1. You’ll save money.

One of the main reasons to travel off-season is because doing so is significantly less expensive. You may save on your motorhome rental as well as on reservations at RV resorts and campgrounds. Prices for attractions can go down as well, and sometimes even prices at shops and restaurants.

2. Sometimes, the weather is better.

Peak season for tourism tends to be when temperatures are hottest. Many people do prefer this type of weather, but for others, it is less than ideal. If you prefer cooler temperatures, you may find that travelling off-season is more pleasant.

3. Attractions will be less crowded.

Another major advantage of travelling outside of peak season is that tourist attractions are not so overrun. You will spend less time wading through crowds and waiting in lines, and more time enjoying beautiful destinations to their fullest.

Not only is this less stressful, but it can also lead to better vacation photos as well. If you happen to be taking any tours during your trip, you may also have your tour guide more or less to yourself, leaving you free to ask any questions you have.

4. Campgrounds and motorhome parks will be quieter and less crowded too.

During peak season, when you get back from exploring parks and other attractions, you might come back to a noisy campground or motorhome park. But off-season, you are more likely to come back to a quiet, tranquil environment where you can rest up for tomorrow’s adventures.

5. Booking is easier (and more flexible).

Attempting to place reservations during peak season for campgrounds, motorhome resort spots, tours, and so forth can be a challenge. In some cases, it may be outright impossible to do all the activities you had planned or stay at the campgrounds that you would prefer.

Off-season, obstacles like these are far less likely to crop up. You may have your choice of campgrounds, and it should be easier to book other reservations for tours and activities. In some cases, you may not even need to place reservations at all.

And what if you need to make a last-minute change? During peak season, you might be out of luck and find yourself up a creek without a paddle. But off-season, there’s a good chance that you can adjust your reservations if needed and still get a spot at a park or on a tour. This saves you from having to plan entirely new destinations and activities!

6. Your whole travel experience is more authentic.

During peak tourist season, most destinations cater to tourists in order to make money. This means that you get the experience which is designed to appeal to outsiders—not one which gives you the most natural “slice of life” portrait of what it is like to live in a particular location year-round.

If you want the authentic experience, visiting a destination off-season is the way to get it. The spectacles for the tourists have been packed away for the year, and you’ll find yourself surrounded by locals who are living their normal daily routines.

7. You’ll be less stressed and have more fun.

Let’s face it. While travelling during peak season can be fun, it can also be stressful! You spend more time stuck in traffic, more time waiting in lines, more time scrambling to deal with reservation changes, and more time trying to relax amidst noisy crowds. Needless to say, all of that makes it pretty hard to relax!

If you travel off-season, you will feel a lot less stressed, because you’ll be dealing with fewer hassles. The flexibility, low costs, and sparse crowds make it so much easier to fully immerse yourself in the best that Australia has to offer so that you can return from your trip feeling de-stressed and recharged.

Conclusion: Travelling Off-Season in a Hired Motorhome or Campervan Has Its Benefits

If you are able to travel at any time during the year, think about hiring your campervan or motorhome in Australia off-season. You’ll be able to keep vacation costs to a minimum and enjoyment of your trip to a maximum!

1. Rec room

Some motorhome parks have recreation rooms. In fact, this is a pretty common feature even among more residentially oriented parks. So chances are pretty good that almost any park where you are planning on booking your trip will have one, but it is always worth asking.

2. Nearby playground or park

Most motorhome parks do not have their own playgrounds, but some may be located close to city playgrounds or parks with slides, swing sets and other fun equipment for children.

3. Swimming pool

In Australia, there are many motorhome resorts which feature swimming pools where guests can cool off after exploring some beautiful (but frequently hot) Outback wilderness areas. Kids typically love swimming pools, so this is an awesome feature to find.

4. Splash park

Did you know that there are motorhome resorts which feature complete splash parks? In fact, there are a whole bunch operated by BIG4. Some of these include:

• BIG4 Deniliquin Holiday Park
• BIG4 Great Lakes at Forster-Tuncurry
• BIG4 Karuah Jetty Holiday Park
• BIG4 Nambucca Beach Holiday Park
• BIG4 Saltwater @ Yamba Holiday Park
• BIG4 Sunshine Resort, South West Rocks
• BIG4 Tweed Billabong Holiday Park
• BIG4 Ingenia Holidays Lake Conjola
• NRMA Ocean Beach Holiday Park
• NRMA Sydney Lakeside Holiday Park

And that isn’t even the full list!

