Cost of Caravanning in Australia [Full Breakdown]

Share It!

It’s easy to assume that the main cost of caravanning is simply the initial purchase. After that, you’ve got a free pass to unlimited holidays all around Australia, right?

Well, not exactly.

While the caravan purchase is the biggest piece of the pie, there are some other costs of caravanning to consider before jumping in. Things like the tow vehicle, registration, insurance, finance repayments, roadside assistance, accessories, servicing, campsite fees, fuel and storage all need to be included in the budget.

Here I lay out all of the costs associated with caravanning to help you make the best financial decision for your situation.

This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see our disclosures here.

Cost of Caravanning

Purchase Price of the Caravan

The first and largest cost of caravanning to consider is the actual purchase price of the caravan.

Unfortunately, caravans are a lot more expensive than they used to be. But, to be fair, many come standard with all of the resources required to camp off-grid, without ever needing to pay for caravan park facilities, if that’s the style of camping you’re looking for.

Buying New

To budget for buying a new caravan, you can be looking anywhere from $35k for a small pop top to well over $100k for a full-sized caravan with all of the bells and whistles.

If you’re interesting in seeing all of the available styles in Australia, check out my other post on the 12 Different Caravan Types.

To dig deeper into purchase prices:

• Average Cost of Caravans →
• Average Cost of Hybrid Campers →

Buying Second Hand

If you’re looking to reduce your initial outlay cost by buying second hand, I’d say that’s a smart financial move.

Brand new caravans can lose up to 25% of their purchase value within the first 1 – 2 years of driving out of the dealer’s yard. But in today’s second-hand market, much like cars, caravans are holding their value very well. You will still need a decent budget even for a second hand van, especially if it’s less than five years old.

The ULTIMATE Caravan Buyers Guide

Streamline buying a caravan with this interactive planner. From budget, towing weights, PPSR checks & more, we guide you through the process, step-by-step!

15-page Digital & Printable Planner

• CHECKLISTS to tick off
• DECISION PROMPTS to fill out
• Questions to ask, handover, hitching up & more…

CARAVAN BUYERS GUIDE →

Tow Vehicle

As well as buying the caravan, you’ll need to make sure that you’ve got a suitable tow vehicle. You can go either way with this…

Before rushing out to make a big caravan purchase, it’s important to understand your towing weights so that you buy the right fit for the tow vehicle or vice-versa. Here’s the Full Guide to Caravan Towing Weights.

There are also some bare basic essentials that the tow vehicle will require before you can hitch up the caravan and drive away.

Beyond that, there are a whole range of 4WD accessories that may be needed or wanted to further enhance your caravanning adventures. I know how easy it is to get carried away with accessories – but you really don’t need it all!

You can see our full Patrol set-up for a more detailed example.

As you can see, there are at least a handful of additional expenses involved with setting up your tow vehicle in preparation for the caravan. How far you go with this step is entirely dependent on what style of travel you plan on doing and how much you’re willing to spend.

Finance Repayments

Given the high entry cost of caravanning nowadays, financing the purchase is quite commonplace for those who can afford to service the loan. If this is you, then you will have to factor the ongoing finance repayments into your caravanning costs until the van has been paid out.

For more on this topic, here’s everything you need to know about Financing a Caravan.

Caravan Insurance

While having caravan insurance is not a legal requirement in Australia, I would not recommend being without it. Comprehensive cover will make sure that if you have an accident while driving, or something else happens to the van while travelling or even parked up at home, you will be covered for most eventualities.

To give you an idea on pricing, the average cost of caravan insurance for a 2022 Jayco Journey (19 ft) is $1,822.88 per year. Read the Full Guide to Caravan Insurance for more information.

Caravan Registration

Next is the annual caravan registration fee that needs to be paid. Below are the caravan registration costs for each state as at January 2023.

For more on rego requirements and costs, check out Caravan Registration in Australia.

Roadside Assistance

Most people will already have roadside assistance for their vehicle, however there is one main reason that you want to make sure you have it for your caravan as well.

In the case of breakdown, if you need to get towed somewhere, you’ll want to make damn sure the car and the caravan can both be towed to where you need them to go.

It’s important to make sure the caravan is covered for being towed in the event of a breakdown.

Either way, the additional cost of a higher level of roadside assistance to cover the caravan will need to be included in your caravanning costs budget. Here’s everything you need to know about Caravan Roadside Assistance.

Modifications, Gear & Accessories

There are more items involved with caravanning that just the caravan.

