Arriving and Departing Rockhampton
CQ Connections cater for Individuals to large groups who want to travel to, around, and from Rockhampton, Rockhampton Airport, Yeppoon, Emu Park, Capricorn Coast and the Keppel Bay Marina in safety.
We can collect you or your group from the airport, marina, hotel, individual addresses, or arrange specific pick-up locations. Your travel arrangements are tailored to you, so you are not at the mercy of company timetables.
Your booking is secured, so you don’t need to worry whether someone will be available for you when you need it. Our commitment is to be the most reliable travel solution.
The story behind the man behind the company
My name is Paul Neubecker, (far left in the photo) and I grew up on a cane and cattle property north of Bundaberg. I attended my last 2 years of school boarding at Ipswich Grammar School and following that worked in Brisbane.
For most of my life up to this point, all I wanted to do was travel and work in hospitality. In 1989 I took a year off and travelled to London to work. I worked in London for 2 years and then travelled and worked all over Europe. Eventually I settled in Austria and established an Australian Pub and Travel Company in a ski resort. We catered for all the Aussies and Kiwis travelling through Europe.
I met my wife in Austria and she happened to come from Yeppoon. So, with kids in tow, we moved back to Australia and built a Backpacker Resort in Emu Park. As part of the resort, which opened in 2008, I successfully applied for an Operator Accreditation to run buses as transport for the backpackers. We used these buses for transport to and from Rockhampton, local tours, transfer to Airlie Beach and we had a nice side business within the local community for all types of transport requirements. With the onset of Covid we were forced to sell the Resort in 2021 and I moved all vehicles into my new company CQConnections. This officially opened on the 1st of February 2022. Since then, my entire focus has been on building this company into something this region has never seen before. I currently have in my fleet a 25 seat Mitsubishi Rosa, a 22 seat Toyota Coaster, 2 x 14 seat Toyota Hiace vans and a Toyota Prius Hybrid.
Having had a background in tourism, I have found it very easy moving into the transport sector. Much of my business revolves around airport transfers to and from the Capricorn Coast. However having built a lot of connections in the tourism industry, I have moved into the corporate and event sector. This has been possible mainly by building a relationship with the two main tourism bodies of our region, Explore Rockhampton and Capricorn Enterprise.
The main event that I coordinated last year was the Australian Karate Championships. As most of the competitors, their families and judges came from interstate, I worked with the state organizers to provide the following services:
- airport transfers for competitors, their families and judges to their designated hotels;
- airport transfer desk available to these people for information and advice on transfers and local attractions;
- 50 seat buses running shuttles to and from the event daily. I contracted with another bus company and supervised the running of these shuttles;
- 22 seat and 14 seat buses for judges and special requests from State organisers;
- 14 seat buses at the event during the competition for people needing transport during the Day;
- buses and drivers available for groups wanting to go out to dinner or special events; and
- return airport transfers for all people that had pre booked.
Having a solid background in tourism has helped me to see that individuals, organisations and companies need more than just a bus and a driver. They need someone to give them peace of mind that they, and their guests or clients, are in the best of hands. This is my goal.
It was always my aim to create as part of our logo, something that would acknowledge the original owners of the land on which we drive our buses. I was delighted that an amazing local lady called Kylie Johnston came to help me with driving and to give me new ideas for my business going forward.
This is her story
My name is Kylie Johnston, I’m a descendant of Australian South Sea Islanders and of First Nations peoples – Bailai (Byelle) whose lands stretches from the mouth of the Fitzroy on Curtis Island in Keppel Bay, south to Gladstone and the mouth of Boyne River including Curtis Island, and inland to Mount Morgan. I grew up in Emu Park and attended schools on the Capricorn Coast.
The story behind the artwork
I wanted to reflect the great work Paul does within his business: connecting people with places. The circles with straight lines connecting with another circle means people travelling between places and arriving at a resting or meeting place. The symbols around the circle represent man, woman and persons: these are the guests of CQConnections. The arrows are emu prints travelling around a landscape, as Paul does in his buses. I remember seeing Emus and their chicks walking around the Lions Park (near the Bowls Club in Emu Park) as a child. The sleeve of the shirt is the sand dunes, flowing rivers and creeks of Capricorn Coast and Rockhampton.
I would like to welcome all visitors to our region, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
Regards,
Kylie
I hope that you find our story interesting, and I look forward to working with you.