5. Room to run around

Another great feature to look for at any motorhome resort or RV campground is plenty of wide open space for kids to run around, burn off some excess energy, and just generally have a good time.

6. Roads or paths to cycle

Many children enjoy bicycling when they are on vacation. If you will have bicycles with you, see if you can book at resorts which have safe roads or paths to cycle on either in the parks or nearby.

7. Nature

Kids enjoy nature as much as adults, and love features such as beach access, access to a river or lake, paths in the woods, and so forth. Some parks include these features right on the grounds or within a short walk.

8. Safety

Finally, the most important feature to look for with your kids in mind when you are booking at any motorhome park is safety. This means thinking about things like:

• The general location of the park (is it in a safe neighbourhood?).
• Natural features (setting up at a wilderness campground near a cliff edge or even at the beach may not be wise with little ones that like to run off).
• Highway proximity (again, you do not want small children running into traffic).

Enjoy Vacationing With Your Kids at Australia’s Motorhome Parks and Campgrounds

There are many safe and fun campgrounds and motorhome parks throughout Australia. No matter where you are headed on your vacation, with a little extra research, you can find a place to park your hired motorhome or campervan where your kids will have a blast!

Perhaps this is because it can be difficult to evaluate a park just by visiting its website and calling up reservations on the phone. But there are a number of red flags which you can detect even across a distance which can tell you that you might want to avoid a certain park.

Following are 10 red flags to be on the lookout for when you’re placing your reservations for your next vacation.

1. Consider avoiding major highways.

While there certainly are high-quality RV parks along highways, major roads can sometimes cause problems. For example:

• Noise levels can be high, sometimes even at night.
• There could be safety issues with driving in and out of the park.
• All that through-traffic sometimes brings other types of traffic as well (i.e. drug trafficking).
• Costs may be inflated because of convenience.

How big an issue the presence of a highway is depends completely on the location where you will be staying. In some areas, it may be well worth staying away from major roads, while in others, it could be completely irrelevant.

2. Try not to stay at parks in areas with high crime rates.

Crime issues tend to leak into such parks. This can result in dealing with unsavoury persons and/or unsavoury situations. Particularly if many of the park’s residents are permanent, there may be a lot of drama going on around you instead of the peace and quiet you are after.

3. Avoid parks which have inflated prices for no obvious reason.

There are many factors which can influence the cost of a motorhome park space. Some of these make sense, i.e. hookups available, the sizes of spaces, the proximity of spaces to an attractive feature such as a lake or river, and so forth.

But sometimes, prices of spots may vary for no particular reason aside from management discretion. It is also not uncommon to see large differentials in cost from one park to the next even within a small geographical area.

While you might think that a more expensive park will always be much nicer, it’s not always the case. In fact, sometimes the reverse can be true. If prices have been jacked up for no reason, you can be sure that you are not going to have the best vacation experience.

4. Consider the social economics of a park (in either direction).

There is a great deal of concern nowadays over the “type of people” staying at any given motorhome park. Many parks are actively working on gentrification, and find excuses to keep poorer people away (like rules limiting the age of motorhomes allowed in).

Just learning a park’s social economics with respect to policies like these can help you to get a feel for both the attitude of the management and the economic class of the typical resident or vacationer at the park.

Based on this, you can decide whether a park might be a good fit for you or not. If you would prefer an upper class environment, you can choose one. If that type of environment would not suit you, you can avoid it.

5. Stay away from parks with dodgy customer service and/or bad attitudes.

You can tell a lot about what you can expect from your experience at a motorhome resort just by talking to customer service about your plans and asking some questions.

It isn’t just the content of what the person tells you that should be informative, but the way that the person handles the conversation.

If you find yourself dealing with someone who dodges around questions and/or rushes you, speaks tersely, or even actively discourages you from placing a reservation (this can happen more often than you might think if management suspects you are not their “kind of people”), there is no reason to check into that park any further.

6. No photos? That’s not a good sign.

Since you cannot actually drive by a motorhome park to check it out unless you are planning a vacation relatively close to where you live now, you will need to rely on the internet for photos.

Hopefully, you can find a good selection of photos of an RV resort directly on that resort’s website. If you cannot, that raises questions about what you can expect from your stay.

