Caravanning and Camping - A Rewarding and Unique Experience

Freedom, camaraderie, affordability, flexibility; these are just a few of the many reasons Australians choose to go on camping and caravanning holidays. Essentially travelling with your home on your back allows you to experience the isolation and wilderness of the untouched outback in a very special way. And with thousands of tourists travelling across this great country at any one time, each evening when you stop for the night you are sure to meet with likeminded travellers with whom you can swap stories of your discoveries and adventures over a few drinks.

By exploring locations ‘off the beaten track’, particularly available to those with four wheel drives and recreational vehicles, you will have the true Australian outback experience.

For inspiration for your next adventure, here are a few of Australia’s most remote and remarkable locations which are popular destinations for campers and caravanners:

Lake Eyre, South Australia

Covering an area of 1.3 million hectares (approximately the size of Holland), this salt water lake is an amazing sight to behold. The lake and its tributaries have been regarded as culturally significant for thousands for years to local indigenous populations and later to European explorers. They have influenced the route of the famous Overland Telegraph and also the Ghan Railway.

Access to Lake Eyre can only be made via two pastoral tracks suitable for four wheel drive vehicles only. The other option is to travel to the entrance to the National Park and then fly over the lake in a light aircraft, with many tour operators in the region offering this service. From overhead, you can best see the striking patterns and colours formed by the variations in the lake’s salinity.

This is the perfect time of year to see the Lake, as visiting the region in the summer is not advised due to extreme temperatures. Due to the torrential floods earlier in the year which have flowed into the Great Artesian Basin, this is a rare opportunity to see the Lake and its tributaries in full bloom, with the region rich in birdlife, fish and green vegetation.

Mike Griggs and his wife Dot, of Mike Griggs Service Centre, travelled through South Australia last week, testing a new Adria caravan. Touring for five days along the Oodnadatta Track from Marree to Cooper Creek, Mike and Dot saw the area washed in water and saw the emergence of wildlife and vegetation which will be full force in September. “In the five days I could notice a difference in the land”, remarked Dot, “a lot of birdlife is starting to appear; at Cooper Creek black swans just appeared overnight.” For Dot, the highlight of the trip was a cruise on Cooper Creek, infamous as the dying place of the legendary explorers Burke and Wills. “It will be just beautiful in September, all the way up to Birdsville with all the wildflowers,” said Dot, “it will be absolutely gorgeous”.

Where to stay along the way:
Arkaroola Wilderness Sanctuary (Arkaroola)
Stuart Range Caravan Park (Coober Pedy)
Opal Inn Caravan Park (Coober Pedy)

Birdsville, Queensland

A popular route to and from Lake Eyre is through Birdsville, a tiny but notable town located on the edge of the Simpson Desert in South West Queensland, 1590 kilometres west of Brisbane.

This town is also the end of the Birdsville Track, a 517 kilometre long track, from Marree in South Australia through the Tirari and Sturt Stony Deserts. In the past, this track was very rough and suitable only for four wheel drive vehicles with special permits; however it is now a well maintained dirt road and a popular tourist route.

This town is also well known for the Birdsville Races, held each year in September; this year they will be held from September 3 - 4. The town’s permanent population is approximately 115, but swells to about 6,000 for the races every year. With quality horse racing, live night time entertainment, sideshows, and thousands gathering in the remote town for a great week of fun, this is a uniquely Australian outback experience. Click here for more information about the event.

Nullarbor Plain, South Australia and Western Australia

The quintessential experience of the outback for many, ‘Crossing the Nullarbor’ via the Eyre Highway is a popular transcontinental journey made by thousands of caravanners and campers every year. The arid, limestone region, occupies an enormous area of 200,000 square kilometres across South Australia and Western Australia and is of great cultural and historical significance to Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians alike.

If you make the epic journey in its entirety, your travels will take you through the following historic towns: Adelaide, Port Augusta, Port Lincoln, Streaky Bay, Ceduna, Eucla, Madura, Kalgoorlie, Southern Cross and Perth. And that’s only to name a few!

Where to stay along the way:
Port Lincoln Tourist Park (Port Lincoln)
Big4 Ceduna Tourist Park (Ceduna)
Discovery Holiday Parks - Whyalla Foreshore (Whyalla)
Discovery Holiday Parks - Kalgoorlie (Boulder)
Mundrabilla Caravan Park (Mundrabilla)
Discovery Holiday Parks – Perth (Perth)

Kimberley Region, Western Australia

Names such as Broome, Fitzroy’s Crossing, Kununurra, Bungle Bungles and Cable Beach are famous throughout the world for being places of amazing cultural and natural heritage.

This region of Australia has it all – spectacular white sandy beaches, stunning arid red landscapes, amazing culture and history, even dinosaur fossils! With small populated towns dotted throughout the region, it’s a wonderful place to travel through with a large group or alone, as you’ll soon meet up with many others exploring this magnificent region.

Whether you decide to venture a little further out to Purnululu National Park to see the Bungle Bungles, or choose to stay close to the beautiful coast line, there are many things to see and do in this remote region of Australia.

Camel rides along Cable Beach in Broome, helicopter journeys leaving from Kununurra to the Bungle Bungles, bird watching at Roebuck Bay, exploring the rugged beauty of the Kimberley on foot, all of these are wonderful experiences open to you when touring this region.

Where to stay along the way:
Discovery Holiday Parks - Lake Kununurra (Kununurra)
Cable Beach Caravan Park (Cable Beach)
Fitzroy River Lodge Caravan Park (Fitzroy Crossing)
Travelfresh Tourist Park Kununurra (Kununurra)
Roebuck Bay Caravan Park (Broome)