Travelling around Australia but with very limited time

ottg · Veteran Member

Travelling around Australia but with very limited time

Whenarewethere · Guru

If you are not on a very large income it would not be cost effective to fly & hire & you may be limited to the roads you are allowed to travel on. If you get a scratch on your own car you don't worry about it.

Also be aware of some of the hire company scams going on, can be very stressful & cost a lot.

Add up the days to drive there & back without over doing it, plus the time at the destination. Less flights, hiring & insurance & see if you are ahead.

Not to forget that getting to the destination is part of the interest & holiday in itself for a lot of people. One route this year & a bit different route next time so you see a lot of different places on the way which will add up to a far more rewarding holiday.

Greystone · Senior Member

It would be cheaper to negotiate leave without pay with your employer and do the full lap.

Aus-Kiwi · Guru

Long service leave if you have any ? Took me 7 months to cruise SA,WA, NT and back down the centre . Mainly because we have been up and down the east coast over the last 40 years .,

erad · Guru

Your idea of using your 4x4 + caravan and leaving them in place A whilst you fly back to base to resume your normal lifestyle sounds good, but would be impractical. For a start, you have registration of both vehicles. Depending on the original state registration, you may need roadworthy certificates to renew registration. Then there is the cost of storing both vehicles and the inevitable damage/deterioration to them as well. Possible a better alternative would be to arrange for some friends to fly out to Point A, and then bring the rig back home whilst you fly back home. That of course involves having someone else drive your rig and that may not be to your liking (it certainly is not to mine).

woolman · Guru

We did similar for 25 years. My volunteer job involved flying from WA to other capital cities. Usually twice a year I had enough frequent flyer points to take wife so had a 5 day weekend, hired a motor home and hit the road. Found all (well a lot) the places we needed to revisit with more time. Worked for us as on retirement purchased a motorhome and been 15 years filling in the gaps. In working days 1000 klm driving was achievable in a day, not now. Just another 30 years to go to fill all gaps at our present speed. Good luck and enjoy. Neil

grahamg · Senior Member

a lot of backpackers, fly to main sites ie Ayres rock, darwin, Bromme and hire a camper in each spot, they get to see alot ina relative short time

Olive Oil · Senior Member

You might cover a lot of territory in that short time but you won't see & experience much at all. Leave it for your retirement. smile

dabbler · Guru

Grahamg, I worked with backpackers in Darwin and almost every one couldn't really recall most of their travels unless they spent time in an area. I wouldn't recommend their travel model at all. As Olive says, save the truly big trips for retirement. You can see and experience a lot in a series of smaller trips pre-retirement. Pick an area, make a beeline there, spend some real time exploring before heading home.

blaze · Guru

Yep I reckon its possible.
Work out your trips to go between towns with airports,
There are cheaper storage places about.
pay a little extra to get a bit of extra service, maybe open van up and start tug once a month.
there still good people out there
cheers
blaze

Ger08 · Senior Member

I reckon its entirely doable. You just need to find a reasonably priced place to store your van and vehicle at your final destination, this maybe the issue.

dogbox · Guru

try it an see if it suits you what have you got to lose

Mamil · Senior Member

Sounds like a nice idea, and I hope you work out a way of doing it! Had a friend many years back doing same thing with a sailing yacht in the Med. He'd fly out for a couple of weeks, sail as far as he could get in that time, leave it in the nearest marina and fly back home. Then pick up where he left off next time. He cruised round and round the Med for about ten years like this, and I and other friends joined him every now and then for a two week trip, which is another bonus of doing it that way, much easier to fit in friends and relatives cos it's just like you all going on a holiday together, rather than them intruding into your set ways. I think the biggest issue for you will be finding secure places you're happy to leave your rig, although some caravan parks allow you to leave it with them at reduced rates, but it'll still be expensive.

Aus-Kiwi · Guru

Try farm stays ? Where land is Plenty. Can only ask ? The issue is airport ? Depends on your transport? Time is one thing . Budget is another . As they say time is money !! Sorry to harp on about money . But its what we live on ., Unfortunately !!

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

We explored Europe by motorhome for 6 months each year for 3 years, flying home for the other 6 months each year.
The vehicle was registered in Germany and we could register it for just the time we wanted to use it. You can do that with South Australia registration and third party property insurance too - ask for "Seasonal Registration".
In between, we left it in a farmer's barn in the Netherlands for just A$225 for 6 months, under cover and secure.

Don't listen to those who say it won't work. A bit of initial research and organisation and it could be great.
Cheers,
Peter

rayaroundoz · Senior Member

Can definitely work. As Peter says, do your research and make it work to suit you. No one knows what is around the corner so get the plan going and do it. Before its too late.

ottg · Veteran Member

So many responses.Thank you everyone.

I intend to do my research and a detailed cost analysis, evaluating the various options available - including all your suggestions.

Once done, I will post the outcome here (~1 year for planning)

Cheers