OzBargain 18th Birthday Meetups (2024)

How to use Event Checkins and List of Your Events

For those going to an OzBargain meetup, please ask the organiser or a co-organiser to check you in.

For meetup organisers, please

  • Make sure you check in everyone that comes. Make another user or two as "co-organisers" to help you check in.
  • Scan or take photos of all the receipts, and email them to me [email protected]. Make sure you include (1) the location of the meetup, and (2) your bank account or PayID for reimbursement.

This is the forum post that some of you guys have been waiting for — a placeholder for all the OzBargain birthday meetups in 2024. We have been running these IRL meetups in November each year since 2017, and last year the OzBargain meetup organisers put together 29 events where 565 ozbargainers get to meet and share a meal together. We will be doing the same again this year —

  • Someone from the OzBargain community might want to organise an event locally
  • Other OzBargain users will want to attend those events
  • OzBargain will sponsor those events

There will be a new OzBargain T-shirt this year to be given out exclusively at the meetup events, in Aussie green & gold with "OzBargain verified Not A Bot" at the back. Finger crossed that the factory I found on Alibaba can deliver those shirts on time though.

Process will be similar to last year. To organise an event:

  • Post a new thread in Site Discussions with "OzBargain 18th Birthday - <Location> Meetup" in the title. Use the thread to discuss with the community to work out preferred date/time & venue. Please note that the meetup event must be in November 2024.

  • Update the title with date/time and venue when it's confirmed, and I'll add your post into the list of events. A poll will be created to allow users to confirm who will be coming.

For the rest of this post, I'll be copying the snippets from last year's, and I will highlight the changes.

Organising events

Budget for the 2024 events will be updated to strictly $45pp (due to increase of cost of living), which should cover food, venue and/or activities.

Try not to duplicate the location. For example if someone has already organised a meetup somewhere in Parramatta, don't organise another one even if it's at a different venue or date.

Please have all the events posted up before the end of October. We will not accept any new meetup requests after 31st of October.

Some budget examples copied from last year,

  • BBQ or pizza at public park (with coupons, of course)
  • Everyone orders UberEats / DoorDash / HungryPanda to eat at the beach and send receipts to scotty for reimbursement
  • Cheap eat in a cafe / restaurant

We are not able to sponsor alcoholic drinks in these meetup events. Some people might want to consume alcohol at meetup events, and that can be done at their own expense.

Add the tag ozbargain18 to your posts.

Soft cap of organising up to 2 meetups. We are going to limit the number of events one can attend this year (see under "Attending events" below) and we don't want people to get around the limit by being organisers of multiple events.

Attending events

You can attend at most two events that you are not organising. We did have that clause last year but we still have quite a few people attending 5+ events, so we will be putting a hard cap this year, i.e. you won't even be able to click on "Yes I am attending" if you are already registered for 2 events.

OzBargain meetups are strictly users only this year. In the past there were some leniency for partners, children or other family members that don't have OzBargain accounts. However for this year we decided that one must have an OzBargain account to be part of the meetup.

We won't allow "new accounts" from participating in meetups either. In the last couple of years we had accounts created just to have free meals at OzBargain meetups, and then never logged in again.


Frequently Asked Questions

These are some of the questions asked by organisers and attendees.

Q: How can we get the OzBargain T-shirts this year?

OzBargain T-shirts this year would be gold/yellow text on green — I've given the Pantone code to the manufacturer however they will probably just pick whatever in their inventory that's closest. The delivery of the T-shirts is also delayed (as of 18 Oct) due to Chinese national day holidays and material change. Currently no ETA but I'll work with the organisers once I have received the shirts, so I can forward those to organisers in different states. I'll put the design here when the manufacturer sent me a photo of the test print.

300 shirts are ordered this year, and I'll try to distribute them amongst organisers, so that they can be given out to ozbargainers during the event. Not everyone is going to receive a free OzBargain T-shirt of their sizes — consider that as a bonus rather than entitlement.

