Sydney to Cairns in 3 weeks on $2000?

Danniboo

Hi guys,

Myself and my bf are planning on doing a trip up the east coast of Australia csoon. We're currently in Sydney. We are planning on renting a camper. I will have about $2000 after paying for the camper. Is this doable? Any advice on where to go or where not to go? We want to do the Whitsundays, great barrier reef, Magnetic Island, safari around Fraser Island ( but willing to leave this out), Noosa, Nimbin,Port Macquarie, Byron Bay, surfing, great barrier reef, snorkelling,etc

mfceiling

Did the exact same trip in dec 1999!!

Almost up to Brisbane there isn't much worth seeing but then...

Whitsundays are spectacular, Fraser Island was good value, the gold coast was a bit gaudy for us, Noosa was lovely and Byron Bay was nice in a chilled out sort of way.

There are loads of hostels etc on the way so budget wise it might keep the cost down if you stop there for food etc (or with the camper van you may cook yourself).

I know Oz is very expensive from the last time i was there but i imagine the scenery and crack will still be as good.

Enjoy your trip - i'd love to do it again!!

I spent $1200 but that was drinking every night, accomodation and food and covered the fuel for the car.

Danniboo

$1200? That's not nearly as bad as I thought

pete4130

If your doing Fraser Island you'll need a proper 4WD like a Pajero, Landcruiser, Patrol etc. 2WD and AWD (Toyota Kluger, Rav4, Subaru Forester etc) aren't suitable because of lower ground clearance. It is more expensive to rent out a 4WD than a regular camper van if you haven't taken that into consideration?

Britz rent out 4wd Landcruiser pop top camper vans that are capable of going anywhere, sleeps 2-4 people, cooker, fridge, 4WD, storage, water tanks, dual fuel tanks etc. Depsite their size they are relatively easy to drive. I've got a 20 year old Landcruiser pop top camper just like the Britz ones so I can vouch for how good they are.


If you wanted to save some cash going up the east coast from Sydney and aren't too worried about being in a hurry you can try rental relocations. They are usually free or minimal fee to drive previous 1 way rentals back to their original destination. There are usually all vehicle from small cars to camper van to big motorhomes. The catch is there is a time limit and a Km limit on them. This isn't usually a problem just up and down the east coast. There are fees if you go over the KM limit and number of days they give you to drop it off so you have to work out if the fees are worth the extra KM's or day you might want to keep it. The bet thing about the rental relocation are that you can keep booking ahead and drop one off and have another lined up to take to your next destination. Sometimes it won't work out that well though. There is the hassle of changing vehicles with all your gear as well.
It could save you some money getting up the coast before you have to pend money renting a 4WD?

http://www.imoova.com/

catbear

Danniboo wrote: »

$1200? That's not nearly as bad as I thought

That was in 1999.

Batgurl

Will you have $2000 each or between you?

pete4130

On another money saving side note, put some ads on gumtree for ride shares between major towns/cities. Get 1 or 2 people on board for the day, or two if they have their own tents and get them ton contribute to fuel. When I bought my Landcruiser camper 2 years ago in Cairns, I had ads up every day from whatever city/town I was leaving from and had a total of 12 people ride sharing over 4 days at separate times. The 3000km trip only cost me $40 in diesel.

Danniboo

That's 2000 I'll have after I pay for my share of the camper

Danniboo

catbear wrote: »

That was in 1999.

Only thought of that after I replied

bladebrew

Danniboo wrote: »

Hi guys,

Myself and my bf are planning on doing a trip up the east coast of Australia csoon. We're currently in Sydney. We are planning on renting a camper. I will have about $2000 after paying for the camper. Is this doable? Any advice on where to go or where not to go? We want to do the Whitsundays, great barrier reef, Magnetic Island, safari around Fraser Island ( but willing to leave this out), Noosa, Nimbin,Port Macquarie, Byron Bay, surfing, great barrier reef, snorkelling,etc

Me and my OH did a similar trip at the start of the year, we had a camper from Sydney to Brisbane, then flew to Cairns, bought a car and drove back to Brisbane,
We took $100 each a day as a rough guide, some trips are very expensive, the camper took $250 of petrol in 15 days but we didn't move for some of them days, I was shocked at how much fuel it used TBH,campsites were pretty cheap $30-$35 a night was normal, and I think will be a bit cheaper now again it's not peak season, The campsite in Byron was the most expensive it was $47 a night, it's called First Sun holiday park, the location was great though, I was in Byron for 5 days it was my favourite place, you should do the Rainbow tour day trip to nimbin from Byron it's $50 (I think) I wouldn't bother driving there it's pretty small and the bus journey back is hilarious;),

Port Macquarie was quiet enough but still a fairly nice stopover, we stayed in Sundowner Breakwall Tourist park, the place is nice but the toilets block near us was horrible and the site is pretty open,
Noosa was my second favourite place after Byron, there is a campsite beside the Noosa river so you can walk to the Restaurants in a few minutes, I was staying with my OH's aunt near Noosa so I'm not sure what the campsite was like but I loved Noosa, it's a good place for surf lessons aswell,

Fraser was a bit much for me it was $190 for a really long day trip from near Noosa to see not much, I think I'm the only person who didn't like Fraser though, I would rather go to the reef twice than Fraser again, I wouldn't bother renting a 4x4 just for Fraser, just get a daytrip from Rainbow beach,

I stayed in Agnes Water for 2 days aswell, I liked it but it's very small and I'd say its quiet now, good place for surf aswell but the rental shop is 10 mins from the beach
Australia zoo was good aswell, and definetly go to the live show in the crocoseum if you go,
I didn't go to magnetic island or the Whitsundays! The reef is amazing, that was $196 for the day on silverswift but the food was good and I saw a reef shark,
Sorry for the monster post, any questions please ask and I will try help!