campervan travel
 

I am considering renting a campervan to drive <BR>the Ocean Way from Adelaide to Melbourne - but I've never traveled in a camper and don't know the protocol about campers over there - any thoughts or advice?

<BR>We saw lots of people doing this along the Great Ocean Road & it looked like tons of fun. <BR> <BR>It seemed that there was one company that handled almost all of the rentals -- can't remember the name. All of this company's campers looked like they were in excellent shape. <BR> <BR>My only other tip would to be aware that these vans are not like the R.V.'s that we're accustomed to in North America. They are much more compact, perfect for the style roads in Australia. <BR> <BR>I don't know how many people you are planning to travel with, but most of the ones we saw were about the size of a large volkswagen vanagon -- perfect for 2 people but (I would think) a bit cramped for a family of four.

Steve, <BR> <BR>Thanks for your thoughts - I will be traveling that portion of the trip with kids 20 and 13. Does the name Australian Campervans sound familiar?

<BR>Do they have a website? I could probably tell by looking at it. <BR> <BR>Looking at your kids' ages -- I think you'd have a blast.

Nancy, two good companies are 'Britz' and 'Maui' which you will easily find with a web search. They have caravans large enough for 4 or more. We are experienced motorhomer's in the states and have rented in Australia. It was a great experience and a wonderful way to travel. There are plenty of clean and inexpensive RV Parks. Remember that you will drive on the left and will probably have to rent a diesel with manual (left hand) shift. Some of the largest units have automatics. We are returning this fall and will rent a caravan for 2+ weeks traveling between Cairns and the Gold Coast and then for another week or more in New Zealand. Can't wait. Be sure to check the trip distance carefully as you don't want to plan a trip where you all you do is drive. Richard

Richard, <BR> <BR>Thanks for your thoughts. Do you think I'd need to have an RV guide/campground <BR>book to function there or would locations be pretty obvious and available? Do you think there would be any need for reservations? Your trip <BR>sounds wonderful! <BR> <BR>Nancy

Our driving organisations, such as the NRMA in NSW, the RACV in Victoria (all states have one) have great accomodation guides. When you get here, check them out.

Since we also are planning a portion of our trip as a campervan tour of the NT, we have been searching the net for sites or listings of campervan parks. It has been extremely difficult to locate anything comprehensive. If there is a Webpreneur in Oz who wants to make a few $A, I'd recommend developing a campervan park guide for the net. <BR><BR>But I am told that all the campervan rental companies and the Auto Clubs have good hard-copy guides. It just would be nice to be able to predetermine what and where before landing on that sun-burnt soil.<BR>

Hi Nancy, If you have AAA or other major US auto club affiliations, the clubs in Oz will provide free guides. As for reservations, this should only be necessary in their summer or perhaps during their major school holidays. I recommend a current issue of Frommmer's Australia to show you the holidays by area. I also ran across an Aussie campervan travel website but do not recall the name. They welcome foreigners and have a weekly live chat session. I am sure you can find it on 'Google' or another search engine using "campervan Australia website" or some similiar terms. Only two months before our trip starts! Regards, Richard