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Ultimate Guide: Campervan Tips!

You’ve done it. You’ve booked your campervan and are ready for the roadtrip of a lifetime! What next?!

Our guide to campervan tips, that’s what!

Well, as seasoned professionals of the road, we thought we give you some of the best tips we could think of when it comes to campervanning in Australia. Some are a little more obvious than others but all of them will help you have the most amazing time no matter how long your journey is!

If you are still debating whether or not to choose a campervan or a bus ticket, take a look at this blog for the lowdown on both.

If you’re sold on the campervan than look no further than this Ultimate Guide to campervanning!

Maximise Space

With any campervan you hire – whether it’s big or small – will have a finite amount of space. Whether it’s just a couple of travellers or a bigger group you might not be able to fit everything you want in the van.

When you pick up your van or during the first couple of days of the trip, have a good rummage around and make sure you are using all the space you’ve got available. Underneath beds, in between seats, in the boot of the van – make sure you’re organised and know where everything is.

It’s not the most fun thing to do but if you can find little nooks to store your stuff (and then be able to find it easily) it’ll speed up the process when you find a place for the night or when you are cooking your lunch or dinner.

Plan Your Shop

Another tip that isn’t exactly fun and spontaneous but will save you money and keep your storage under-wraps is a shopping list. In your first shop, get the basics – whether you want cereal for breakfast or sandwiches for lunch, get the things you’ll use over the whole trip.

Australia’s amazing beach-side (free) BBQs will become your best friend during the trip so get a spray can of olive oil or cooking oil so you can use them with ease.

Plan your meals based on your fridge space. Don’t stock up on steak to BBQ if it’;s going to go off by the time you get round to using it. Stay stocked up for a couple of meals in advance and make sure you’ve got your favourite driving snack on hand!

Where you can, buy big. If you are going to want a beer once you’ve finished your driving (obviously, be careful and DO NOT drink and drive – that’s really dumb) buy a crate of beer and find it a storage place. Same with anything else you love that’ll keep for a while.

When shopping, head for the deli counter too – it’s way cheaper than buying meat in a package and the majority of big supermarkets have them.

Fuel Dockets

When you do shop, keep your receipt. You aren’t going to need to take anything back but when you spend over a certain amount, your receipt has a voucher for money off your petrol which will come in very handy!

Whether it is 4, 8 or 10 cents off a litre it’s still a saving and will allow you to spend more on the fun stuff rather than the boring fuel!

There will be vouchers for other stuff as well, whether it is groceries or booze so check your receipt before you chuck it away.

Camps Australia Book

A little bit more planning ahead but again, it can lead to savings during your road trip. The Camps Australia book and app are an amazing way to find free and cheap campsites all over Australia.

Whether you are driving the East or West Coast or anywhere in-between, Camps Australia will find you your nearest campsite and give you an idea of what to expect when you get there.

The books retail for about $50 9take a look on eBay and Gumtree for cheaper options) so you’d only need to spend two or three nights at a free campsite to pay off the book!

Get a Map!

Do not rely on your phone! You are probably on a pay-as-you-go phone so only get a little bit of data and get charged a fair bit when you go over the allowance so buy a map and save your internet for posting pictures to make everyone jealous!

A old school map gives you a chance to see what is around you as well. With your phone GPS you get the road you are on and which way to turn but not much else!

Follow The Signs

We aren’t talking about directions for this one but if you drive past something cool – stop the van!

The beauty of a campervan trip is that you can see a brown, tourist information sign and go and explore! It could be waterfalls or boulders or an awesome National Park or beach but you’ll never know if you don’t go!

Whichever stops you take along the way, try and find a tourist information office and pick up some leaflets. There might be an awesome tour of the area you’ve never heard of, or a cool place to pull over and take a few photos.

Look Out For Big Things

This isn’t about hitting some road-kill (but do look out for kangaroos early evening and morning) but the Australian Big Things that are dotted across the country.

Whether it is a 10m tall mango in Bowen, QLD or the 35 tonne prawn of Ballina Australia has a load of weird and wonderful things dotted along the road side that you’ve just got to get a photo of! Read our guide to some of the best big things in Australia here.

Plan…But Not Too Much

We’ve covered the boring plans to be made but don’t go too over-board with it – stay loose and see what comes! You’ll have places that you definitely want to stop at for a couple of days but you’ll like more places than others so adjust your plans accordingly.

