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Add to favoritesOur full time Caravanning life started in 2016. We started at Gunna-Go Caravan Park, Queensland. Six months later we were at Oakabella Homestead in WA.
We were now driving through our sixth state in six months
This is the background, statistics and figures for those 6 months. We have highlighted links to some relevant posts for more in-depth details.
Like everybody we had questions of how, what, when and where. Spending months, in-fact years Googling and saving for our adventure.
After downsizing our belongings drastically, we moved to Hayman Island in the Whitsundays. It was time to focus on what we needed and how we would go about it. Moving here enabled us to save and not spend as much. Larry was on call 24/7 and I started work in a hot humid laundry.
Next step was deciding what caravan to buy, we decided on a Jayco Starcraft from Jayco Mackay.
Then chose Gunna-Go Caravan Park near Airlie Beach as our base. We parked here for 5 months before taking off on the road. This was a lovely place to start our journey. Hit by cyclone Debbie early in 2017, this family run park is one we will return to on each lap 😀
On weekends we would spend time at the park, swimming and setting up for going off grid. Larry installed inverters, a redarc management system and made sure we had enough solar and batteries. We wanted to be as self sufficent as possible. The van now had two 82 ltr’s of fresh water tanks and a grey water tank. We also chose to have a compressor fridge.
We wanted to enjoy travelling for three months without having to work. Calculating the worst case scenario. Top price for fuel, caravan parks every night and copeus amounts of happy hour drinks and nibbles 😀
It turns out we are good with our money. With the help of the WikiCamps app and all it’s free camps around Australia we had been on the road 6 months and still had savings!
Before we hit the road Larry designed our budgeting spreadsheet. Including fuel, food, accommodation and gas bottle usage. Lots of other information has been added along the way.
These are our statistics from the first 6 months, taken from our spreadsheet.
| start date of the Journey was | 13/11/2016 |
| Vehicle mileage reading started at | 42,000 km |
| Current mileage reading is | 57,843 km |
| You’ve travelled so far | 15,843 km |
| Money spent on fuel to date is | $2,954.65 |
| Money spent on paid sites | $2,010.50 |
| Amount spent of Groceries | $3,784.34 |
| Amount spent on Activities | $128.48 |
| Amount spent on Alcohol | $1,418.08 |
| Amount of snakes seen closely | 1 |
| Roos run over | 1 |
| Hours of driving approx | 188 |
| Flat tyres | 0 |
| Mechanical breakdowns | 0 |
| Paid sites stayed at | 30 |
| Free camps stayed at | 34 |
| Average fuel consumption towing | 15.25l/100km |
| Nights In Hotels or cabins | 2 |
| Number of Starcraft JS numbers seen | 1 |
| States passed through | QLD,NSW,VIC, SA,WA,ACT |
| Costs of eating out | $1,154 |
| Gas bottles filled | Twice |
| Spent on Gas refill | $69 |
| Caravan parks stayed at | 8 |
| Farm sits | 3 |
| Things brought that we really didn’t need to before setting off | car cover, 3 jerry cans |
| Things added to our list not considered before leaving | Diesel heater, Weight distribution hitch. Ute solar panel |
| Things we shouldn’t of bought based on price and gone for quality | Inverters, Circuit breakers, GPS unit |
| Things we are glad we didn’t buy but were going to originally | Annexe -( heavy and can be considered anti social) |
| Water used on average | 82 litres a week |
For our first 6 months on the road we spent $16,561. This is not including larger items we bought along the way. These are items we decided we wanted or didn’t realise we needed before we left. Things such as weight distribution hitch, new GPS and extra solar panel for our ute etc.
If we include everything the total was 19,736.
Our spreadsheet has been hugely popular on our website. You can download it yourself to keep track of your trip for only $4.99
People often ask the question how much does it cost to travel around Australia full time?
This is a wide open question. Every traveller has a different situation. You maybe a couple or a family of five, wanting to do every activity there is and stay in caravan parks. Like us, you may love free camping and just want to enjoy the great Aussie outdoors.
It seems the general consensus when people reply is they say it’s about $1 per kilometre. We agree that a $1 per km is a good guide.
If you are thinking about doing the Big Lap or even part of it,
Don’t Just Dream It, Do It!
Check out our “ONE YEAR” full time traveling post here!
Prices stated in blog post are correct at time of publishing and will not be updated unless re verified
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The information provided by us is for general informational purposes only. Use common sense or see a professional.
3 thoughts on “6 Months Full Time Caravanning – Statistics”
yes we are about to start our big lap in two months time . it will be great I’m and a little bit nervous at the same time
Hi Graeme,
We also had some nerves before we headed off, so many unknowns. After a few weeks we worked how much it was costing and how many free camps we could stop at. That made it less stressful for us.
As you say, it will be great! What ever your concerns are, I’m sure you will both settle in to your journey quickly.
Happy travels 😀
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