Whether or not you find lots of photos on the site, you should also check customer reviews for uploaded photos. Those, after all, were taken without management’s stamp of approval, and may provide you with a more honest insight into the appearance of the park.

7. It’s worth asking about noise regulations.

There are a couple of relevant noise regulations worth asking about when you pick up the phone to chat with a booking agent. You should find out whether generator use is allowed, and you should also ask what the quiet hours are.

If a park does not have any sort of rules about noise, that may be a sign that it can be a loud place to stay. It also might indicate that partying is commonplace. So if loud noise and partying are things that you want to avoid on your vacation, you might want to stick with parks that have clear noise regulations.

Of course, the converse is true as well. If you plan to party on your vacation, you may want to specifically search for a motorhome resort which will allow you to do so without worrying about noise levels.

8. Be aware that “RV resort” is a meaningless phrase.

Something else worth mentioning is the phrase “RV resort.” I have seen people say online that you should look specifically for a “resort” rather than a “park.” The idea is that this will get you away from a “trailer park” atmosphere.

But having stayed at both, I can tell you the phrase is meaningless. RV parks and resorts are interchangeable, and the name tells you nothing about the park’s true character.

So that means that the word “park” is not a red flag in itself. And it also tells you that someone who tries overly hard to sell you on the “resort” nature of their business may be attempting to mislead you through a simple choice of words.

That being said, there are RV parks which really do offer a high-class resort experience. But it should be self evident just from checking out their amenities and the photos on their website that they really are worthy of that “resort” moniker.

9. If they don’t promote their amenities, that’s a bad sign.

Let’s talk for a moment about motorhome resort amenities. If you are planning to use amenities such as laundry, toilets and showers, you want to stay at a park which draws emphasis to these amenities and their availability to guests.

If a motorhome resort offers these amenities but does not go out of their way to promote them to you on the telephone or on their website, it raises the question of why. Here are couple of possibilities:

• The facilities may exist, but they could be in poor condition.
• While the facilities are available, the park management may prefer that you not use them.

If a motorhome park has kept their amenities in excellent shape and truly wants guests to have the most convenient and enjoyable experience, they should go out of their way to make sure you know everything which is available, just like any hotel would.

10. Bad reviews often speak for themselves.

Last but certainly not least, you should read reviews for any RV resort which you are thinking about parking at.

In particular, I recommend looking for long, detailed reviews which are both positive and negative.

While your temptation may be to read reviews from other vacationers, you should strongly consider looking for those which have been left by full-time residents as well.

This will provide you with the most thorough portrait of what the park is really like.

Avoiding These Red Flags Should Help You Find a Quality Park for Your Motorhome Vacation

It may not be easy to assess a motorhome park accurately when you’re not able to visit it yourself before booking a reservation. But it is far from impossible.

Hopefully the tips above will help you out during your search so that you can avoid dodgy RV parks and stay only at those which will provide you with the most enjoyable vacation experience.

Before you get out on the road though, you need to take steps to stay safe. Weather conditions in Australia can sometimes change rapidly. Rainstorms and dust storms can impact the conditions of the roads, making some of them unsafe or even impassable.

So before you head out, you should begin by checking the status of the roads. Each state has its own portal for you to do this:

• Northern Territory: This site allows you to check the conditions of government roads, council roads and park roads throughout the Northern Territory.

• New South Wales: The NSW Live Traffic site allows you to look at a map of roads in NSW, updated live. While the focus is on traffic conditions, hazards such as flood and fire are also displayed.

• Queensland: Queensland also maintains an interactive map which displays roadwork, hazards, and traffic conditions.

• Victoria: Victoria’s interactive map shows road closures, traffic alerts and hazards.

• Western Australia: Here is the travel map which displays alerts, events, road work information and more for Western Australia.

• South Australia: SA maintains a simple but clear map displaying road conditions in the Outback. It is colour-coded to show you whether roads are open to all vehicles, open with caution, open only to 4WD vehicles, open to 4WD and heavy vehicles, or closed to all drivers. Clicking on the roads brings up details.

• Canberra: Transport Canberra and City Services also maintains a webpage for road hazards and closures.

Some of Australia’s park websites also maintain information about the status of roads traversing or leading in and out of the parks. It is wise to check these pages as well before you visit each specific park. Plus, some roads are too narrow for larger motorhomes, and you will need to be apprised of that before you plan your itinerary.