If you love Noosa, stay an extra day! If you’re not a big fan of Byron Bay, move on and find somewhere you love! That is why you’ve got a campervan in the first place, the freedom of it all!

A campervan trip anywhere in Australia is an incredible experience that is not to be missed!

If you are interested in booking a campervan for you and your mates in Australia, give us a shout and we’ll get you the best deal out there!

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The Ultimate Guide: Campervan or Bus?

When you arrive in Australia, you will soon realise that there are many ways to experience your time Down Under.

Hostel folk will always tell you that their way was best – “You have to travel first…” “No, get a job and save some money first…” “Farm work first, then fun stuff later….”

While advice is nice, pay as little attention as possible to anyone who tries to tell you how to travel. It is entirely up to you, there is no right or wrong way to go about it and whether you decide to work in the city or the country first and then head off or vice versa is totally fine!

People travel in different ways, they enjoy seeing and experiencing different things and like staying longer in different places so don’t worry if that noisy guy at the hostel bar thinks you’re mad for wanting to work first and travel later!

With that being said, we at Ultimate Travel like you to be able to make as informed a decision as possible when it comes to travelling in Australia.

There are two main options for your travelling delights – campervan or bus (more specifically, the Greyhound). With the Ultimate Travel East Coast Package, we take care of pretty much everything you are going to want to do throughout your time on the East Coast. Make sure you have a look through the package as, by booking up in advance, you can save heaps of cash!

Both campervans and buses have their merits and they suit certain people perfectly. A 6 hour bus ride may be your idea as hell, just as sleeping each night in a van may be too, so we’ll try and break down the pros and cons of each and see what you think!

Remember, it is up to you and just get travelling! If you need any more information about either campervan travel or Greyhound tickets – get in touch!

Basics

Obviously, the only thing you need to get on the Greyhound is the money for the ticket! There is a luggage allowance of 20kgs which you should bear in mind too but luggage on the Greyhound is a bit of a grey area. They aren’t like an airline and don’t take the luggage allowance too seriously but if you turn up with two surf-boards and 12 bags – you’re going to get charged more! Other than that, you are good to travel anywhere in Australia via Greyhound.

When travelling the East Coast, a Kilometre Pass offers the best value for money, outside of our Ultimate East Coast trip, and let’s you travel between Sydney and Cairns effortlessly!

With a campervan, you’ve got to be able to drive! You do not need an Australian driving license but you do need a full driving license from your home country – if you are on a provisional license then you will be unable to drive unfortunately!

There are different insurance options which are long-winded and can be explained far better in person so if you need any more information on that – get in touch!

Just a little road trip primer – Australia’s drive on the left hand side of the road and their speed limits are in kilometres per hour, rather than miles as are the road signs. You will be looking at 100-120kms/h on highways and 40-70 on other roads but make sure you keep your eyes open for speed limit signs as you’ll still get fined even if you are a traveller!

Comfort

With the Greyhound comfort comes with experience. Your first bus journey is likely to feel pretty painful, especially if it is a long one! Make sure you check out our guide to surviving the Greyhound before you even think of setting foot on the bus!

Once you are used to the Greyhound seats and know what you need to make each journey as comfortable as possible, you should be fine. The beauty of the Greyhound is you’ll probably be sitting next to or near someone in your exact position – heading north to Cairns or south to Sydney or Melbourne.

There is a kindred spirit with travellers and you’ll pick up friends and knowledge as you head further along the road.

With a campervan, driving comfort is great! You’re either driving or sitting in the passenger seats, messing about with the radio and trying not to get lost!

The comfort issues come when the journey ends! Depending on the van you choose and the number of people you travel with, it could be a tight squeeze when you bed down for the night. Bear in mind when you are booking your campervan that you are going to get very close to whoever you choose to hit the road with…

Heat is a campervan problem that is difficult to get around. You can open as many windows as you want but getting the airflow through the van is tough. You’ll get used to the campervan quite quickly though and it becomes more bearable as the trip continues.

Campervans offer a lot more comfort for the actual travelling part of the journey but the bus offers the chance for more comfort once you arrive.

Freedom

One of the best thing about having a campervan is being able to stop and go as you please. If you drive past a cool sign and checking it out, you’re free to do so! Fancy an ice-cream or need a bathroom break? You’re in charge!

The bus isn’t exactly like that. You stop when the driver stops and you are limited to the Greyhound schedule. There are a heap of buses that leave each stop on the Greyhound map and there is extensive coverage right the way across Australia with a big focus on the East Coast – so you’ll be fine getting to all the major stops – but it is only the major stops that you get to explore.