Organisers: please do not promise the availability of T-shirts.

Update 31 Oct: looks like it might get to the organisers near the last week of November

Q: Can we bring family members and kids to OzBargain meetups? Will the cost incurred by them be paid by OzBargain?

OzBargain meetup events this year are for OzBargain members only — you need an OzBargain account (that's not recently created) to register for meetup events. Our meetup budget of $45 per person is also for OzBargain members only. You can bring your family or friends to OzBargain meetups. However if they are not registered to the event, they aren't sponsored.

Q from organiser. How is OzBargain paying for my event?

The sponsorship works by reimbursing the cost of the event. So

  • As an organiser, please pay for the venue and food first. Use the reward cards if you wish to collect points. However please keep all your receipts.
  • Send the receipts to my email address scotty@<this domain>. Make sure you take good photos and the numbers on the receipts are readable. Please also include your banking details (BSB/Acc or PayID) in your email so I can reimburse you.
  • I'll do a fund transfer to your bank account.

This post is work in place. I'll keep everyone updated when we move closer to November and event features get implemented.

List of Events

DateTimeVenue, LocationOrganiserRegWL
ACT
Fri, 22 Nov7:00PMDookki, BelconnenCodeXD160
Thu, 28 Nov6:30PMStar Buffet, Canberracaptain danger222
NSW
Fri, 1 Nov1:30PMIppudo, Chatswoodihbh260
Thu, 7 Nov6:00PMThe Savoury Dining, Penrithidontalwaysnotlie140
Sat, 9 Nov11:00AMTaste of Shanghai, Burwoodjiayijames160
Mon, 11 Nov6:00PMFortress, Sydneyimpostor660
Tue, 12 Nov6:30PMLuho, Crows NestSerathis420
Wed, 13 Nov6:00PMBar Reggio, Darlnghursttlai200
Thu, 14 Nov6:00PMLeumeah Hotel, Campbelltownweb5090
Fri, 15 Nov6:30PMCommercial Hotel, ParramattaI Smell Pennies810
Fri, 15 Nov6:00PMDoodee King, Castle Hillsd4399340183
Sat, 16 Nov5:30PMStar Buffet, BankstownI Smell Pennies320
Mon, 18 Nov6:00PMNikaido, MascotFat Horny Ghost820
Thu, 21 Nov6:00PMSubset 27 Ed Square, Edmondson Parksuchan180
Sat, 23 Nov1:00PMAll About Chicken, Coffs Harbourtwilsoncrow80
Sat, 23 Nov12:00PMDa Franco, Concordjiayijames110
Sat, 23 Nov6:00PMZaap by Chang Thai Lao, Cabramattadinted170
Wed, 27 Nov7:20PMEpicurean Crown, BarangarooFat Horny Ghost257
Sat, 30 Nov5:00PMButchers Buffet, Blacktownsydney au6810
Sun, 1 Dec11:00AMHyde Park, Sydneycerealsmok3r550
NT
Fri, 29 Nov6:30PMParap Tavern, ParapJaymeRyan50
QLD
Sat, 2 Nov4:00PMMt Gravatt Street Food, Mount Gravattilyhu130
Sun, 3 Nov6:00PMDavid's Master Pot, Underwoodp1723227
Sat, 9 Nov12:30PMGreen Zebra, Sunshine CoastAlley Cat90
Sun, 10 Nov6:00PMVizzeto Woodfire, Moorookaquop120
Wed, 13 Nov6:30PMOkami, SpringwoodWarmachine992710
Sat, 16 Nov12:00PMThe Gunshop Cafe, West Endquop212
Sun, 17 Nov1:00PMEl Atar, ToowoombaTooSerious250
Fri, 22 Nov12:00PMHanwoori Restaurant, Brisbanejaysee-teh250
Sat, 30 Nov11:30AMRen Yakiniku, Sunnybankjaysee-teh370
SA
Wed, 13 Nov7:00PMIndian Temptations, Enfieldtwilsoncrow340
Sun, 17 Nov6:00PMBeach Bum, Hovekickling320
TAS
Sun, 10 Nov1:00PMBar Wa Izakaya, Hobartzelliot40
VIC
Fri, 8 Nov7:00PMWill's Dumpling, Moonee Pondsharryozz440
Tue, 12 Nov6:00PMMoohan, Box Hillhamroll510
Thu, 14 Nov6:00PMFortress, Melbourneneil940
Fri, 15 Nov6:00PMOkami, CragieburnRoadZilla190
Fri, 15 Nov12:30PMInglewood Coffee, Mount Waverleyneil470
Tue, 19 Nov6:30PMVillage Green Hotel, Mulgravepatryn330
Fri, 22 Nov6:00PMPacinos, Flemingtoncerealsmok3r210
Sat, 23 Nov12:30PMQuang Vinh, St Albansmangamuncher60
Fri, 29 Nov6:15PMMoon Dog Wild West, Footscraymangamuncher2110
Fri, 6 Dec4:30PMAsian Beer Cafe, Melbourneneil240
WA
Sat, 9 Nov6:30PMThe Gate Bar and Bistro, SuccessOzbargainasaurus188
Sun, 10 Nov6:00PMMack Daddy's, Mount LawleyMixhael4019
Sat, 30 Nov6:00PMMack Daddy's, Mount LawleyMixhael211