If you want to be able to camp off-grid for copious amounts of time, having a good solar set-up is key. If you want to be able to sit outside in comfort then outdoor flooring and some quality outdoor furniture are a must. To be able to fill up the water tanks and discharge your grey water, hoses are required.

The list goes on…

You can definitely save some money by purchasing a second hand caravan that already has the mods and accessories you’re keen on. But more often than not, especially if buying new, there will be things you want to add to the caravan to suit your purposes and comfort level.

Here are 50 Popular Caravan Accessories to get you going!

Servicing & Maintenance

The recommended frequency for caravan servicing is once every 12 months or every 10,000 km, whichever comes first.

A good ballpark figure to budget is $500 for a standard caravan service. If you’re handy and can do it yourself, you can save most of that money and just pay for parts and materials.

As with all trailers and vehicles, some years there will be more expenses than others, including a new set of tyres every couple of years.

For the more on servicing, have a read of these Caravan Maintenance Tips.

Caravan Maintenance & Service Log

Keep track of your caravan servicing schedule, plus all additional maintenance items with the Caravan Maintenance & Service Log.

7-page Digital & Printable Planner

• Caravan Service History Log
• Checklists
• Pre-filled Maintenance tasks
• Add in extra items
• Record dates

MAINTENANCE & SERVICE LOG →

Campsite Fees

An obvious cost of caravanning is the outlay for campsite fees.

I wish I could give you an average campsite fee to help work out the budget, but there are just too many variations. Fees can range anywhere from $10/ night for a rural Low Cost Camp, to $87/ night for a family staying in a Big4 along the east coast.

If you’re planning on using caravan parks, here’s the low down on Caravan Park Memberships and whether they’re worth it or not.

Of course there are loads of absolutely amazing Free Camps all around the country. If you’ve got your own amenities and resources onboard, you’re only limited by how far you can tow the rig!

Fuel

There’s no getting around it, towing an extra couple of tonne behind you is going to have you chewing through the fuel quicker than usual.

I recommend using the free Fuel Map App to help track your fuel usage. From there, you’ll be able to work out an average of how much extra you need to budget in for fuel when caravanning.

Storage

Most people store their caravans on a patch of grass on their property, because, well… it’s free.

To help look after your caravan it’s worth investing in a good caravan cover. This will stop bird and bat poo from eating away at the paint, as well protecting from trees branches, sap and leaf litter, which encouraging mould and mildew.

If you don’t have room on your property to store the caravan, the next option is to consider if any friends or family have the space and willingness to do so. Beyond that, you would have to pay for the van to be stored somewhere, which adds an extra expense to your cost of caravanning budget.

Here are 30 Tips for Storing a Caravan, which will help too look after your RV, plus maintain it’s re-sale value.

Caravan Storage Checklist

Make sure your caravan is storage-ready and maintains its value and condition with the Caravan Storage Checklist.

[ Digital & Printable ]

• 12-page DIGITAL checklist (interactive PDF)
• 10-page PRINTABLE checklist (customisable)
• 100 pre-filled tasks
• Checkboxes to tick off
• Add in extra tasks

CARAVAN STORAGE CHECKLIST →

Costing Up Your Own Caravanning Budget

Obviously everyone’s caravanning costs are going to look different. There are many variables at play, which all need to fit in with your personal needs, wants and budget.

To help you work through your own expected caravanning costs, I’ve put together the Big Lap Budget Spreadsheet. You can input all of your anticipated costs related to the initial set-up, as well as costs on the road. From there, the spreadsheet will automatically calculate the totals.

The beauty of the spreadsheet is being able to play around with the figures until you reach a combination that works the best for you.

Buying vs. Hiring a Caravan

After laying out all of the costs of buying a caravan, setting it up, then maintaining it year after year, is it really worth it?

Buying a caravan doesn’t always make financial sense. It’s a huge chunk of money to spend on a large item that will absolutely depreciate as the years pass by.

However, not everything we do in life has to be based on financial gain. We also need to take into account the investment towards joy, adventure and positive experiences.

To compare the costs of buying vs. hiring a caravan, jump onto Camplify and get some quotes for the type of caravan you’d be likely to hire. Cost up an average budget based on how many times you think you’d use the hire service throughout the year. Don’t forget to add in fuel and campsite fees.

To work out the cost of caravanning with purchasing your own van, use the Budget Spreadsheet above to input the figures and let the calculators do the work for you.

Travel Planning Tools

PIN IT for later!

Share It!