If you do love the freedom to see a tourist information sign and turn off to find something a little more secluded then you’ll love a campervan but if you want to hit the big stops up the coast, a Greyhound is a great way to do it.

Accommodation

With the Greyhound, you’ll either be staying in hostels or sleeping on night buses. As I’m sure you all know, hostels are awesome! We can help you out with any bookings or any hostel recommendations you need.

Overnight buses also offer the chance to save a night on hostel costs and keep moving along the way. These are only available for the long journeys, which we’d recommend avoiding if you have the time to do so, so bear that in mind.

With the van, you’re accommodation is slightly different. You’ll be sleeping in the van obviously, but you have a variety of choices of where you stop.

Certain hostels offer really cheap parking where you can stay overnight, plug in and charge and have all the best of the hostel atmosphere. Campsites and caravan parks are a little quieter and more expensive but you can still meet fellow campervan travellers and enjoy some luxuries like a pool, a kitchen area and a game room – if you so desire.

There are certain road-side or beach-side stops you can stay overnight for free. These are sign-posted and and will often be filled with fellow travellers so keep your eyes peeled!

The beach side locations are awesome as they have bathroom facilities, showers and most of the time, free BBQs that you can use to cook your meals. Not to mention that you wake up at the beach!

I don’t want to sound like anyone’s Mum or Dad here but be careful. Make sure you lock your doors at night just in case and remember, you can’t just stop anywhere and sleep. Airlie Beach, for example, is very strict about campervans staying overnight in car parks and setting up camp anywhere they shouldn’t be. If you get caught trying to bunk a night somewhere around Airlie, you could be in for a hefty fine!

People

It is much easier to meet fellow travellers if you get to stay in hostels which makes it easier to meet people travelling by bus.

That isn’t to say that if you are in a campervan, you are on your own – far from it! You’ll see a tonne of campervans going both ways on the Pacific Highway and every stop you make, it is almost a certainty that there will be some other van nomads somewhere near by.

Much like a hostel, you just have to have the guts to start a conversation. With the campervan, you are able to meet people you wouldn’t normally get in hostels whether they are Grey Nomads (pensioners on road-trips around Australia) or groups of Aussies on holiday at different sites along the coast – you will have a different experience to the usual hostel life.

Experience

In terms of experience, it is a case of what you are hitting the road for.

If you are travelling the East Coast to hit the big spots, move on, go out, meet people similar to you and repeat then you will be fine on the bus. If you are looking to save money, have more of a structured arrival and departure pattern and spend time in some of the best hostels in the world – the bus could be for you too.

You may like the idea of managing your own time, stopping where and when you want and living out of a van for as long as you can! A massive part of the van experience is your co-pilots. If you are in a couple or have a group of close friends that you desperately want to travel with, then the van is a great way of splitting the cost of travelling and spending time with people you already love!

When it comes to the two coolest trips on the East Coast (Fraser Island and Whitsunday Islands) both are easily accessible by bus or by van. You’ll have to find somewhere to park your van before you go on the trips – there is secure parking near each departure point – but you are good to go either way.

With the bus, any side trips you want to go on will cost more just because you can’t drive yourself there. With the van, your only cost will be a map and petrol if you want to go somewhere without an official tour group.

Price

The big question really – how much does it all cost!?

Well, with a campervan it varies week to week, even day to day. To get the best rates, try and plan ahead and get in touch with one of our travel gurus as soon as you know when you want to go. We can talk you through the different van options available, the different companies to use and the different types of insurance cover you can buy. Even if you leave it until the last minute and want to book a van to leave in a couple of days, we’ll do our best to get you the best deal we can!

Another thing to remember with the van is the cost of petrol. While petrol isn’t astronomical in Australia it can soon add up. From personal experience (and this shows the nerd in me) I spent $536 on petrol from Cairns to Sydney in November 2013 travelling for a month. If you split that between two, three or four people – it is entirely manageable.

While you don’t have this cost on the bus, you do have hostel costs which soon add up. You will probably need to pay for the majority of campsites you use along the coast if you do choose a campervan but at least you have the option of free accommodation.

You’ll need to buy food for both and both options allow you to cook rather than eating out which saves a lot. With the campervan, you are able to buy food without worrying about the hostel fridge getting cleaned out but the fridges or coolers in each van vary in size as does how long the battery lasts without being charged up.

