I’ve decided to update this post for 2019, as now our children are older, things have changed. A lot. Both of my teenagers are now well into skincare & makeup for example, so something for my daughter like a gorgeous Beauty Advent Calendar would be practical and fun. So would I recommend the same gifts for travelling kids as I did when the kids were smaller? Some of them, but there are some other ideas I think are great options, so I’ve added a few more.

1. Fidget Toys For Kids

We all know there are long car rides, and hours of down time when we’re out on the road travelling, so figet toys are the perfect solution to keep kids occupied.

Fidget toys are generally small, compact and easy to take on the road without taking up too much of your valuable packing space. Brands such as Tangle fidget toys and Speks fidget and manipulative toys for children and adults are such a great solution.

If you haven’t looked at these types of toys for kids, they’re a great option for packing small and light and still having fun activities on the road.

2. Buy A Great Travel Journal for Kids or Adults.

This is still one of the best travelling gifts for kids. It’s actually the perfect travel gift idea for the entire family!.

It doesn’t matter if it’s Mum and Dad, or for the kids; travel journals are the perfect way for travellers to capture all the treasured moments on their journey. From destinations that are loved, to special experiences, drawing pictures, writing stories, sticking postcards, dried leaves, dried flowers, adding photographs. Journals help to create a timeless keepsake that will be a treasured family item for many, many years to come.

One thing I realise about travel, is that while you’re there, in the action, soaking up the landscapes, the conversations, the ever-changing destinations, that you never think you’ll forget. There are parts of our trip that I can barely remember, but having a journal to look back on has ensured that I can re-live the moment, and it’s such a fabulous glimmer of joy reading and remembering the little things that happened along the way that were special to us!

3. Travel-Friendly Art & Craft Supplies.

Whether it’s to write in their journal, help with their schoolwork or send letters and pictures back home to friends and family, travelling kids will love art and craft supplies to take along with them. Watercolour paints are a great option as they aren’t as messy as other paint options and don’t take much to clean up.

Pencils and pens are perfect for writing, drawing and colouring, as are notebooks and writing paper, both of which will come in handy for keeping kids occupied on long journeys and if they want to jot down notes or create artwork to represent their travels.

For our children’s travel journals we began with an A5 folder, with loose inserts from Office Works. That way they could move pages around, add photos once we’d had them printed, brochures, keepsakes, and remove a page if they felt like they didn’t want to include it any more. They also used their art and craft supplies to send special pictures and letters home to family and friends. The gift of stamps is also a great idea if you’d like to receive a postcard from your little adventurers!

4. Binoculars Make Great Travel Gifts for Kids.

Binoculars are a great gift idea for kids who are travelling. The ability to spot things at a long distance will help kids feel immersed in their surroundings and see things they won’t otherwise be able to spot. Wildlife, interesting scenery, they’ll love the faraway goodies they’ll spot through their new binoculars.

5. Compact & Multi-use Toy Ideas for Travelling Kids

One of the basic toys we considered a must-have when we hit the road was Lego. Not only is it a great toy for building things like we all know, it’s also a wonderful tool for learning maths too! Lego is great for solo play or group play and suitable for kids (and adults) of all ages. Other great ideas include block games like Jenga, the blocks for this game can not only be used to play but also double as building blocks or math blocks too. Marbles, decks of cards, Uno, travel versions of games like scrabble and battleship are all available too. Look for games and toys that are compact or can be taken out of their bulky boxes and easily stored.

6. Tech Gifts for Travelling Families

Depending on the ages of the children, cameras and other tech gadgets can work really well. For cameras, polaroids work well for adding scenic photos or selfies into travel journals, but digital cameras work well for capturing lots of photos and deciding what to print later. Expensive cameras aren’t necessary, just look for something of reasonable quality and the kids will love it. Cameras that are shock proof and waterproof would definitely be an ideal, although more expensive option. Ipods and Ipads are also a much loved travel gadget, as are iTunes gift cards a loved gift for kids who own these devices.

7. Everyday Necessities Especially For Older Children and Teens.

As I mentioned above, now are children are older, I reflect on the things that would make sense for tweens and teens to be gifted for travel. Personal care items are a wonderful gift idea for older kids. I mentioned Beauty Advent Calendars, and my daughter would absolutely adore a gift like this both when we were travelling or now we’re settled down. The bonus is that the items inside are compact in size and great for travelling.

For my son, who now shaves, shave gear, spare razors, cologne, all of this can be expensive to buy on the road in more remote places, so a little gift basket of goodies would be a fabulous idea.

Of course no matter what, gifts that come from the heart are always welcome by any family. When it comes to travel gifts for kids, If you think about items that kids can use, are small, compact and won’t just take up space, you’ll have happy kids and happy parents, and most importantly, happy, smiling travellers!

