From caravan parks to wooden rollercoasters: Nostalgic photos show how Aussies used to holiday
New book Bob Byrne's Remember When is described as a 'sugar hit of nostalgia'.
It features images from the 50s to the 90s which spark fond memories of yesteryear.
It includes plenty of photos showing how Aussies used to holiday.
From long forgotten airlines to fondly remembered landmarks, these shots from simpler times will bring memories flooding back.
Boys building a sandcastle wall, 1957.
"What about those fantastic summer school holidays at the beach?," Bob Byrne, writes.
"Building castles in the sand, mucking around in the water, eating Arnott's Bush Biscuits for lunch with lashings of butter and Vegemite, washed down with a bottle of Coke from the little beach kiosk.
"We used to ride our bikes to the beach on a hot sunny day – no hat, no sunscreen, no crash helmet, stopping at every public telephone box along the way to press Button B, just in case we got lucky,
"All day at the beach then, red as a lobster, we'd ride home and Mum would slice up a tomato and put it on my back to stop the blisters.
"Can't really remember, but I don't think it worked very well!"
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Aerial view of the opening celebrations for the Sydney Opera House, 1973.
"It is one of the great iconic buildings of the 20th century, an image of great beauty that has become known throughout the world – a symbol for not only a city, but a whole country and continent", says author, Bob Byrne.
"So read the citation on the 'Pritzker Prize', architecture's highest honour, when it was awarded to Danish architect Jørn Utzon in 2003 for his design of the Sydney Opera House.
"The grand building's story began in 1955, when the then Premier of New 109 South Wales, Joseph Cahill, launched an international competition for the design of a new performing arts centre to be built on Bennelong Point. Utzon was announced the winner in 1957 – out of over 230 entries by architects from 32 countries. The prize was £5000.
"The Sydney Opera House was formally opened, amid great fanfare, by Queen Elizabeth II on 20 October 1973 and has become the most popular tourist attraction in Australia."
The Big Dipper, Milsons Point, Sydney, 1956.
The original Big Dipper at Luna Park in Sydney was first constructed in 1930 halfway across the country in Adelaide," Bob Byrne, writes.
"There, the wooden roller coaster was a mainstay of Luna Park Glenelg.
"The ride was dismantled and shipped to Sydney when the Glenelg park went into voluntary liquidation in 1934, and became the biggest attraction of the new Luna Park at Milsons Point.
"It operated at Sydney's Luna Park from 1935 until 1979, and was dismantled and replaced in 1981.
"It was replaced again in 1994 and again in 2021, using steel-framed roller coasters, not wood."
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Cheater family, ready for the road, 1961.
"No matter what, family holidays were great memory makers," recalls Bob.
"We all have memories of childhood holidays. They generally include long road trips, sometimes with a caravan in tow, and – back in the day – the only entertainment was provided by Mum, usually seated in front next to Dad as he drove the car to the destination.
"We filled the time playing games such as 'Spotto', 'I Spy With My Little Eye' and 'Riddle-me Riddle-me Ree'.
"There were lots of arguments between siblings about who was taking uptoo much space, and inevitably all the kids joined in the chorus to ask repeatedly, 'Are we there yet? … Are we there yet?'
"So much has changed with the family touring holiday, today.
"Cars are bigger, more comfortable and fitted with all the latest safety equipment, seat belts for all, air-conditioning, and some even have individual DVD screens for the children in the back seats.
"There are also iPads and iPhones, tablets or other hand-held devices at the ready to spare kids having to keep themselves entertained – god forbid – looking out the window.
"And yet, I think I still hear the chorus … 'Are we there yet? … Are we there yet?'"
Moomba Festival, Darrods float, Melbourne, 1955.
"It began in 1954 and Melburnians celebrated its 50th birthday in March 2005," says Bob.
:Urban legend has it that Moomba is an Aboriginal word meaning 'Let's get together and have fun'."
Each year sees a new King and Queen of Moomba crowned.
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Big Banana, Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, 1988.r when
Built in 1964, the Big Banana in Coffs Harbour is the second big thing ever built in Australia, a year after the Big Scotsman in Medindie, Adelaide.
"Today, there are 'big things' scattered around every state of Australia. The first big thing, the Big Scotsman, was erected in Medindie in 1963, setting off a big-thing trend around the country," Bob says.
"With no sign of the public's fascination dwindling, there are now over 150 big things countrywide, with the latest, the Big Peanut in Kingaroy, and the Big Thongs in Calen, both in Queensland, completed in 2021.
"Primarily built to draw tourists and put place names on the map, big things have become a bit of a cult phenomenon, with some being recognised as folk art."
Caravan park, Noosa Heads, Queensland, 1960s.
"School holidays at the caravan park stretched out with new friends and endless possibilities, Bob says/
"A caravan holiday back in the '50s and '60s was a very different experience from today.
"No mod cons in the caravan back then, just a place to sleep and eat and not much room to do anything else.
"Entertainment would have to be taken outside and we would run wild, inventing games.
"I'll always remember the calls and delighted screams of kids being carefree as we chased each other around the caravan parks."
A Qantas Super Constellation L1049, circa 1954.mber when
"Qantas stands for Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services and was founded in Winton, Queensland, in 1920," says Bob.
"Initially it was a small airline operating taxi and joy flights but in 1934 Qantas Empire Airways Limited (QEA) was formed by Qantas and Britain's Imperial Airways.
"They flew internationally from May 1935, when the service from Darwin was extended to Singapore.
"In 1947, QEA was nationalised, with the Australian government buying the shares, and in the same year the airline took delivery of its first Lockheed L-749 Constellation and took over the trunk route to London.
"The 'kangaroo route' – between Sydney or Melbourne and London – took four days with stops in Darwin, Singapore (overnight), Calcutta, Karachi, Cairo (overnight) and Tripoli along the way.
"In 1958, Qantas became the second round-the-world passenger carrier, flying Super Constellations from Australia to London through Asia and the Middle East."
Passengers boarding an Ansett Fokker Friendship aeroplane, F27A, at Proserpine, Queensland, 1961.when
Ansett was a significant player in the Australian domestic airline scene for nearly seven decades.
Founded by Sir Reginald Myles 'Reg' Ansett in 1935, Ansett Airways (later Ansett Australia) took its first flight on 17 February 1936 – a single-engine Fokker Universal – from Hamilton, Victoria, bound for Melbourne.
In the 1990s, Air New Zealand became a 50 per cent shareholder of Ansett and eventually went on to acquire full ownership in February 2000.
"Unfortunately, due to some poor business decisions, Ansett became more of a liability than an asset and in September 2001, Air New Zealand placed the Ansett group of companies into voluntary administration," Bob says.
"Sadly, on 5 March 2002 Ansett made its final flight, AN152, from Perth to Sydney, and 16 000 people lost their jobs."
