Hope someone can help. I am visiting from the UK later in the year November to Feb and want to hire a campervan. Question is, can I just turn up at a site or will I have to book in advance, I have been told I need a camping permit as well. Here`s hoping someone can point me in the right direction. Thanks.
Queensland campervaning advice
- Thread starter kevnsue
- Start date
You'll most likely have to hire the van - one thing to think about well in advance, and then hire the pitch on the site, another thing to do in advance?
There are places which hire out camper vans but do your homework and check out the reviews. There are good places, like a few of the companies who build the vans (Jerba) and there are bad sites, like a place I forget, on outskirts of Edinburgh who advertise a nice van but when you arrive, give you a false story about the customer returning the van with ripped seats and try to palm you off with their 'spare' van which is very old and disgusting. I checked the company out on Companies House - a register of all UK listed companies, and the owners went from similar named hire place to similar hire place. So as I say, ask questions, do your homework, book on a credit card, so you have protection against attempted fraud.
For Campsites, you can turn up at sites and hope they have space, and if they don't - depending on location and time of year, they will suggest an alternative, who they know locally, though the dates you give may be a bad time of year as some sites close Oct to March.
I'm sure there are other van hire places which others can recommend but Jerba (in Scotland) is a great place, though their hire vans do book up early. Google Jerba Campervans.
There are places which hire out camper vans but do your homework and check out the reviews. There are good places, like a few of the companies who build the vans (Jerba) and there are bad sites, like a place I forget, on outskirts of Edinburgh who advertise a nice van but when you arrive, give you a false story about the customer returning the van with ripped seats and try to palm you off with their 'spare' van which is very old and disgusting. I checked the company out on Companies House - a register of all UK listed companies, and the owners went from similar named hire place to similar hire place. So as I say, ask questions, do your homework, book on a credit card, so you have protection against attempted fraud.
For Campsites, you can turn up at sites and hope they have space, and if they don't - depending on location and time of year, they will suggest an alternative, who they know locally, though the dates you give may be a bad time of year as some sites close Oct to March.
I'm sure there are other van hire places which others can recommend but Jerba (in Scotland) is a great place, though their hire vans do book up early. Google Jerba Campervans.
@DaveCrampton , I think you have read that wrong, or missed the title!
Maybe @AussieMick can advise, if he's not wandering around South Australia again?
Maybe @AussieMick can advise, if he's not wandering around South Australia again?
Apologies, misread your post.
November to Feb is the australian summer. School holidays are from about 16th of Dec to end of January.
Most aussies holiday near the coast as the temperatures can be quite hot at this time of year so we dont go to the outback due to extreme heat.
If you are wanting a caravan park (pitch) near the coast in Qld during school holiday times i would try booking asap as they can get booked out early.
You only need a camping permit if staying in national parks. These are fairly cheap and money goes towards upkeep . You can get them online and check out available campsites at the same time.
There are various campervan hire companies ranging from the big names like Avis, Budget, Eurocar etc down to budget price no frills smaller places.
Aircon is highly recommended as it can be rather warm driving around but nearly every vehicle here has it.
Are you wanting to tour around staying at various places or stay in one place for a while.
We have an app that we download that lists all types of camping from free spots to paid ones. I use it all the time when travelling as you can read reviews about the camp, whether suitable for 2wd vehicles, motorhomes ,caravans etc, phone service, water, toilets etc.
It is called Wikicamps and only costs $8 for lifetime subsciption.
So to sum up it is better to book early during the school holiday period but once the kids go back it is much easier to just turn up and you should get a site . Caravan parks have powered and unpowered sites. Caravans tend to want power so there are often unpowered sites available for smallish campervans.
Hope this helps a bit, if you have more questions ask away as there is a few aussies on the forum and some from Queensland (QLD)
Most aussies holiday near the coast as the temperatures can be quite hot at this time of year so we dont go to the outback due to extreme heat.
If you are wanting a caravan park (pitch) near the coast in Qld during school holiday times i would try booking asap as they can get booked out early.
You only need a camping permit if staying in national parks. These are fairly cheap and money goes towards upkeep . You can get them online and check out available campsites at the same time.
There are various campervan hire companies ranging from the big names like Avis, Budget, Eurocar etc down to budget price no frills smaller places.
Aircon is highly recommended as it can be rather warm driving around but nearly every vehicle here has it.
Are you wanting to tour around staying at various places or stay in one place for a while.
We have an app that we download that lists all types of camping from free spots to paid ones. I use it all the time when travelling as you can read reviews about the camp, whether suitable for 2wd vehicles, motorhomes ,caravans etc, phone service, water, toilets etc.
It is called Wikicamps and only costs $8 for lifetime subsciption.
So to sum up it is better to book early during the school holiday period but once the kids go back it is much easier to just turn up and you should get a site . Caravan parks have powered and unpowered sites. Caravans tend to want power so there are often unpowered sites available for smallish campervans.
Hope this helps a bit, if you have more questions ask away as there is a few aussies on the forum and some from Queensland (QLD)
Thanks for the information, wikicamps looks perfect for me and I had forgotten the school holiday dates, thanks for that info. I will be staying mostly bush, I used to live near the Bunya`s so I will mostly visit south Burnett area and do the coastal trips in November to avoid the kids holidays. Thanks for the help really appreciate it.
Staying bush will give you heaps of free camps, all listed on wikicamps. We drove from Adelaide to Cairns inland and had free camping every night. Over 4000km.
It's coastal where it gets more popular.
Good luck with your planning.
It's coastal where it gets more popular.
Good luck with your planning.
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