Another step you can take when you are close to your destination is to chat with the locals. Sometimes local residents will know about road hazards and closures long before that information is posted online. Remember, conditions may also have changed since you last checked the online updates as well.

Additional Tips for Driving Safely in Australia:

• If you see a sign warning you of hazardous conditions or telling you that your vehicle cannot safely drive on a road, turn back around, even if the obstacle was unexpected. While changing your plans can be disappointing, it is better to be safe than sorry.

• Do not try to drive through a dust storm in the Outback. Doing so is exceptionally dangerous. It is much wiser to pull over and wait until visibility has improved.

• If you are on an unsealed road, drive more slowly than you normally would.

• Before you get going, make sure you are aware of where petrol stations are located. There can be significant distance between them when you get away from civilisation, so you need to take advantage of opportunities to fill up when they present themselves.

• Have a good reason for choosing to go down an off-road track. If it does not help get you to your destination, you should avoid taking it.

• Be aware that the unexpected can and may occur while you are off-roading. Have a plan in place in case of emergencies. Hopefully your trip will proceed smoothly, but it is important to take precautions. If you do end up stranded, find or create shade, conserve your food and water as best you can, and look for ways to signal for help.

Focus on Safety While Planning Your Australia Road Trip, And You Can Focus on the Scenery While Driving

While planning your Australia road trip, it is tempting to focus mainly on the destinations you want to see and the roads which look most interesting. But it is also important to think about safety and to make sure that you are choosing roads which are suitable for your vehicle and check that the conditions will allow for your passage.

The more planning you put into the safety aspect of your trip, the more confident you can feel embarking on your journey into the Outback. You can then relax and enjoy the breathtaking Australian scenery in all of its grandeur.

Staying in the campervan instead of a hotel also eliminates drive time to your destination (the park itself), which is essential when you only have a weekend to get away.

But planning a weekend break involves time, research, careful planning, and attention to detail. Because the trip is so short, you don’t really have room for mistakes. Here are some tips to help you plan a smooth and enjoyable short vacation.

1. Choose the right vehicle to hire.

A great weekend getaway in a campervan or motorhome starts with the right vehicle. Pick one which you will be able to drive comfortably and safely. In some cases, that might be a reason to choose a small camper over a large motorhome, even if you would like all that space. On the other hand, make sure you will have enough room that your travelling companions won’t be cramped.

2. Find out exactly what your rental includes (and bring what you need).

You should never make assumptions about what a campervan or motorhome includes. For example, take the matter of cooking and eating. Is there a fridge and freezer, or an esky? How big is it? Will you have a stove top? How many burners does it have? Are dishes and cutlery included, or do you need to bring your own? Make sure you bring all the essentials so there won’t be any surprises.

3. Think ahead about meals.

While we are on that topic, you should definitely plan ahead when it comes to food. With just a weekend for your trip, you are not going to want to spend the whole time driving around looking for a bite to eat.

Decide in advance if you want to eat out, and if so, pick a few restaurants you might be interested in and note their locations, phone numbers, and prices. If you are going to eat in, decide on specific meals which will be fast and easy to prepare in a limited space with the appliances your camper provides, and pack the relevant ingredients.

You should also bring snacks. In fact, you should bring more snacks than you think you will need. It is almost inevitable that you will end up eating more than you expect, because road trips demand extra energy. If you do not have the extra snacks ready, you’ll probably be tempted to stop and spend time and money eating out when you would rather be doing something else.

4. Research the area and come up with a short list of activities.

Can you have a fun weekend break going blindly to a new location with no knowledge of what there is to see and do in the area? Sure, but you will probably miss out on a lot of what it has to offer.

You should always research the place you plan to visit in advance to find out all about what there is to do there. This is also a great time to get the general layout of the roads and learn about any traffic issues you might encounter.

You may come up with a long list of things you would ideally like to see and do, but I suggest that you parse that list down as much as possible. Squeezing as much as you can into a single weekend will feel rushed; you will have a lot of experiences, but not necessarily full experiences.

Instead, I suggest coming up with maybe a half dozen activities you would really enjoy. Star a couple of them as your top choices so that you won’t waste time arguing with yourself when you finally get there. Then prioritize the remaining activities in order based on how badly you want to do them. You probably will not get around to them all. But if you really immerse yourself in just a couple of amazing experiences, your trip will be unforgettable.