With everything that you get included with the UltimateOz East Coast package it is definitely worth considering if you want to travel by bus. You are given extra savings by booking all of the stuff you want to do in one go rather than breaking it up into chucks. You can add and take-away things you want to do or don’t fancy and add days on to your package but for that, you need to speak to one of us!

Decisions

Hopefully, this has given you a bit of a balanced view of the ways you can travel Australia!

The campervan or bus debate will long rage on and you’ll hear conflicting stories from both sides of the battle! Some will say the only way to experience Australia is driving it yourself, while others will tell you how much fun they had travelling by Greyhound not worrying about getting lost!

As I said earlier it doesn’t matter how you travel just as long as you do it! Whether you want a van or to jump a bus it is entirely up to you and remember we are here to help you every step of the way!

Let us know your best and worst bits of travelling by either campervan or bus! What would you do if you were travelling and if there are any questions left unanswered then fire away!

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How To Find Your Regional Work in Australia

Now that we’ve answered all of your questions concerning your regional work, it is time to help you try and find some work!

There are many options for your regional work but by far the most popular is the farming route.

If you are a skilled construction worker, that could definitely be an option for you but you will need a white card before you can get on a building site. Building work can also be a little bit sporadic so remember it is only the days you work that count if you aren’t working full-time hours.

Firstly, take a look at the Ultimate Outback Ranch package which gives you training as well as access to a host of job contacts across Australia!

The Outback Ranch course is an amazing experience that allows you to learn the ropes of farm work so that you become more attractive to employers looking for station hands.

You learn how to herd livestock, there are riding classes, lassoing and sheep shearing plus much more!

Next, you have a membership for TAW. If you arrive in Australia on one of our Ultimate adventures then you are likely to have a TAW membership included in your costs (check specific packages for more details).

TAW (or Travellers at Work) is an online job agency specifically designed for backpackers. They share an office with us at UltimateOz and are experts at finding work for backpackers in Australia!

Everything with TAW is online so head to the website to check out the jobs list before you become a member – you’ll see that there are lots of jobs all over the country and they are updated each day so make sure you keep checking the site!

Our awesome TAW representative can help you build a successful CV and cover letter and can help guide you on all things regional work (or any kind of work) related. As our site is built for backpackers, many farmers and regional employers use the site regularly to find workers so keep your eyes peeled and get in touch with TAW if you have any, more specific questions!

There is also the Harvest Guide which you can pick up from or UltimateOz shop or download here. The Harvest Guide is a government run job seeking platform which can be of use when finding farm work.

It is a nationwide organisation but can also be used by Australian’s looking for work so you may find it more difficult to find work via the Harvest Guide than the backpacker-driven TAW. Worth a shot though!

Then there are other sites such as Gumtree which can also be used to source work. If you’ve spent time in Australia, you’re probably aware of the negative reviews surrounding Gumtree and these are true to an extent.

Be careful, don’t believe everything you read and try not to be an idiot and you should be fine with Gumtree! I’ve found work using the site and nobody tried to kidnap me while I was doing it so that’s got to be a bonus! Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!!

Word of mouth is probably the best way to find regional work in Australia! Stay in touch with people that are over here, strike up conversations in hostels and see what others have done. The best thing about this is that you’re talking to someone who’s actually worked where you are going and can give you the skinny on the area and the boss!

If you’ve got family or friends (even Facebook friends that you never talk to and are probably on the way out in the next friend cull) get in touch with them and see where they did the regional work! Chances are, if they spent a lot of time there then they either loved the work, the place or the people and the feelings are probably mutual!

If you fancy a more holistic approach to the whole farm work idea and don’t want to be chasing wages WWOOFing is for you.

As a Willing Worker On an Organic Farm, you are not paid for your work but are given room and board in return for your graft. It sounds a bit rubbish but it can be really fun and the people you work with are probably going to be nicer than the average farmer because they know you aren’t getting paid.

To become a WWOOFer, you first need to buy a WWOOF book so come to the UltimateOz office and we can sort you out! The WWOOF book is full of contact details for farmers across Australia and also covers your insurance while you are working on each and every farm mentioned in the book.

Working hostels are probably the most common option for completing regional work and there are good and bad things to consider with these.

Firstly, if you’ve got the name of a working hostel do a quick Google search before you decide anything. If people are going online it is more than likely that they want to moan (no-one is bothered about writing good reviews) so bear that in mind but if there are hundreds of negative comments maybe think twice about going!

Working hostels are a great way to meet backpackers in the same situation as you, looking to get their regional work sorted and get on with their time in Australia and can be fun places to stay whilst completing some pretty boring work.

