Hi, We re Jon and Sue, UK couple in our sixties, been Motorhoming for 17 years. We re on a couple of motorhome forums here which are great fr sharing experiences and tips and hoping we can gain some knowledge from you guys. happy to share back if anyone is considering this side.
This would be our first trip to Oz, closest we've previously been in motorhoming in NZ and loved the freedom camping there because it usually came with open spaces and great views. We're planning to do about 2 months here ( Mid feb to Mid April) although probably not going to motorhome the whole time.
We re wondering about best places to see and go. Hear a lot about the Great Ocean Road and it sounds good but is it like the Scottish NC500 which is very busy?
Were also wondering about going on up the coastal route to Sidney and maybe beyond towards Gold Coast, What are stopoffs like, what sort of time do the sections take etc? How much should we expect to pay per stop?
We ve found camplify which seems similar to Share-a-camper that we used in NZ, which worked well for us there but doesnt work as a one way so we would need a circular route. We will do 5-600kms per day in Europe when we re making time or weather isnt right but do the roads lend themsevces to this?
Any info gratefully received, this is a picture of our Mh, 2003 Niesmann + Bischoff Clou Liner, that is hopefully attached but I cant see it :)
Welcome to the Forum jongood.
Mid Feb to April is summer and Australia is a hot place - plan your trip to the climatic region you want to see. Australia is mainly inhabited along a small coastal strip with the greater inland areas sparsely populated.
Caravan Parks charge from $35 per night up to $100 per night in coastal areas. Driving 5/600 klm per day would be ambitious - I would suggest 2/300 klm per day.
Camps12 is a book advising cheaper camp sites, many are donation camps, check it out online. It also has HEMA Maps, that are very useful and accurate.
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Possum; AKA:- Ali El-Aziz Mohamed Gundawiathan
Sent from my imperial66 typewriter using carrier pigeon, message sticks and smoke signals.
Possum has some good advice,
Definitely think coastal the time of year you are coming. Definitely not up Top End especially if you are driving yourself.
Wherever you go can get busy, but Aussie kids will be back in school by then so it might not be too bad. Nothing like as busy as The Lake District on a bank holiday.
Where go really depends on whether your history, beach, nature, city or cultural types. (I've been here since 1976 and still not run out of new experiences)
Weird, I had to shorten the orginal subject to be able to reply, totally stumped me yesterday.
Thanks for replies, Ok I know weather prediction isnt an exact science, but should I be ok at that time of year between Adelaide and Gold Coast?
I looked at the book but found an app that worked really well in NZ, does Australia have anything like that?
That should help with your overall planning. For shorter term forecasts BOM also has an app with weather radar .... available on the Apple or Android store.
As said before, the best app for sites is Wikicamps. One licence for around $10 entitles as many devices as you want per platform .... Windows, Android or Apple.
The Great Ocean Rd would be fine for that time of year. Probably some hot days of 35 or more but by the coast I'm sure you will have no problem. Touristy but not a problem. Not many choices for caravan parks, so it would pay to book ahead.
Away from the coast gets very hot in summer and you will likely get some 40 degree days. Coming from a much cooler climate you would probably not enjoy that so much. As for being OK, sure. The area you propose is not so remote, so as long as you don't venture too far off the main roads to isolated areas, no risk. If you think you might do that then get a CB radio and maybe a Personal Locator Beacon.
For someone doing a 2 month trip in Australia I suggest it would be great to see the outback. Have a look on Google Earth and find a way to include some of the brown coloured areas in your itinerary. But towards the end of your stay to avoid the baking hot days.
Otherwise your suggested trip along the coast would be easy with good roads. Maybe you could go up the coast and include some of the outback country on the return.
Hi Jon and Sue, nice to hear that you are planning a trip to Australia although its probably a little early in the year for the areas further north that you intend to visit starting your trip in April would have been better. The further you go north it will get more humid, inland it will be hot but its more of a dry heat and not as uncomfortable just make sure that your motorhome has air conditioning... You can drive from Sydney to the Gold Coast in about 11 hrs on a freeway or you can take 11 days and stop at any one of the myriad of beaches or towns along the way. Prices on the coast in caravan parks will be more expensive than further inland especially in peak seasons, the time you are suggesting will still be popular but not as popular as it would be in school holidays which end mid Feb. The quickest route from Melbourne to Sydney is via the freeway (Hume Hwy) maybe you could call into Canberra but it is inland and away from the coast. The alternative is to follow the coastal hwy which goes through lots of little coastal towns and beaches in both Victoria and on the NSW south coast. Motorhoming in Australia will be nothing like NZ or Europe this is a vast continent with long distnces between the major cities you can certainly cover the distances you are talking about probably every day that you are here but it wont be much of a holiday for you. We just did a 17,000km trip around Australia towing our caravan in some parts of the Territory and Northern parts of Western Australia we were lucky if we even saw another vehicle at least where your going it will be a little busier than that. If you are planning on freecamping as the others have advised pay $10 and get the wikicamps app. If you are planning on staying in caravan parks we found that G'day Parks was about the best chain to join they have an app to check out their parks, look for vacancies and book your site, you get 10% off your stay and pick up a few other benefits the more nights you clock up. It costs you $50 to join ($40 for seniors) but only join if you are planning on staying in their parks at least 10 times or you wont really be saving anything. If you want to get an idea of what parks are available in different areas, prices, photos etc. google the G'day Parks website.
I never looked at the dates just assumed that it was a recent post oh well they may come back and read the comments one day or maybe they have given up on the idea.
BB
-- Edited by The Belmont Bear on Saturday 11th of November 2023 08:40:35 AM