5. Be open to improvisation and change.

Last but not least, perhaps the most important step to planning the perfect weekend break is to accept the fact that a lot of your plans will go awry. It is very rare for any trip to proceed smoothly entirely according to plans.

But if you are open to improvising and willing to follow the flow, you may very well end up having awesome experiences you never could have planned for. Maybe you are given the wrong order at a restaurant, but it turns out to be delicious. Perhaps you take a wrong turn on the highway, but you end up discovering a beautiful spot you would have missed.

If you spend all your time being stressed because your plans fell through, you will miss out on the joy of these delightful surprises. So approach your trip with an open mind and a willingness to embrace adventure.

You now should be ready to plan the perfect weekend break in your campervan or motorhome. A weekend flies by fast, but if you plan your getaway right and are open to improvisation and flexibility when needed, you can have an amazing time!

But is that really the most efficient way to travel—or the most cost-effective or enjoyable?

It does not occur to a lot of people to consider hiring a campervan or similar vehicle such as a motorhome or 4WD camper instead of hiring a standard car on vacation, but doing so can actually save you a lot of money and hassle.

That might not be obvious at first, because it may seem less expensive to just reserve a car than it is to book a campervan or motorhome (though this is not true nearly so often as you might believe).

But travelling in a rented campervan or 4WD camper saves you money in other ways, and ultimately those cost-savings can add up in a huge way over the course of your trip. Let’s take a look at all of the advantages of hiring a campervan over a standard car—financial and otherwise!

1. You do not have to pay for hotel accommodations.

When it comes to cost savings, this advantage is huge. Renting a campervan really is not all that expensive. You can hire a low top model for around $30 a day, or a high top model for around $40-$60.

Now think what you would pay if you were to hire a car and pay for a hotel room every night! Just the cost of the hotel room alone may be double or triple the cost of a campervan rental—maybe even more.

To take a simple example, picture that a campervan would cost you $30 a day, and that a standard car would cost you the same amount (which is typical—some cars may cost less and others more, but generally speaking the cost is often comparable). Now picture that a hotel will cost you $100 a night.

A car plus hotel in this case would cost you $130 per day, whereas the campervan by itself would only run you $30.

Why pay $100 extra per day for a vacation when you do not have to?

Just imagine what you could do with $100 per day saved on your trip. If you were initially planning a week in Australia, that would add up to $700 in savings.

You could put some of that money toward enjoying special tours and experiences that you otherwise would not have been able to afford. Or you could just use it to extend your trip, spending even more time exploring Australia’s amazing Outback.

Or just hold onto it for some later date. Maybe you can set it aside in savings for your next Australian road trip.

Either way, you are probably going to save a lot of cash just on hotel costs alone.

2. You can stay directly at campgrounds in Australia’s beautiful national parks, giving you more time to explore.

There is another inconvenience that comes with having to stay in a hotel, and that is that you are always going to be some distance away from the attractions you have come to see in the first place.

Say for example you want to explore a particular national park. If you are booking a stay at a hotel, that could put you half an hour to an hour away, maybe even more. When you wake up that morning, you need to do all that driving just to get to the park you want to check out in the first place. You lose precious time, and you also wind up draining energy, so you feel fatigued and end up doing less with your day. And in the evening, you have to waste even more time driving back to your hotel.

Now picture the alternative—a trip in a campervan. Instead of parking an hour away and staying in a hotel, you park inside the national park at a gorgeous campground. When you go to sleep that night, you are already immersed in its beauty. When you wake up in the morning, you are refreshed and ready to explore. And the trails are right there waiting for you at your doorstep.

Now that is a luxurious way to travel. That is how you see and do more on your trip!

3. You can get away from the crowds.

With a campervan, you also open up new avenues of exploration. You no longer need to worry about finding a hotel, and technically you can sleep anywhere so long as you find a place you can park.

That means you can venture deep into the Outback, away from civilization and the crowds that flock around Australia’s best known destinations. You can journey off the beaten path and discover sights that most tourists miss—all in seclusion and comfort.

4. You can prepare your own meals instead of spending all your money at restaurants.

Just as hotels are a huge drain on your wallet while travelling, so are restaurants. Eating out two or three times a day can quickly add up a lot even for a single traveller. You could easily cut your food expenses in half or more if you rent a campervan. You will probably have a sink, a fridge/freezer, and maybe even a microwave.

That means to some extent, you can prepare your own meals. You can also store leftovers from restaurants, which can make eating out a lot more economical. If you were staying in hotels, a lot of that food would just go to waste.