These hostels organise the work for you with farmers in the area and organise transport and accommodation and take a cut of your weekly wage.

One thing to remember with all aspects of regional work – seasons change. If you are looking at the farm side of regional work then bear in mind that crops come and go and the harvest moves right the way across and around Australia. The Harvest Guide has a great seasonal calendar which gives you an idea on what if going on in each area at what time which can help you stay ahead of the curve when it comes to seasonality.

If you are looking for construction work (the second most popular option) take a look here to book onto a white card course. A white card course gives you the health and safety training that you need to work on any building site in Australia. IF you want to come to the UltimateOZ shop or get in touch with us, we can chat through all the options available.

There are many ways to find farm work for your second year visa. The important thing to remember is that you’ve got to find the work! Don’t sit back and wait for it to come to you, use as many options as you can and get ready for your time in the Outback!

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Regional Work in Australia – FAQs

If you are in Australia on a 417 working holiday visa (the majority of European nations) then it is highly likely that you are able to complete 3 months of regional, specified work to gain another 12 month visa to stay in Australia!

Awesome!

We get a lot of questions about all things regional work and wanted to lay out some of the most common ones so that people everywhere could brush up on their knowledge!

If you want to extend your stay in Australia, this is the way to do it as you can apply for the 417 visa again after you’ve completed the work. Who wouldn’t want an extra 12 months in this amazing country!?

So, without further ado, we’ll get down to brass tacks and answer some questions on regional work in Australia!

// Where is Regional Australia?

Basically, imagine a bubble around Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane. As long as you aren’t working within that bubble, you are in regional Australia.

The Department of Immigration gives you a handy list of all the areas that fall under regional Australia here. Make sure you check back to see if the list has been updated before you head out to your post-code of choice to complete your work.

If you complete any work in an unspecified area, even if it is specified work, it does not count as part of your regional work for a second year visa. The work has to be done in an area outlined by the Department of Immigration and in an industry specified by the Department too.

// What is Specified Work?

There are five main areas of specified work, outlined by the Department of Immigration – Agriculture, Construction, Forestry and Tree Felling, Fishing and Pearling, and Mining.

If your job falls under any of these sections then you may be completing specified work. Bear in mind that all roles within these industries do not count as specified work. If you are a cook on a mine or a child-minder on a cattle station, for example, you are not completing specified work.

// Do I have to do 3 Months Straight or Can I Break It Up?

You can do either – if you want to hammer out three months straight then go for it but if you want to break up the work, travel around a little bit then that’s fine too.

Just make sure that each stop along the way is in one of the regional postcodes and counts as specified work. If you aren’t sure, get in touch with the Department of Immigration directly and they should be able to help you out.

If you do decide to break up your three months then it becomes a countdown of 88 days worked. If you opt to go for three months straight and start tomorrow, you finish in three months from that first date worked.

// What Does Getting Signed Off Mean?

If you’ve spent any time in an Australian hostel, anywhere in the country, chances are you’ve heard the phrase signed off when talking about regional work. Well, what does it mean?

Put simply, when you are completing your regional work, you can download and print a government form to prove you are actually doing the work which your farmer or employer then signs for you.

The form is really straight forward and gives you a lot of handy information that can help you when you decide to do your regional work so it is definitely worth a look over and make sure that you print one off before you head to your first regional destination.

If you are already at the farm and haven’t got a form printed – don’t fret! You need to be able to prove your time living and working in regional areas so any kind of evidence helps. Whether it is a receipt from the local pub, travel tickets, bank statements that show ‘Bob’s Bananas’ has been paying you once a week for the last six weeks – everything counts as evidence.

The government form is the best kind of evidence as the farmer signs an official document. If you can’t get this document, try and get your boss to write you a bit of a reference with the dates you started and finished your regional work, the actual number of days you worked and make sure you get their Australian Business Number (ABN) as you will need this when applying for your next visa!

// Actual Number of Days? What’s that? Do Weekends Count?

Actual number of days is just a posh way of asking how long you were at each regional stop you took. If you work full-time hours for the industry you are in (more than likely 40 hours a week plus, spread over five or six days) then, yes weekends do count against your total.

If you do spread out your regional work, completing a couple of weeks here and there throughout your first year in Australia then the actual number of days will become important to you. Then you are on the quest for 88 days! If you work full-time hours, Monday to Friday on a pecan farm in a regional postcode then Saturday and Sunday are included off your 88 days.

