THE travelling companion of murdered backpacker Caroline Stuttle has spoken for the first time about losing her best friend.

Sarah Holiday, 20, who arrived back in York on Sunday from Bundaberg where the tragedy happened, said Caroline was "truly beautiful, inside and out" and had "lived the dream she worked so hard for".

"Words can't begin to describe the pain of losing my best friend," Sarah told a press conference in York with her mother Ann at her side.

"Caroline was such a special person - she was kind and loving and had such a positive attitude to life. She was truly beautiful inside and out."

"My thoughts are with Caroline's family and I hope that it can be some comfort to them to know that Caroline's last two months were spent feeling happy and loved.

"She was living her dream that she had worked so hard for."

Sarah, from Huntington, remained calm and composed throughout the press conference.

She said of Caroline: "She was my best friend. We have known each other since the beginning of secondary school.

"We decided to go to sixth form college instead of staying on at school and that is how we became really close. We were inseparable.

"Throughout the trip we barely spent an hour apart, we were always together.

"We didn't argue once. It was just perfect."

She continued: "In Australia she had seen and done so many of the things she had wanted to experience and I know that she had no regrets in life.

"Caz had so many friends and has touched so many lives.

"She was an inspiration to us all."

Sarah said they were waiting to start picking tomatoes when the tragedy happened.

They had started the trip in Sydney and had learned to surf.

"Australia, it meant everything to us. We were having the best time there.

"Everybody was really friendly, we did not have any trouble at all."

Sarah urged young people to continue backpacking there.

"It's a safe place. It's a lovely place to be and the people were so good to me.

"I was never alone after it happened. It's a wonderful experience for anyone."

She said the community at Bundaberg had been very supportive and she thanked so many people for coming forward to help.

She told the press conference she would undertake the same trip again without hesitation.

The girls planned to travel onto Auckland, New Zealand, for a week, then Fiji for four days before finishing the trip in Los Angeles in June.

Ann Holiday said she had wanted to go out to Australia to see her daughter straight away but the authorities had told her it would be quicker to arrange for the 20-year-old to return home.

She said: "She's been such a brave, brave girl and I am so grateful to the Australian authorities."

Updated: 15:09 Monday, April 15, 2002