5. You have less packing, unpacking, and hauling to do with your luggage.

If there is one thing which is a total pain on vacation, it is hauling around luggage, dragging it back and forth between the hotel and your rental car. Each time you do, you have to unpack and repack, and make sure you have not left anything behind. You can eliminate all of that trouble with a campervan, because your luggage stays in one place through your entire trip.

6. Save time and hassle planning your trip.

Being on vacation is fun, and hopefully relatively carefree—but planning a trip is often the furthest thing from fun or carefree.

If you do not enjoy administrative tasks or excel at them, it can take up a huge amount of time and effort trying to get everything squared away with car reservations, hotel bookings, tours, and so on. And the more complexities are involved, the more likely it is you will make a mistake.

With a campervan rental, you do not have to deal with hotel bookings. You can keep your trip schedule a lot more open and flexible. Because you are not a captive to the demands of a set-in-stone schedule, you can be spontaneous with how you explore. This also eliminates a lot of stress while you are on vacation, which goes back to keeping things carefree!

7. You get the sense of travelling in a “home away from home.”

One of the best things about a campervan vacation in Australia is that while you are touring this beautiful land, you are doing so in a space which for that time period is all yours.

Instead of going from one hotel room to the next, never quite settling comfortably anywhere, you get to wake up each morning and go to sleep each night in the same cosy vehicle. The scenery through your windows changes every day, and each day brings new adventures—but through all that, your campervan starts to feel like your very own home away from home.

Once you decide to hire a campervan instead of a standard car for a vacation in Australia, you will never look back. Campervans are scarcely more expensive than hired cars overall, and in many cases may even be just as affordable. Meanwhile, you save on hotels and food, and you remove all kinds of issues relating to planning, luggage and scheduling. Your campervan liberates you from the hassles of travel, freeing you to enjoy every minute of your Australian vacation to the fullest.

A low-top campervan isn’t the right choice for every vacationer; if you are traveling with your family, you will not have enough space to sleep everyone (a caravan would make more sense). But if you are trekking across Australia solo or with just one other person, you should find that a low top campervan is an entirely comfortable option.

For a backpacker, a low-top campervan can function as a base for bushwalking treks, providing a cozy spot to sleep as well as a kitchen for preparing meals. You can sleep in the campervan each night, or you can pitch a tent or camp somewhere along the trail.

Take note that a low-top campervan usually will not include a bathroom.

What other features are available in a low-top campervan?

• Entertainment: Your low-top campervan will probably not include a flat screen TV or DVD player, but it should be outfitted with a radio and CD player. There also likely will be a port where you can plug in your MP3 player or mobile device. That way you can play any music you have stored electronically.

• Air conditioning and heat: It can get to be quite hot or cold in Australia, depending on where you are travelling and what time of year it is while you are on the road. Air conditioning and heat in your low-top campervan will ensure that you stay comfortable during any season. Just be aware that the air conditioning and heating will only work when the engine is on.

If you like the idea of traveling in a low-top campervan, but you feel like it might be a little cramped for your taste, you could consider a high-top campervan. A high-top campervan only costs marginally more than a low-top campervan, but it has a higher vertical profile for a more spacious interior. Features are much the same, but the kitchen is more likely to include a few extra conveniences.

If however you are a backpacker and you are looking for the ultimate budget option for exploring Australia in comfort, a low-top campervan can save you money. Its small size makes it easy to drive, and you can park it just about anywhere!

At campervanfinder, we partner with top brands for budget low-top campervan rentals. These companies can provide you with well-maintained, comfortable campervans at the lowest prices. Not sure which brand to choose? Read on to learn all about the most popular companies which offer low top at campervan hires on a budget.

Hippie

Hippie Camper actually was founded in 2006 by Apollo, one of the top companies for premium motorhome rentals. There are four branches along the East Coast of Australia and one branch on the West Coast. Rentals are aimed at a slightly younger crowd, with the company promoting its “fun aesthetic” as one of the benefits. All rentals are equipped with equipment for cooking and utensils for eating.

Lucky Rentals

Another company to consider is Lucky Rentals. This New Zealand-based company claims to offer the cheapest campervan rates in the country, and requires only a $100 deposit for all rentals. You are able to collect this balance on pickup. With your hire, you get the benefit of 24-hour roadside assistance. This company also is aiming its rentals toward a younger generation, with no age restrictions in place for campervan hires.

