking!
So that’s it! Our most asked questions about Schoolies, answered. All that is left to do is to go ahead and book your Schoolies! If you still have any questions, don’t hesitate to drop our team a line on email at info@schoolies.com.