The south end of the beach at Hua Hin, Thailand.
Where are Kevin and Ruth now? Hua Hin, Thailand.

Where are Kevin and Ruth going next? Maldives on March 23rd.

Saturday, May 17, 2014

DriveNow in Australia

What started out as an advertising post almost has me sold on the idea itself. We've always known that the best way to explore Australia would be in a motorhome or some kind of van or RV. And we always kind of thought that maybe buying and selling would be the way to go because renting usually adds up.

But some of the deals from DriveNow are pretty attractive.

There are over 2,500 RV parks in Australia. And too many drycamping opportunities to count. So when we visit Australia, we're definitely going exploring by RV. Or "campervan" as they call if down under!

How about one like this...



Prices usually work out to around $75 a day depending on what size rig you're looking for. But if you incorporate one of their "one-way" relocation specials into the equation, you can get a substantial discount.

For example, they recently had a one way deal from the island of Tasmania to Brisbane. Only $5 a day, plus you get free transportation on the ferry for the vehicle and one person. They give you 6 days at $5 a day, and then you pay $75 a day for any extra days. If you did a two week vacation, it would work out pretty cheap.

Nice deal if you can incorporate it into your plans.

But Australia is such a large place. If you only had a short time, you'd have to pick one section and explore it.

The other option of course is to get a car and visit car rental gold coast airport especially if you need a car rental right from the airport. Then, you could explore with a cheaper fuel option and perhaps stay with couchsurfing hosts to save money.

Lots of options for camping and exploring in Australia. One day, we'll make it there!

Stay tuned for our giveaway on Monday morning...we're going to give somebody $50 cash! I really hope that it's one of our regular readers, so make sure you all check us out first thing Monday morning!


8 comments:

  1. Very interesting Kevin although in the long run I still think it may be easier and less costly to buy and sell as you first suggested. But if I know you, you'll end up with some great way of spending huge amounts of time traveling around Australia.

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    1. We agree with you Sherry but time is the big factor. If you are only going to be in Australia for say a month, buying and selling could be problematic because of the time factor, you want to be sure you can sell the vehicle before you leave but if you are staying for several months then yes, I think buying and selling would be the way to go. Also some people just wouldn't enjoy the hassle of doing that, so this is a great alternative.

      One day we will make it there and yes we will spend lots of time exploring.

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  2. I still need to get back to Australia and New Zealand. In 1985, my husband and I flew down under with the intention of spending 6+ weeks visiting many places. Unfortunately we were in an auto accident on Day #3 and I spent the following two weeks in the hospital. Our adventure became a "try to get the wounded back to California." In all it took the 6 weeks just to get my broken body home; I then spent another 8 months recuperating so I could return to work! I have always intended to go back; with what I did see and who I did meet, I know I'd love traveling those two countries in an RV.

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    1. I remember you telling us this story. Sad that you didn't get to have your vacation but I know that you said you met some amazing people because of your accident. I hope that you make it back there so that you can maybe meet up once again with some of them under better conditions.

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  3. By the way Kevin and Ruth. I started following you while you were in SA this year. We spent 3 1/2 months there and I was looking into going to Bulungulu. After reading your review we did it and loved it. Last 2 hours of the drive was a bit rough in our little car though and worse on way back in rain but worth it.

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    1. I am so glad that you made the trip to Bulungulu, we loved it there too! To us it seemed more like the South Africa that we were expecting. The scenery was beautiful and the people friendly and the night sky was fantastic. We found the last 2 hours driving were rough for our little car too but if you take it slow and easy the drive is so worth the pot of gold at the end of it. Luckily it didn't rain the day we left, we really thought that it was going to though.

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  4. In NZ and Aus we stayed at BIG 4 campgrounds and they were fabulous. We rented really small campers but never had to actually cook in them as each campground has a communal kitchen and in NZ communual lounges with a TV. The ones in NZ were a bit better. They cost between 30 - 40 dollars per night and some had pools. It was a great way to travel. Maybe next time a bigger van? But then more gas and more per day unless you can score one of the above deals.

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    1. Sounds like you had a wonderful time. Hopefully one day we will be able to do something similar.

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