Travellers Autobarn

The next company you will want to think about is Travellers Autobarn. This company provides rentals out of Brisbane and Cairns, starting as cheap as $15 per day. Additionally, if you’re flexible about the dates of your trip, you can take advantage of special relocation deals, which will allow you to travel for as little as one dollar per day. In order to qualify for these offers, you will need to submit your e-mail address so that you can subscribe to the newsletter, or you can join as a fan on the company’s Facebook fan page.

Benefits of hiring from Travellers Autobarn include unlimited kilometres, 24-hour roadside assistance, free campgrounds and discounted caravan parks. Furthermore, bonds are only frozen for up to 14 days; there are no cache deductions.

Spaceships

Whether you are looking for a luxury hire or a cheap budget rental, Spaceships has you covered with a wide selection of high-quality vehicles. All of Spaceships’ campers are custom-designed, offering more features than you would find in your typical campervan, along with drivability similar to what you would expect from a car.

When you hire a Spaceship, you can enjoy benefits like unlimited kilometres, no extra driver fees, standard insurance, one-way trips with no extra fees, included cutlery and cookware, quality linens, plugins for your MP3 player or iPod, GST and 24-hour roadside assistance.

JUCY

JUCY was founded in Auckland, New Zealand in 2001 with 35 rental cars. Over the years, the company has expanded, and now has over 3,800 campervans, motorhomes, and cars for rent in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. JUCY vehicles are immediately recognizable on the road from their distinctive green and purple branding.

Like Travellers Autobarn, JUCY offers relocation specials for as little as one dollar per day to flexible travellers. For standard rentals, several different mileage packages are available to suit different itineraries and budgeting needs. Along with fee-free one-way trips and after-hours pickups, JUCY offers an abundance of cool perks and discounts to customers for a variety of products and services.

Conclusion: We Can Help You Find a Low Top Campervan That Fits Your Needs

No matter how small your budget—even if you want to hire a campervan for just a dollar a day—campervanfinder can help you to find a low top rental which is a perfect fit for your wallet, your itinerary, and your travelling style. Ready to get started? Just enter in the pickup location and dates you want on our homepage, and take a look at the great vehicles we offer from these top campervan brands!

On our site, you can search for mid-range high top campervan hires offered by some of the most popular brands in Australia. Each of these companies offers different advantages. Not sure where to begin? Below, we go over some key facts about each of these major brands so you know what to expect.

Apollo

Apollo is one of the most well-known motorhome and campervan rental companies in the world. Offering a variety of campers and motorhomes for rent in Australia, New Zealand, the US and Canada, this company has a history dating back to 1985. All Apollo campervans are winterized and range in age between 0-3 years.

Furthermore, the company provides all customers with the assurance of 24-hour roadside assistance. When you hire a mid-range campervan from Apollo, you have the peace of mind which comes with knowing you are renting from one of the leading brands in the industry.

Camperman

Camperman is a company which offers six different models of campervans to travellers in Australia. The company also offers some fantastic deals. If you have flexible dates, you can rent a campervan for just $1 per day as part of a relocation deal for example. If you book within certain time periods, you also can receive 1-day free for every 10 days you book. Camperman has a price matching policy as well, so if you spot a lower price posted publicly elsewhere, Camperman will drop their price to match.

Need extra items to make your trip more enjoyable? Camperman has a number of optional add-ons including outdoor tables and chairs, boosters and baby seats, tyre and windscreen covers, heaters, and GPS.

Note that Camperman is ideal for trips that are longer than a week. The minimum hire period is 10 days; you can take the vehicle out for fewer days than that, but you will stay pay the price of a full 10 days.

JUCY

JUCY is a brand which may be familiar to you from their recognizable green and purple vehicles. Founded in New Zealand in 2001, the company has a fleet of more than 3,800 campervans, motorhomes, and cars. Benefits include after-hours pickup and fee-free one way trips along with a range of mileage packages tailored to different needs. You also can take advantage of relocation specials to travel for a dollar a day.

Travellers Autobarn

Another cost-effective option is a high top campervan rental through Travellers Autobarn. Operating out of Brisbane and Cairns, this company offers $1 relocation specials as well as standard rates as low as $15 per day. You can follow the brand on Facebook to receive notifications about specials and discounts.