46 events from 35 organisers.

Comments

    • there used to be another event but that was during the lunchtime period to cater more to the student base. nothing stopping you from organising it yourself though! happy to provide some guidance if required

      • Cash only maybe the problem. Need to ask if they could give the receipt for 30-40 people for example. I want to count the number of chairs there too, maybe could add more people as City is easy to come for many people by train, light rail or bus.

        This food court is usually busy during lunch time weekdays and there are other restaurants that only open on weekdays. That's why I think Saturday lunch time with only 1 restaurant maybe a good place as people can stay longer to actually talk, not only eating then go home. Hyde Park is nearby if people want to have a walk or play/relax there. If buffet maybe most people don't talk much but more into eating then go home as there's time limit of 90 minutes. If we can setup the tables into long tables, that maybe better to talk and share food too. The portion of certain food is quite big too like fried rice for example. How many people can finish 2 different laksa or other meals :P So, $45 is more than enough.

        • That seems like a lot of work. I’d just organise a picnic at Hyde park instead

    • I swear this question comes up everytime its hosted lol

  • Hi @scotty Could you please list my event too? Thanks.

    • +2

      Updated

  • +1

    @scotty - could you please update mine too?
    Thanks

  • Hi @scotty Could you please add me please.

    Thanks

  • +2

    Added both @impostor & @tlai's events.

  • +4

    Hi everyone, date for Parramatta event is now confirmed for Friday 15 November and deposits are now open! I can't wait to reveal the prizes for the giveaways from all the sponsors. It will be exciting and hopefully bigger and better than last year and I am optimistic spots will fill up fast - please register on the event page. Thanks.

    See you all there 🙏

  • North West Melb event is up now!

  • +1

    Created a placeholder for Northern Suburbs Melbourne meetup.
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/871464

    @scotty Can you please assist in adding the tag Ozbagrain18 to it. I wasn't able to add it. Wasn't allowing me to add a tag.

  • +1

    @scotty just want to have solid confirmation that kids cannot attend because of the no account rule?

    Single dad here. I have no choice…

    • I think you would need to make an account for them but there's also a no new account rule applied there too..

      • Yeah true, that is also a valid blocking rule.

        Oh well. I might not organise one this year then.

        • We would like to bring our kids too, I was reading posts from last year and I am assuming that they mean they won't pay for kids rather then kids are not allowed to attend? I.e. I was thinking we can share our meals with the kids or we can pay extra for their meals?

