We as a family of four are visiting the south coast of NSW over christmas and new year. 10 days of our trip will be with an RV.
The expected 40-odd degrees temperature difference will be a bit of a shock but really looking forward to it. This will be our first time in Australia.
I have a few questions on overnighting outside of campsites which I will ask in the appropriate sub-forum.
Looking forward to chatting with those in the know!
And it's welcome from us two 2 Fabian2
Yes there just might be a bit of a difference in the departure temp and the arrival thep for you, haveing not been to your homeland I am unsure which side of the road you are used to driving on but, we drive on the correct side down here ( left ) keep that in mind and stay safe , I'm sure you will have a great time down under just remember to get your suction cup boots at the airport so you don't fall off, and watch out for kangaroos around the schools yards they are taking our kids to school in their pouches.
Nah really you will have a great time here
Woody
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While you are still in Switzerland, it may pay you to download an app called WikiCamps Australia, as it gives a write up of the camps, where other travellers have stayed Unfortunately the time frame you have picked is also a school holiday period, so things will be a bit crowded at that time
If I was to offer only one piece of advice, it would be that you try and keep out of the direct sun, as fair skin people (I am from England of many years ago), burn very easily
G'day Fabian23, and welcome to the forum. I'm from Western Aus myself so can't say too much about the wrong side of Aus , however Tony Bev's comment is spot on. Plenty of suncream and a wide brimmed hat. Christmas here is in the long summer school holiday period so you may need to try and book places early. Also I wouldn't try to cover too much of Australia in one hit. Probably better to not try to travel too great a distance in a day - it's a big country mate.
Welcome Fabian23 enjoy your time in Australia the south coast of NSW is a beautiful area but as Tony pointed out be careful of too much direct exposure to the sun especially if you go to the beach. There is a simple message down here which is reinforced each summer by the cancer council it simply says "Slip Slop Slap" slip on a shirt, slop on some sunscreen and slap on a hat or words to that effect but it give's you the idea. Your estimate of the temperature difference of 40deg. may even be a little underestimated, in January 2003 I left Sydney where it was 35deg. and arrived in St Jean De Maurienne in the French Alps where it was minus 20deg. Plenty of snow on the ground and of course higher up it even colder than that. The Maurienne Valley is not that far from Switzerland so if you are leaving in December then you are correct you will probably have a similar experience - one thing I know for sure is that you won't be wearing the same clothes when you get on a plane in Switzerland as when you get off one in Sydney.
Although we live in Switzerland we are in fact a multi-culti family. I'm 100% French but was brought up in England, my wife is 100% English and we lived in The Netherlands for 10 years before settling in the German-speaking part of Switzerland (5 years now), so I guess we already have a bit of a nomadic lifestyle! My wife and daughter have typical English rose complexions so are used to slopping on the sun cream and covering up. My son and I are blessed with a more southern European swarthy complexion and heat resistance but we still take the same precautions as the girls, the only difference is we still tan even with the high factor sun cream and the girls don't . Living in the mountains here the sun hits hard in summer even if its a bit cooler.
@The Belmont Bear: Yes, the question of what to wear for the flight is indeed a conundrum although we will probably be ok since we can get the train almost from our front door to the airport so we can get away with light clothing. I have opted for convertible hiking trousers which I can unzip into shorts.
We did indeed book early for places to stay, we only have 3 nights (1 night + 2 consecutive nights) for which I could not find a spot, but that seemed a lot to do with the fact that many campsites have minimum stay requirements over the holiday period.
One of the reasons for joining was to find out what to do for those nights. Where can one stop overnight without breaking any rules or regulations? Can I ask this here or is there a dedicated forum for this sort of question?
Gday Fabian 23 we welcome you to the Forum and to Australia we hope you have a fantastic holiday exploring the South Coast, with regard to your interest in potentially free-camping there is an app for an extremely good camping guide both paid and free its called wiki camps and is quite cheap, its used by a significant number of our members and it also has very good maps.
Hope you enjoy the big Australian Playground
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but really looking forward to it. This will be our first time in Australia.
, however Tony Bev's comment is spot on. Plenty of suncream and a wide brimmed hat. Christmas here is in the long summer school holiday period so you may need to try and book places early. Also I wouldn't try to cover too much of Australia in one hit. Probably better to not try to travel too great a distance in a day - it's a big country mate.
