Caravanning

We will be doing the same thing before we head off in July. For someone fairly inexperienced, it seems like a smart thing to do.

Is that a Ziggy I see there on the table? Do you rate it?

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depends what you want out of your journey and what best fits it.

I got family who travel around australia most years since retirement. they do it with an off road 4wd but they enjoy parking the caravan at a site and going adventuring off road too.

if you’re not as fussed about that then find something that would suite what you’d want to get out of doing it :slight_smile:

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Yes it’s a Ziggy. Best gas bbq I have used. Really easy to clean as well.

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Was out at the Showgrounds today for the caravan show, highly recommend, last day tomorrow (26 feb), although I still can’t justify anything with a price tag greater than 90k, and there are many with a much greater price tag.

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The show is amazing. I’m still tossing up between campervan and caravan. So many options and so many weird issues to think about. My current issue: size of fridge inside. Campervan they range from bar size to full size, caravan generally full size. It sounds crazy but I hope to go thru Central Australia, so I think I need a fairly decent size fridge.

From experience a campervan is much easier to get around in but you’ll always have the issue of not being able to get to really nice spots and they are a real pain when your set up somewhere but would like to head out for a while or head to shops if there are any close by, where as a 4wd towing a van will give you that freedom. The 80L fridge/freezer in my jayco has been fine for us but we mostly do van parks within or close to shops to stock up, last year we went across to Perth and back and even for that the fridge was fine, we also have a 15L fridge in the car when travelling for snacks, mind you this all on the blacktop.

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I am thinking about renting a campervan and see how I go, maybe head over to Perth and back. I reckon I will know after that trip which way I will jump. I don’t currently have a vehicle that can tow a van, so I thought this option will inform my opinion.

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Yep good idea, we rented a campervan before jumping into a caravan and for us it turned out to be a really good learning experience, good luck.

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One of the best things you can have for caravanning safety is a personal safety device.
You may never need it however in the event you have an accident or something happens to your van or to you. It is mighty handy to have a PSD.

They cost about $300 or they did when I purchased one about five years ago.

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Do you mean an EPIRB?

you can’t do this sort of stuff in a campervan

well I mean technically you can, but only once.

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Nutters, after wading, no swimming through that it should have been pretty clear there’s no farkin way in those vehicles.
Looked like fun though😜

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yep. I no absolutely 0 about all of this stuff, but love watching those guys. always wanted to go and do that sort of stuff, but watching their show it’s like yeah I’d need someone who knows their ■■■■ :rofl:

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A friend whose dream in life was to drive to what he called the Tip ( Gulf of Carpentaria) did meticulous planning. This included river heights at times of the day for all the river crossings.
Only problem was that the data he collected was for the season he wasn’t travelling.
He made it in the end.

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Yes. Friends of ours got lost on the way to W.A. It was they said the only thing that
saved them from something terrible happening.

https://www.romotow.com/

Check out this ripper, then check the price😂

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I bet it only has a small fridge.

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My setup with the Cub Daintree camper.
Also highly recommend these portable fire pits

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Nice mate, I’d love a quick review of both the cub and Mitsi when you have some spare time.

Cub don’t make the Daintree anymore, from what I can tell from their website, it would have sat between a Brumby and an Explorer. My mate just bought a Brumby, and its chassis is more heavy duty than mine and it’s a lot more flashier, even though it’s only a 2014 model, versus mine which is 2012.
They are a great camper, easy to tow and I can easily sit on the speed limit. I normally get 900 km to a tank without towing on the highway, it drops to about 750 km with the camper on the back, so 15-20% fuel increase. Parts are easy to come by as they are Australian made, unlike those cheap Chinese ones that are appearing everywhere, I would pay the premium for a well built and designed camper every day of the week.
The Pajero Sports has had some modifications done too. Bull bar, winch, 2” lift with HD shocks, long range fuel tank and some Drifta drawers installed in the boot. Also a 2nd battery to run a fridge in the back, although I recently discovered that this battery appears to be a cranking battery rather than a deep cycle which I would have preferred. Opposite Lock did the work, I’m reasonably happy with their work, but they were cheaper than Ironman and obviously way cheaper than ARB.
We like to camp away from the crowds and grey nomads, hence our desire for a lightweight off roader. If I was buying an upgrade, I would definitely look at a Brumby, they look perfect for 2 people and look more solid than ours. They are easy to set up and pack up, they have all these helpful hints on YouTube , and Australian made so spare parts easy to come by.