          I would also like confirmation about this as we won't be able to attend if kids aren't allowed (we are happy to share or pay for the kids)

          • @birdnw: Yeah it is nice seeing kids at the events, if they are super young, then it should be OK with venues to bring food along for them, or users paying for smaller meals is reasonable.

    • +15

      Hi.

      For this year OzBargain will sponsor its users to attend birthday meetups, at maximum $45 per person. So if you have kids or family members who wish to come along but do not have an OzBargain account, they can still come but OzBargain is not able to pay for their meals.

      • Just finished typing my post above and see your comment.

        Thanks for clarifying.

      • Thanks for replying. Just to ask similarly please, if we get 10x valid members then the budget is $450? So if we're frugal we could try to cover all attendees within that?

      • My event $1.60pp over budget :(

        • Just make everyone pay an extra $1.60 (or $11.60 if doing refundable deposits)?

        • Maybe get a company sponsor if possible. Or negotiate for a discount for group. If available, maybe pay cash for a discount but will still get the receipt?

  • +4

    Would anyone be down for a meetup at Crown Casino Melbourne (VIC).

    • +1

      I’d prefer CBD

      • +2

        Damn, was hoping for an 18+ event we can all eat at one of the food places then head to the Casino 🎰 for some hands of BJ.

        • That sounds epic! I'm definitely keen.

    • +1

      Crown or CBD would both be great for me.

      • +1

        Me too

    • +3

      TBH I am surprised that no one has suggested IPPUDO RAMEN DAY! in the Melbourne QV on Nov 1.

      Ramen will be $10 a bowl on that day (well below budget) and it will mirror the Sydney event.

    • 45 to spend on pokies

  • @scotty

    Can I please check if I am planning to organise an event for ACT, and decided to pay via EatClub, will this be a valid reimbursement for your records keeping?

    • If you have receipt / tax invoice, I can reimburse you. EatClub would give you a receipt I think.

      • It does. Only issue was I used EatClub recently for one of the restaurants and it just gave the total overall, didn’t break down by what we ordered etc

        • +6

          Okay. I'll just assume the money is spent on ozbargainers' meetup at the venue and no other funny business :)

          • @scotty: As long as…

            Number of attendees x Costs = (Total Bill =< $45 x Number of Attendees)

            :-P

          • @scotty: He'll use it to grab bargains. BG cannot be trusted ;)

            @BargainsGrabber come Sydney :)

            • @I Smell Pennies: :P

              Jokes aside, EatClub has limited choices here in Canberra, mostly around 25-40% off

              But as brisdaz said below, I’m not sure if they’re strict on the cap system (ie I say that 6 people are going but the final bill is like for 20+ people)

    • +1

      EatClub ususally has a maximum of 6 people per booking though…… Although I'm not sure how that is enforced.

      • could do it twice or three times maybe?

  • Any cheap flights to NSW?

    Fellow WA resident.

    • +2

      Come to Adelaide it is closer!

    • +1

      could organise in WA if you want to

  • +1

    @scotty

    I couldn't add in the tag Ozbargain18 - to the Coffs Harbour event. Can you pls add the tag. Thank you

    Appears it isnt able to be selected.

  • thanks scotty - hopefully will be able to make it out to one this year. last year @ belles was good fun.

  • @scotty - You can attend at most two events that you are not organising. We did have that clause last year but we still have quite a few people attending 5+ events, so we will be putting a hard cap this year, i.e. you won't even be able to click on "Yes I am attending" if you are already registered for 2 events.

    Is this implemented in the system?

    • +6

      Yes, as of this morning, you cannot register for more than 2 events that you are not hosting.

      Some of you have exceeded the number of registration due to conversion from polls. The newer registrations are removed.

      • So the waitlist counts as being registered?

        • +6

          Yes it counts, as you get pushed out from the waitlist automatically when someone cancels.

          • @scotty: @scotty I see a few people with 2+ events still registered. Are there still some quirks?

