Desperate Brisbane football fans are turning to charter flights and road trips amid the scramble to get to the AFL and NRL grand finals this weekend. Thousands are flying south to support their teams in the AFL and the NRL grand finals, prompting spikes in airfares and accommodation prices in the southern states.

The Brisbane Lions take on Collingwood in the AFL showpiece at the MCG on Saturday. The Brisbane Broncos meet the Penrith Panthers in the NRL decider at Stadium Australia in Sydney on Sunday.

By Monday evening, the price of flights for a return trip from Brisbane to Sydney this weekend had already climbed above $750, at least double the regular outlay. The cost of a trip to Melbourne was less inflated but still high, at more than $650.

Hotels around Accor Stadium in Sydney including the Pullman, ibis and Notovel, had been sold out by Monday night. In Melbourne at least one hotel had raised prices to match the demand, with rooms going for in excess of $800 for Saturday night.

Lions supporter Ashley Lamb, 38, hasn’t missed a Lions game in Melbourne for “10 to 15 years now”. He said many fans had taken “insurance” when Brisbane reached the preliminary final and made cancellable bookings to avoid the price increases. He was also aware of others who are prepared to get more creative.

“I think some are considering driving sort of midweek, which is a bit of a hike,” he said. “But you know, that’s part and parcel of it, it’s all a bit of a gamble, isn’t it?”

Thousands of Lions fans are set to join Lamb in Melbourne, but it’s not yet clear exactly how many. Lions members have been allocated 17,000 tickets for the grand final, but interstate teams don’t always fulfilled their quota. The Lions have set a membership record this year, with almost 55,000 paid-up supporters.

The president of the AFL Fans Association, Ron Issko, said it was more difficult for interstate clubs to fill their quota due to the hurdles around travel.

“In the 2017 grand final between Richmond and Adelaide, I don’t believe Adelaide used their 17,000, they may have used 15,000 and the rest went to Richmond,” he said. “It’s not as if they don’t have the members, it’s who is prepared to fly down to Melbourne.”

High demand for tickets from fans of the Lions’ opponents, Collingwood, means the crowd will probably heavily favour the Pies. Collingwood has more than 106,000 members, the highest in the competition. Their chief executive, Craig Kelly, on Monday called on the AFL to increase allocations to competing clubs.

The dynamic is different in the NRL. Local club Penrith attracted less than 36,000 to the 85,000-capacity Accor Stadium for their preliminary final win over Melbourne Storm. Brisbane are the NRL’s largest club, with more than 40,000 members. Not all will make the trip but Broncos fans will probably represent a larger share of the crowd than the Lions supporters at the 100,000-capacity MCG.

The Victorian sport minister, Steve Dimopoulos, said he was proud to welcome the thousands of Lions fans to Melbourne. “Events like the AFL grand final showcase our vibrant and unique city, keeping local businesses busy, hotels and shopping strips bustling and our economy strong.” Last year’s grand final between Sydney and Geelong triggered a peak in Melbourne hotel occupancy rates for September, with 86% booked.

The Broncos have responded to demand by setting up a charter flight to offer a travel, ticket and accommodation package for just under $2,000. Staff at the company taking bookings, Complete Business Travel, reported they had a busy Monday.

While many thousands from Brisbane will travel to Victoria for the AFL decider, plenty of Lions fans don’t need hotel rooms. There remains a strong contingent of Melbourne-based Lions fans, many forged during the Fitzroy Lions’ glory years in the VFL, who are complemented by Brisbane expats. Lamb will meet with the official local supporter group, the Lionhearts, before the game.

“I’ve got my nephew coming over from Adelaide, which is pretty special because he’s only nine, so it’ll be his first grand final,” he said. “I’m not much of a talker before the match because I am too nervous, so I’ll probably be pretty much unbearable for anyone that’s around me.”