This is our most frequent question!
There are several sources of income that people can use in order to afford to travel Australia. I am fairly sure that MOST people could make a trip around OZ, if they really did want to do it.
However, the amount you need to fund a trip depends A GREAT DEAL on how long you are travelling, what job/skills you have, whether you plan to stay at caravan parks or free camps, and whether you plan on visiting paid attractions/eating out a lot.
For us, the length of our trip (2 years) means that our 'per week' amount is actually lower than those on a shorter trip.
How so?
We are in no hurry and can afford to spread out one of the main sources of expenditure; fuel. Fuel is the single biggest cost, next is food and third is accommodation (unless you want to stay in parks the whole time, in which case, this is probably reversed.).
We have dietary limitations in our family and so we rarely eat out. This saves on food bills and we also try to use meal plans to reduce wastage.
We are fairly self-sufficient and also plan to use free or low cost camping grounds as much as we can, so our accommodation costs are also low.
Another consideration are all the on-going costs whilst you are gone. Mortgages, loans, storage costs, insurance costs and bills will all drive up the weekly budget you will require.
Here is a list of most of the common areas that require you to spend money:
- Petrol
- Food
- Accommodation
- Mortgage and all associated house costs (rates etc)
- Storage costs
- Car and caravan insurance (plus contents and/or house costs, if you have those)
- Ongoing bills; Mobile phones, life insurances, sponsor children etc
- As a Christian family, we also have a tithe amount we give each week
- Spending money
- Paid attractions/excursions
- Emergencies
- Medical needs (pills, creams, prescriptions)
- Car and caravan servicing
- Set up costs for travelling (purchasing sleeping bags, gas bottles, a caravan etc)
All these things are highly variable, but you can work out how much these things are for your family per month, and then you will get a good basis for a weekly budget.
Now that we know the top sources of expenditure, here are the top sources of income:
Savings:
How much you need will depend on your answers to the above questions. Most people say that they need about $1000 a week to travel comfortably. We use a budget that is less than this, as we are taking things slowly and we do not have many overheads (no mortgage or loans etc). It is a good idea to have $10,000+ in reserve, for emergencies, such as car repairs. If you are doing a short trip, you could use this option alone by calculating how many weeks x $1000 you need and then saving up until you have enough.
Working As You Go:
You can stop and work along the way. How easily you can get work will depend on your field and skills. My husband is an electrician and so this is not a problem for him. There are also websites dedicated to advertising work for travellers or for farm stay help:
Traveling Job Sites
jobaroo.com
thejobshop.com.au
greynomads.com.au
thegreynomads.com.au
workaboutaustralia.com.au
taw.com.au
Government Assistance:
Depending on your income and assets, you may be able to claim an income payment if you are travelling with children.
Common payments are:
- Family Tax Benefit A
- Family Tax Benefit B
- Parenting Payment (partnered or single)
Create Things To Sell:
You can also make things and sell them. Craft markets, Etsy pages, or eBay. There are lots of creative ways to use your talents to earn extra money. All you need are the supplies and the time!
We plan to use a combination of all four types of income, though it is our long term goal to be self-sufficient and to not rely on assistance from the Government.
We hope that this information is helpful to you!
Sara
