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Australians have become hooked on the romanticism of renting out a campervan and hitting the open road as an alternative to booking a hotel or Airbnb. If that sounds right up your alley (or your winding coastal road), we reveal what could be the most cost-effective option.
Key points:
- A short road trip in Australia can cost around $1,500, but a year-long journey would set you back between $25,000 to nearly $83,000, depending on how you like to travel.
- Taking advantage of free campsites or stayovers with friends and family could seriously cut down the cost to travel, giving you more budget for fuel, spend money and a better reserve for unexpected break downs.
I became the driver of one of what the Caravan Industry Association of Australia expected to be 750,000-odd registered motorhomes on Australian roads (it’s now over 820,000!), on my first van holiday, in 2021.
A friend and I chose what we hoped would be a cost-effective, adventurous and scenic way to travel, hiring out a campervan from Sydney and free-camping as we travelled down the east coast to Melbourne in seven days.
My expenses for the trip – van hire, fuel, food and activities – added up to just over $100 per day, which I was happy with given the number of places we were able to visit compared to a stationary stay at an Airbnb or hotel for the week.
This got me thinking: what would be the most cost-effective way to do a holiday on the road in Australia? After all, just about everyone seemed to be either doing it or thinking about it.
We’ve figured out the latest update to road holiday pricing, and since I first wrote this yarn, the average cost of campervan hire has certainly increased (no doubt thanks in part to their soaring popularity). But I still tell all my friends and anyone who’ll listen that it remains one of the most affordable and enjoyable ways to travel this great land.
- My recent van trip got me wondering: how much would it cost to travel in Australia by road? Image supplied.
Cost to go on a road trip holiday in Australia
Canstar research analysts have crunched the numbers to give you a general idea of how much it costs to go on a road trip holiday in Australia, finding the cheapest option would be to travel with your own car and caravan in tow, followed by driving your car and paying for cabin accommodation, with last place going to the hiring out of a camper van.
Of course, hiring out a camper van like I did may just make more sense for those wanting a once-off trip on the road compared to those who would be more likely to get bang for their buck investing in a ‘road home’ like a caravan, such as grey nomads or families.
Our analysts looked at the costs of a holiday over a two-week road trip, a six-month trip and a one-year trip, excluding any spending money, car insurance or unexpected expenses you might need to account for like repairs or cancellation costs. And keep in mind you could save a lot more money than we’ve calculated by taking advantage of free campsites like I did, or staying a few nights with friends and family here and there.
Here’s what we found.
↓ See below for how we figured this out.
How much does a short road trip holiday cost in Australia?
The cheapest option for a two-week road trip in Australia, travelling 2,600km, would be to drive your own car and stay in your own caravan (assuming you already own these), at $1,498.
This is made up of $670 in accommodation costs for staying at powered camping sites and $828 of fuel expenses.
Of course, you could cut that down even further by free camping at registered locations that are either free or very low cost, such as national parks.
Interestingly, the research shows driving your own car and staying in cabin accommodation would actually be considerably cheaper than hiring out a campervan for a short holiday, coming in at about $2,580 compared to the hire cost of $3,710.
How much does a six month trip around Australia cost?
According to our calculations, the longer the trip is, the bigger benefit you get from having your own transport and accommodation. For instance, a six-month trip of 15,000kms in a car and caravan that you already own could cost $13,445, but going in a hired van or driving to accommodation could add on between $16,000 and $28,900 to your expenses.
To do the same six-month trip in a hired campervan, you’d need to save around $42,300, according to our analysis, plus a bit extra to account for spending and unexpected costs. Driving to accommodation would cost about $29,800, $26,900 of which would purely be on accommodation (fuel would cost roughly $2,900).
How much does a year-long trip around Australia cost?
To travel 25,000kms around Australia in one year, you’d need to have around $25,400 set aside for a car and caravan trip. We found about $17,400 of that would need to go towards paying for powered camping sites, while the remaining cost of close to $8,000 would go towards fuel.
The cost to hire out a campervan would explode out to $82,950 once you add in paid stays and fuel. The hire charge alone would set you back nearly $60,000 – astoundingly, this has just about doubled since 2021. You could buy a used campervan for anywhere from $20,000, according to Caravan Camping Sales listings.
The cost to drive your own car and stay in cabin accommodation for a year-long trip would cost about $24,000 less than van hire, at approximately $58,900.
How we worked this out
Source: www.canstar.com.au – 19/04/2023. Hire costs based on a selection of quotes obtained from five providers and 13 vans that sleep two people. Quote assumptions include: a trip start date of 1 June 2023, pick-up and drop-off in Sydney, and the driver is aged 30. Accommodation costs based on the average price of BIG4 Holidays Park accommodation options for two people. Car + Caravan and Camper Van Hire scenarios based on powered camping sites, excluding glamping and ensuite options. Car + Cabin scenario based on cabin accommodation options with one bed and one bathroom. Fuel costs based on the average fuel consumption applied to the trip distances to get total fuel required, and the national average unleaded petrol price (Australian Institute of Petroleum – average of daily retail prices for unleaded petrol for for year-ending 31/12/2022). Assumed trip distances based on: two weeks – the average of a sample of 2 week Australian road trips, 6 months – the total length of Highway 1 (rounded up to the nearest thousand) which circumnavigates mainland Australia and also traverses part of Tasmania, one year – the total length of Highway 1 with an additional 10,000 km (e.g. to travel to Uluru as well). Fuel consumption is based on: Camper Van Hire: average of the 13 quoted hire vans, Car + Cabin: average petrol fuel consumption of passenger vehicles manufactured since 2015 (ABS Survey of Motor Vehicle Use 2020), Car + Caravan: average fuel consumption (per Car + Cabin scenario), with a 40% decrease in fuel economy due to towing weight. Total based only on the three costs outlined in the data, other holiday costs would apply.
This story was originally published in June 2021 after Ellie’s road trip, and has been updated with the latest roadtrip costs for 2023.
Cover image source: Supplied