When you hire a camper through Travellers Autobarn, you get 24-hour roadside assistance, unlimited kilometres, and the chance to stay at free and discounted campgrounds and parks.

Cruisin’

Cruisin’ is a campervan and motorhome rental company which got started in 1999. You will find branches in Hobart, Brisbane, Sydney, Launceston, and the Gold Coast. All vehicles offered by Cruisin’ are three years old or less, and come equipped with linens, kitchen appliances, maps, and camping guides. Other benefits include unlimited kilometres and comprehensive insurance. The company’s price match guarantees you will pay the lowest available rate for your hire.

Go Cheap

This Tasmanian company has been in operation since 1999 as well. Routinely serviced, these vehicles are in prime condition and come with an abundance of features and extra hire options. For a fee, you can add a fan heater, table and chair, ice cooler, and GPS. Unlimited kilometres, roadside assistance, and insurance are all offered along with a price match guarantee.

Conclusion: The Perfect Mid-Range High Top Campervan Is Waiting For You

Ready to experience the Australian Outback in a mid-range high-top campervan? Enter in the dates for your trip and the pickup location you need in our search tool, and we will show you prices and features for high top caravans offered by these top brands. Once you book the perfect campervan, you’ll be ready for the ultimate vacation!

But there are pros and cons for each of the different types of vehicles you can rent: campervans, 4WD campers, or motorhomes. The trick to maximising the value of your rental and getting the most out of your vacation is to choose the type of vehicle which is the best fit for your needs.

In this article, we will focus on the advantages of campervans over the other two types of vehicles. Be sure to also read our articles exploring the benefits of 4WD campers and motorhomes so that you can make the most informed decision about your rental.

1. A campervan is a compact option which is easy and affordable to drive and park.

If you have never driven a large vehicle before, the first time you climb into the captain’s chair of a motorhome, there is a pretty good chance you will be feeling overwhelmed. Trying to manoeuvre such a hefty vehicle (or even sit comfortably behind the wheel in some cases) can be a challenge for a lot of people. Turns and backing up are much harder, and if you are driving along a windy road (say along the coastline for example), you often have to take it slow to ensure that your vehicle remains stable.

A campervan largely eliminates these difficulties. It is a much smaller vehicle than a motorhome. Essentially an augmented van, it is easy to manoeuvre and control, even in windy conditions. That can make for more pleasant driving if you are not comfortable in a large motorhome. You can actually focus a bit on the scenery instead of allowing all of your attention to be absorbed by your driving.

The other benefit comes back to costs. Because you are hauling less weight around with a campervan, you should not need to buy as much petrol, reducing your fuel costs for the trip. Additionally, you need to find spaces which can accommodate your vehicle to park for the night. A motorhome cannot fit in every parking space, but a campervan generally can. This opens up more options if you are in a campervan, and it also helps to keep your parking costs at a minimum. Parks often charge more for larger spaces because they know that motorhome drivers have no choice but to pay for them.

2. Multiple configurations give you lots of options.

Another great thing about campervans is that you can choose and pay for only the features and space you really need. This is because there are two configurations for campervans: low top and high top.

Just as you probably guessed, the “low top” campervans are the ones with the low roofs, while the “high top” campervans are the ones with the higher roofs that provide additional space.

If you feel that a low-top campervan is too confining and you want to be able to stand upright, you can pay more for a high-top model. If on the other hand you are not concerned with the extra space, a low-top campervan lets you save money.

Campervans are not as well-equipped as motorhomes, which definitely offer more in the way of amenities and comforts. Still, both high-top and low-top campervans provide you with the basics. With a low-top campervan, you get a fridge and sink in most cases, while a high-top campervan also offers you a dining area, perhaps a microwave, and extra sleeping spaces.

So with a campervan, you get to choose and pay for only what you need, making it a flexible choice on a budget.

3. Campervans are one of the most cost-effective ways to travel.

And that brings me to the last major benefit of campervans. They cost less to park and drive, and they also cost less to hire. This is true of not only low top models, but high-top models as well. Both motorhomes and 4WD campers are more expensive, even though 4WD campers are often not much larger than campervans (the added expense for 4WD is for insurance).

So for those who are travelling on a budget who do not need a lot of extra amenities or space, a campervan is a wonderful way to see Australia. Don’t forget to check out our articles on the benefits of motorhomes and 4WD campers as well if you think one of those options might be a better fit for your journey!