HOW MUCH DOES A 3-WEEK AUSTRALIA COST? (PERTH TO MELBOURNE ROADTRIP)

We knew that a van trip through Australia would not be exactly cheap, although we already had a first experience of a roadtrip in a country with similar prices such as the US. and a motorhome trip on Route 66. But there is always the question ofhow much does a van trip in Australia cost. Our route was from Perth to Melbourne and we complete the trip in 3 weeks, and we must be honest, it is not a super cheap trip, but if you adapt to camping life, you save on accommodation and food and you get an offer on flights, it does not have to be an expensive trip either.

Here we bring you a detailed post about how much does a trip to Australia cost by van, lasting 3 weeks,divided into sections: flights, van rental, gasoline, accommodation, food and other expenses.

Flying to the antipodes does not have to be as expensive as it seems. We arrived in Perth from Asia, where we spent a few months, on a flight from Bali for € 110, although if you look ahead and are flexible, you can find flights between € 50 and € 60. There are also good deals from Singapore. Flights to Asia are not expensive, so it is not a bad plan to stop for a few days in an Asian destination.

→ Cheap flights from Bali to Australia
→ Cheap flights from Singapore to Australia

To travel directly from Spain on a round trip flight to Australia, the price starts from € 600, but it is not easy to find offers for less than € 700 with decent stops. The cheapest solution is to fly with Scoot from Athens, with stopover in Singapore. There are flights to Perth, Sydney, Melbourne or Gold Coast from € 200! And the flights back from those destinations with the same prices. Now we should look for flights to Athens and find the best combination (from € 50 each way).

→ Flights from Spain to Australia round trip
→ Flights from Athens to Australia / Flights from Australia to Athens
→ Flights from Spain to Athens / Flights from Athens to Spain

So a round trip flight, including a stop in Athens, can leave for about € 600 per person round trip and without being too complicated to find it.

The best way to tour Australia is by renting a van or motorhome. There are many rental companies so we believe that it is best to use a comparator like Motorhome Republic. We are the one we have used and everything went well. These search engines are the best way to find competitive prices.

To consider:

• Prices per day: One price per day is always applied, which is usually reduced if the rentals are long-term (from two weeks).
• Peak season: Prices tend to be more expensive between November and March, when it is high season in Australia. From April you will see more offers (including relocations, we explain below what it consists of).
• Different itineraries, different prices: on less tourist routes such as the one between Perth and Melbourne, prices are somewhat higher. For example on the east coast you can find prices between 10 or 20% lower. In the same way the direction of your route influences prices, we were offered excellent offers directly from Apollo for making the Cairns route to Melbourne, because in general people usually do it on the contrary and they need to return the vans to the offices of origin .
• “One Way” Rate: It usually comes included for rentals between these two cities, however it is not too much to leave doubts before making the reservation.
• Prices without insurance extension: the prices that appear are those of the most basic rental, which includes franchise insurance. What does it mean? When you go to pick up the car you will have to leave a deposit with a credit card that is the maximum amount you will pay in case of an accident. The amount depends on the company, in Cheapa Campa which is what we choose is 2,700AUD (about € 1700). Keep it in mind to increase your card limit!
• Contract full insurance: to avoid having to leave a deposit and also usually include some extras, such as chairs and tables, sheets and towels, some fees, etc ... The price depends on the package, but is between 30 and 40 AUD a day.
• Roadside assistance and protection of wheels and moons: this coverage is always set aside from the previous one, usually it costs about 6-8AUD per day.

The total rental price of a Hitop van for 21 days is around the 1,100AUD, some700€ ( € 350 per person if you travel as a couple). These prices are in April, in low season. We rent the Hitop from Cheapa CampaLuckily, when we got to pick it up, they had upgraded us to a Euro Tourer!

→ Use the Motorhome Republic comparator to get the best prices on the van rental.

Do you know that the rent can be almost free?

There is an option called “relocation”For which you can rent a car or van (from € 1 per day) to take it from one office to another, depending on the needs of each company. They are usually very punctual offers, on specific dates and leaving few days of travel. There are several websites where these offers appear, we always look at Imoova.

Good news is that in Australia gasoline is quite cheap (on average € 0.87 per liter of diesel). The price of unleaded gasoline is usually somewhat lower than diesel, but for a little difference. On the route from Perth to Melbourne we did a total of 5,423 km. The van we carry is larger than the normal Hitop, but we were quite slow, not exceeding 100km / h and doing very low averages (we are becoming expert gas savers), making the calculation in the end we ended up consuming an average of 8 , 75 liters / 100km (against the 12 indicated on your tab!). The total cost we made in gasoline (diesel) was 660AUD, about420€ ( € 210 per person if you travel as a couple).

To know the price of gasoline in different areas of the country we use the app Fuel Map Australia.

We sometimes stay at Caravan Parks (paid campsites) and in some YHA hostels in the cities, but in general you can save all or almost every night of lodging by traveling in a campervan van.

As reference prices, a plot in a Caravan park Medium, with electricity for a van and two people, usually costs about 30 or 40 AUD. The price includes a plot for the caravan and 2 people (you will also have the right to use hot showers, kitchen with BBQ / oven,…). There are cheaper and more expensive, depending on the services, the location, how well cared for, etc. If you look in the WikiCamps Au app you will see many comments, photos and prices. Keep in mind that if you do not need many facilities and settle for simpler sites, you can find cheaper camping / caravan park (from 20 AUD).

As for the YHA hostels in the cities, you can find a bed in a shared room for about 25-30 AUD.

But, as we said, you can do the whole trip without paying a dollar for accommodation

But not only will you save on accommodation with the van, also on food! You can cook as many times as you want in the kitchen of the campervan and supermarket prices are not excessive (we have an article of reference prices pending). To put a figure, with about $ 300 for two people you can make the purchase for those 3 weeks, with a whim (some steaks and a few beers from time to time). So they would beabout € 100 per person.

If the budget allows it, it does not hurt to occasionally eat out. You can find good offers of dishes with beer at noon for about 15-20AUD (or less), and enjoy the happy hours (you can almost always find beer for 5-7AUD), on this website there are a few recommended sites.

Tip: the water is free (tap water) so if you want to save avoid drinking smoothies or drinks.

→ Entrance fees to national parks and attractions

There are some paid attractions that may be worthwhile, also entering the national parks involves the payment of a pass (there are per day / park or by state). We aim for this game € 50 per person. We only pay for Cape Le Grand Park ($ 13 per vehicle).

→ Travel insurance

It is essential to carry a good travel insurance, as you know with health you do not joke and less in a country like Australia! Insurance Iati Premium Star, which covers up to € 500,000 costs about € 101 per person for 21 days Including 5% discount if you hire from this link.

→ Miscellaneous expenses

As with each trip you have to have a item of miscellaneous expenses. It is usually the tailor's drawer and the least one can be calculated a priori, but we put a total of € 50 per person.

Total miscellaneous expenses per person: € 201

After breaking down all types of expenses to consider, we can answer the question of How much does a trip in southwest Australia cost by van? Here we summarize thebudget per total person base taking as reference a trip for two people of 3 weeks, from Perth to Melbourne.

We hope you have clearer now how much does a 3 week trip through Australia cost. As always keep in mind that at the moment of truth it is you who decides how and how much to spend, but we believe that this budget can guide you a lot!

Video: TRAVEL TIPS: HOW EXPENSIVE IS AUSTRALIA? (April 2024).