If you work Monday, Wednesday and Friday for a construction firm in Darwin then you only tick off three days from your 88.

If you work a double shift on the same day, that still only counts as one day worked so don’t be fooled into thinking if you smash out loads of hours in three days then take the next five off that they are covered in your 88!

// Is There Any Way Around the Regional Work?

Legally, no there isn’t. Unless you can get sponsored by a company or the state to keep you in Australia for an extended period – the farm work is your only hope.

Don’t worry too much about it, you may hear some horror stories but it isn’t that bad. You may even enjoy the work or seeing a new side to Australia!

// What Happens When I’ve Finished My Three Months Work?

If you’re anything like me, you get absolutely hammered and head for the nearest city as soon as possible!

In all seriousness, once you have finished your regional work it is time to get your second year visa!

You’ve got two options really, if you want to stay in Australia for another twelve months right after your first twelve months end you apply for your visa while you are still in Australia. You apply for your visa online so make sure you have all the documents and evidence you need before proceeding with your application.

You’re going to need an ABN number for each company you worked for, the postcode you worked in, how long you were at each place and the actual number of days you worked on each place. Once you fill out the online form, you send it to the Department of Immigration who check over it and will get back to you in the next couple of days with more information.

More often than not, the government will ok your application and your visa will start as soon as your old one ends. If the government require more evidence of your regional work then they’ll give you an address to send everything too (make sure you get photocopies before you send anything) and you will go from there.

As long as you did your farm work, you’ll have nothing to worry about. If you try and get around the system, you’re probably going to get caught and deported and you won’t be allowed back in Australia for the foreseeable future.

If you want to go home first, go and travel somewhere else or just want a break from Australia, you can apply for your visa outside of the country but you have to be outside of the country when your visa is issued. If you do this option, it is more likely that you’ll face a little bit more scrutiny than carrying over your visa so make sure you have all your evidence with you when you submit your application but also when you arrive back in Australia to start your second year.

Remember, you have to be back in Australia before you turn 31 or your visa is no longer valid. The same rules apply to your second visa as did with your first.

// During My Second Year, Can I do More Farm Work for Another Visa?

A third Working Holiday Visa is available to second year Working Holiday Visa holders who have completed 6 months of specified subclass 417 work​ or 462 work.

The third year is available to people 18 to 30 years old (inclusive) – and Canadian, French and Irish citizens 18 to 35 years old (inclusive), who currently hold, or who have held, a second Working Holiday visa.

// Tell Me Your Horror Stories!!

Having completed my regional work, I can tell you that it wasn’t for me. I’ve met people who absolutely loved their time in regional Australia but I’m a city boy at heart and always will be!

That isn’t to say I didn’t have fun, it just wasn’t my idea of the best time in Australia! I spread my regional work over a six month period and stayed in New South Wales to complete the lot even though it is more common to head to Queensland to get the work done.

I started on a vineyard, moved onto a horse racing stud and then finished on a cattle farm – and I’d probably rank them in reverse order. The work, the people and the places got better as they went along and I ended up really enjoying my time on the cattle farm!

The vineyard was awful but that had more to do with the people than anything else (honestly, the worst people I’ve ever met so I reckon that was more unlucky than a state of things to come).

The stud was really interesting as I know nothing about horses but can now tell you a fair bit about the process of breeding race horses and the cattle farm taught me everything I’ll ever need to know about Angus beef!

You’ll see spiders, probably snakes and more weird Australian’s than you’ll know what to do with but it is definitely an experience! It isn’t something I’d rush back to but it gets you another visa and that’s all that really mattered to me.

I did some WWOOFing and it was great if you can find the right host family but I’d keep it as a last resort if you are running out of time to complete your farm work or already have enough money saved up from working in the city or from home. If you love the idea of organic farming and organic produce then it is definitely something to check out though.

A lot of people have the misguided idea that by doing their farm work they will earn a fortune. This isn’t always the case and farm work can be quite difficult to find. If you don’t put the work in and just sit around waiting for something to happen, there are another million backpackers out there that will do your job instead.

The regional work is a good way to save because there is nothing you can spend your money on but don’t turn your nose up because you are expecting $700 a week with your accommodation and food included because some guy from Birmingham told you about it at Side Bar.

At the end of it all, you are doing this for the visa so keep that in mind. It is another 12 months in a country that you obviously love (or more importantly, away from a country that you don’t) and as long as you can keep the end goal in sight you’ll be fine!

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