            Some with 2 events + 1 waitlist and another with 3 events + 1 waitlist.

            Does manually being added to a event bypass restrictions?

            Thanks

            • +1

              @tlai:

              Does manually being added to a event bypass restrictions?

              Yes. We however do run some purge routines periodically to remove those who have registered for more than 2 events (usually via organiser manually add the users). To prevent the users you've added manually from being automatically removed, the workaround is marking that user as paid on your participant list, even for events that do not require payment.

                • @quop: Are they sorry organising events? The two events limit does not apply to the event they are organising. Sometimes the organiser can also add extra people to their event.

                  • @scotty: Not organisers according to the table in this post. I've sent some details via TWAM

                    • @quop: You'll need to at least give me a link so I can take a look. However there are many reasons why someone can end up register for more than 2 events.

                      • You can always register to events you are organising
                      • The organiser added you to the event (via Add Participants under events tab)
                      • Participants were converted from poll — someone voted "Yes" in the poll before the post gets converted to an event.

                      We do run some clean up every now and then removing users that have registered more than 2 events. However if someone is marked as "Paid" or as "Co-organiser" then it won't get removed — happened in one of QLD events when someone who already paid the deposit got removed. Some got refunded, but others got added back by the organisers and we have to update the cleanup code to not to remove those who have been marked as paid.

                      • @scotty: Sorry I edited my previous reply to say I've sent details via TWAM.

                      • @scotty: Ahh just realised I misunderstood those counts! I thought for example a 2 + 1 means registered to attend 2 plus waitlisted on a third, but it's registered for 2 including 1 waitlist… my bad!

                        • @quop: This is how I read 2 + 1 as well!

                          • +1

                            @tlai: Haha I was influenced by your original question! And since that interpretation wasn't debunked I thought it was valid. But ended up testing with my own events and found out the correct way.

                            • @quop: so 2 + 1 is fine.. but 3 + 0 is not! unless one of those is for a event they are hosting….

                              • @tlai: my understanding is that there could be some exceptions eg for regos done before 15/10.

  • -1

    Never attended one of these, what's the vibe? As much as I love OzB, I've never really struck up a convo with people outside of introducing OzB lol.

    Also, don't suppose my partner (with no OzB) can just take my spot based on the only users rule? I'll be on a trip for November rip

    • +2

      The vibe is pretty chill. I went to my first in Melbourne last year and it was good. Some reminiscing on great past deals and successful price errors.

      No, your partner can’t attend in your place. But they can start an account now, even start commenting and posting deals, and join the celebrations next year.

    • +2

      Vibe is varied, we are such a mixed crowd.

      Everyone has frugality, stinginess or the thrill of a bargain in common though, so start a conversation asking about someone's favourite deal ☺

      Expect a little awkwardness and a little fun lol.

  • shouldve put raygun on the shirts too

    • Perhaps you could show us your best breakdancing moves on the day?

  • +5

    I have around 8 prizes (worth $800ish) so far for the Parramatta meetup since that'll likely be the only event I attend in NSW :0

    Combined with all the other sponsors that'll probably be the most rewarding event and every person gets a goodie bag.

  • +2

    Hi,
    Was thinking of organising an ozbargain birthday poker game (not for cash, just for fun), just with some pizzas/take away and drinks.
    Would this be okay?

    • +4

      Yes that'll be fine. Meetups do not need to be always over a meal.

    • +1

      Creative!

  • +2

    Unfortunately, I don't have time to organise a WA event, but hopefully someone organises one.

    BTW, Congrats on 18 years Scotty and thanks for doing this again :)

  • Keeen!!

  • @scotty can you add tag to my post?

  • Great event!! Have been a member here for more than 7 years but I didn't know this until today.

    I see this clause:
    OzBargain meetups are strictly users only this year. In the past there were some leniency for partners, children or other family members that don't have OzBargain accounts. However for this year we decided that one must have an OzBargain account to be part of the meetup.

