This year has been a terrific one for getting out in the caravan and enjoying our great state of South Australia, as well as ticking off a few interstate destinations that we’ve been wanting to visit for a long time.
We’ve been keeping a log book in the caravan for a few years now, which has the details of where we’ve been, how many kilometres travelled, and the best caravan parks and free camps we’ve found along the way.
2022 was a busy one, with many regions of South Australia covered, lots of fishing, campfires, fun times spent with friends and interesting stories to tell.
Where we went
In South Australia we visited the Yorke Peninsula, Riverland, Flinders Ranges, Southern Fleurieu, Barossa, Eyre Peninsula (twice) and the South East.
We also finally visited a couple of places we’ve been wanting to see which were Broken Hill in NSW and Mildura in Victoria, both not too far over the South Australian border. We incorporated them into one trip and loved them both, promising ourselves to revisit these areas in the not too distant future.
A highlight of that trip was discovering the Menindee Lakes area and in particular, Lake Pamamaroo where we spent a few blissful nights staying at this off grid camping area with serene lake views under millions of stars.
Our stats for this year were 7 different tourism regions of SA, 1 in NSW (Outback), and 4 in Victoria from the Mallee region down to the coast.
Where we stayed
It was a year of mixing up the stays. We love staying at off grid and at free or cheap campsites and having the van set up with 12 volt and solar panels to recharge batteries for the things that draw power, we did a lot of off grid in 2022.
Of course there are also a few favourite caravan parks in scenic spots, with friendly staff, excellent amenities and power and water when we needed it. Station stays are another fantastic way to see the country, where you can stay on working properties which give you the best of both worlds.
Our stats for 2022 were 21 caravan park stays, 16 off grid places and 2 station stays, with more than 110 nights on the road over the year.
How far and how much?
We travelled almost 7,000 kilometres this year and by far the biggest cost would have be on diesel. That is one statistic I didn’t keep track of, too frightening, but we do swear by using apps like ‘Petrol Spy’ or ‘Should I Fuel’, which gives you real time prices on fuel as you’re travelling, and a traffic light system so you can go where to the stations with a green light, for the cheapest fuel.
Also make sure to take advantage of any other fuel savings you can get such as discounts with memberships like Woolworths or Coles rewards cards, and RAA or other motoring body memberships.
As for accommodation fees, well they ranged from $0 to probably the most expensive we paid this year being $55 per night at the Adelaide Showgrounds Caravan Park. To be fair though, that is a flat rate charge year round, and its proximity to the city and facilities it has, makes it worth it.
In comparison we paid around $15 per night for off grid sites managed by local councils and most caravan parks varied from $35 to $42 per night.
Freelance Articles
All of these travels helped to bolster my writing opportunities and I’m thrilled to say that over the year I’ve had 7 stories throughout the year in print magazines and around the same in online magazine formats. Thanks to the editors of, and contacts I’ve made with On the Road magazine, Fishing SA magazine, Unsealed 4×4, RV Daily, and The Australian Silo Art Trail.
We also managed to find our way into an advertising brochure and on the website for Spear Creek Holiday Park, a station stay in the Flinders Ranges.
Oh and accompanying on most of these trips was our easy going, travel loving Kelpie and best boy – Neo.
As for our travels in 2023, well it’s looking busy already with planned trips to Yorke and Eyre Peninsulas, some closer to home stays to spend time with friends and plans well underway to head interstate again for an extended amount of time.
Enjoy your journeys and happy road tripping in 2023.
Glenys
Caravan Correspondent 
I enjoy reading the statistics of others who travel as I do. It is interesting to see that the campsite costs are similar in Australia, to what I see here in the States, although I don’t think I paid for any of the places I stayed this year. The state park in which I camped with a friend was her treat; I spent a lot of nights in National Forests (free) and the driveways of friends and family. I do envy you your solar capacity, though – I have to be really frugal with electricity if I’m not plugging in!
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Thanks, that is interesting that the costs are similar. We did notice that not many places are truly free anymore but we’re quite happy to pay for off grid campsites when toilets are available. It’s a great feeling being fully solar powered and able to last for days parked by a beach on your own. 😊
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What a great year and wishing 2023 will be even better!
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Thank you, I look forward to seeing more great reading ideas too! 😊
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Sounds like you had a truly amazing year, here’s to many more caravan adventures in 2023! Aiva xx
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Thank you Aiva it was a wonderful year and we have more big plans for next year. Have a wonderful Christmas with your family and I look forward to reading more of your travels too. 🥰x
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Wow – that was a fantastic year.
Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year and keep those wheels a-rollin’ for 2023!
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Thank you Jackie and all the best wishes to you and the fur baby family for Christmas too. 🥰 Lots more caravan trips planned for next year including to the far north of Australia. 👍I hope you have a great year of adventures ahead too, I love reading your blogs, they always give me a laugh somewhere along the line.
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Aw bless you, thank you for your kind words. We’ve got an awesome year planned. I need to finish writing all the blogs from this year yet, though.
Romania and Bulgaria were refused accession to the Schengen area this December, so we still have freedom of movement there. We decided to make the most of it, particularly since we loved Romania so much and there is so much to see. So we have planned a trip through those countries to Turkey, which looks amazing, An amphitheatre at every turn!
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Wow sounds amazing 🤩
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Very cool, lots of exciting adventures this year. We did two big caravan trips, three beach holidays and one road trip this year.
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Well done, we are aiming to be on the road longer next year, as long as we can afford the diesel. 🙂
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Yes, that is an issue at the moment. The highest we paid in north western Queensland was $2.40 a litre.
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What a fabulous year, Glenys. I was tied down for a large part of it myself, but a couple of months ago I headed west from Melbourne to explore the Yorke Peninsula, partly encouraged by your blog posts. What an absolutely lovely spot. The sun shone for the whole five days I was there, allowing me to get away from Melbourne’s seemingly endless rain. I found the driving very easy as well, the roads being flat and in very good condition, unlike Victoria’s where I hit a bad pothole and watched a hub cap sail off in the distance, never to be sighted again. Looking forward to your 2023 posts.
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Thank you so much Coral, I’m so glad you got to see a beautiful part of SA. We are heading over that way ourselves in January for some hopefully sunny beach days.
We have only been complaining ourselves lately about how bad so many roads are around the country, and probably only to get worse with flooding over roads.
Thanks for reading and I enjoy your posts as well, I’m making plenty of notes of where to go and what to see from blogs I follow too.
Have a lovely Christmas and enjoy your 2023 travels. x
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