    Dose this mean that I can't bring my two daughters together who are in elementary school? If so, I will be missed out for the event. (the exclusive t-shirt is attractive :') )

    • -5

      Dose this mean that I can't bring my two daughters together who are in elementary school?

      Looks like that's one of the many sacrifices you make as a parent. (Also who refers to public/primary school as elementary school? This isn't America)

      • Sorry about the unprecise word that I used. (The schools in the country where I grown up teach American English.) Sometimes I use incorrect phrase here as well…
        As soon as I sent out my post, I thought the word might be 'primary' but I assume it would be alright though, so I didn't update the comment.

        I see your point, thanks for your reply.

    • +4

      they can come, ozbargain is just only covering those with an existing account, so id assume you could ask the organiser if you can pay out of pocket for them?

      Still a decent deal, get a t-shirt and 33% off whatever it is.

    • +1

      Best way to think of it is - yes come of you want to hang out with the varied community that is ozbargainers.

      Free eats for yourself, and you and family can meet some other ozbargainers but you'll have to pay for the kids.

      No guarantee of a free shirt at every event, BTW, as numbers are limited, so dont count on it for sure (to avoid disappointment).

  • +9

    Parramatta event update 16/10/24

    • Paid a deposit? Great - you're in!

    Still thinking whether to attend? Spots are filling up fast, so let's hope this convinces you:

    • We have about 10 sponsors as of now for the Parra event. Prizes are still being worked out by each sponsor and will be continually updates as time gets closer to the event.

      • There will be a lot of prizes in total. Thousands of dollars worth of prizes! Will be likely see many winners.

    • Venue is still yet to be confirmed as I am in contact with some venues. Whichever the venue, it will be close to the train station.


    Bankstown event update 16/10/24

    • Paid a deposit? Great - you're in! Spots are filling up and we are nearly full. I will update the attendance list tonight and will start to close off deposits soon.

    • Although not as many sponsors and prizes as Parramatta event, we will have sponsors. Prizes are still being worked out by each sponsor and will be continually updates as time gets closer to the event.

  • organising one more (Sydney event[(https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/871921). hopefully its not too much but happy to remove if so :)

    could we also update my other event? all details have been finalised for that

    • +1

      These are updated.

  • Good to see the venue links are repeated here. The email ones were just node/123456.
    Also, link to larger of this early(?) party?
    https://files.delvu.com/images/ozb18/newsletterimage195.jpg

    • Will be fixed in next week's announcement.

  • +3

    organised one for out west Penrith meetup

  • +2

    Honestly i feel the butchers buffet is the best one ive been to. Syrprised its not making a come back

    • I think its gone up in price and outside the price range.

      • That make sense.

        • $40.99 on Monday - Thursday,
          if arriving between 4:30pm - 5:30pm

          Details here

      • Butcher's Buffer
        Monday - Thursday,

        Come between 4:30pm - 5:30pm,
        and it's $40.99 per adult

    • I wanted something with more flexibility in movement so I avoided butchers, but yes it was awesome. In terms of prices I have contacts so I could have gotten a deal but yeah, something like Parramatta is better in terms of actual meetup.

  • Venue, Cap & Time of the Northern Suburbs have been finalised and updated in the event thread..

    Epping Meetup

    • The time needs to be updated. Its 5.30PM but Its showing 30:00

      • @scotty Please update the time in the events page.

        • +1

          It parses the time in the title, however it only parses <hour>:<minute> so use a column rather than a period. I've fixed the title for you but the table will take sometime to update due to caching.

          • @scotty: Sweet.
            Thanks for the update. Didn't realise that.

  • +1

    Hey @scotty I have created a second SA event.

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/872125

    Can you please add registration option and tags. Cheers.

    • @scotty please delete. Getting too hard.

      • +1

        Maybe see if @cerealsmok3r or @I Smell Pennies can assist with some quick guides, they're the OOOO (Official OzBargain Operational Organizers).

Login or Join to leave a comment