What about other special events like Mother’s Day gifting, Father’s Day gifting or even Christmas gift ideas for living on the road? We’ll cover those in another post soon.

The post The Best Travel Gifts For Kids & Teens appeared first on Little Aussie Travellers.

Our dog, Yoshi is a Kelpie x Koolie, who happens to think he is human, and about the size of a maltese terrier. I know this because he has been know to try and curl up on the lap of his unsuspecting parents, and believes that whatever is cooked for everyone else should also be on his menu.

So, we couldn’t let Yoshi in on the fact that he’s really a dog, that would have broken his heart, the only solution was to bring him along with us of course!

Our cat, lives with my brother and sister in law and their children, and I’ll be seeing him for the first time in 5 months soon, and upon my return I expect to be utterly ignored for the first 24 hours so he can prove to me how much he resents me for leaving him, and how much he loves his new mum (my sister in law), but I know I’ll win out in the end, he loves his mum and knows she feels guilty for leaving him, but she also knows he’s in safe hands (thanks Jo).

So, back to travelling Australia with a dog. Let’s take a look at how that works for us, and hopefully answer any questions you have.

I remember reading the travel blogs of other people before we hit the road. I could see they were travelling with dogs, but they didn’t give specifics of HOW they were making it work. I wondered about the ins and outs of having a dog with you every day.

Where Do You Leave Your Dog While Doing Activities When Travelling?

If you’ve decided to travel with a canine friend, the day will come that you’ll want to head off and see an attraction, or simply go into the grocery store to stock up on supplies. What do you do with the dog when you need to do important things?

We are really lucky that Yoshi is a very well behaved boy who listens to instructions and is quite happy to sit and wait for us wherever it is he needs to be. When we do small trips, to the shops or into attractions that don’t take long to see, then we generally put him on a lead and leave him tied somewhere safe with a bowl of water and dog food.

Sometimes that means tying him to the car, sometimes that means a nice shady spot out the front or side of the venue. It’s always somewhere safe and he knows when we tell him to “be a good boy we’ll be back” that his time sitting there waiting for us will be short lived.

TIP: Now we’re on the road full time, we rarely go into big shopping centres or other retail centres, purely because we have little need for what they offer and such limited space, that retail therapy isn’t an option. We also shop once a week for supplies, so generally, we’ll visit the grocery store and that will be it. I find that before we were on the road, we were a lot more busy with things like shopping and it would have been hard to always have a dog with us, now, our lifestyle looks much different, and we’re generally out exploring nature, and he’s right along beside us.

Where Should You Leave A Dog Safely For Longer Activities When Travelling?

Sometimes there are activities we want to do that require us to be out and about for the entire day. Obviously, for extended periods of time, it’s not suitable to leave a dog tied up to the car for hours on end. There are a few options we’ve used when wanting to explore which include the following:

Kennels: While we don’t like kenneling Yoshi, because we know he misses us, sometimes there’s just no other option, and at least we have peace of mind knowing he’s safe. We’ve written before about how to find a good kennel for your dog, and luckily we’ve had a couple of options to choose from when we’ve needed to leave him overnight and we’ve always gone with our instinct on good places to leave him.

If you free camp a lot like us, then kenneling can be more expensive than your own accommodation, in fact, in our 3 months in Tasmania, we spent more on boarding for Yoshi than we did on our own accommodation. Be flexible, be sensible and know that it’s going to be part of your travel expenses. We see it as a small price to pay for having him with us to share the journey.

Exchange Pet Sitting: When we were camped near Freycinet National Park in Tasmania, we were so close and yet so far. We knew we couldn’t go into the National Park with Yoshi, and yet, we knew that it was probably the only chance we’d get to see Wineglass Bay during our Tassie trip. Luckily for us, a lovely couple offered to watch Yoshi for a few hours so we could do the trek to the Wineglass Bay lookout.

In return for their kindness, Matt gave them both a haircut, so it was a lovely way to say thanks for their kindness. We’ve had other offers too, to watch him for us, and would do the same for other travellers if the need arises. We’ve also stayed at private low-cost camps, where there weren’t many people around and they’ve let us leave him at the van for a few hours so we could explore. Old Mac’s Farm near Launceston in Tassie was a great example of this.

Other Pet Sitting Options For People Travelling With Dogs

Vets: Quite often you’ll be able to get in touch with vets in the area who often allow you to leave your pet for a short term boarding visit if there’s no other options in the area. We haven’t done this with Yoshi, but we know of other travellers who have done so, it’s definitely worth making a phone call if there’s vets in the area and you have no other options available for pet sitting.

Gumtree: Use Gumtree to do a search for people who offer pet sitting in the region you’re visiting. In some areas you’ll find pet sitters that will take care of your animals in their own home, just like a private boarding kennel option. As always, go with your gut feelings on this, but it’s worth a try.

Some Other Pet Travel Tips For Travellers To Be Mindful Of 

• You’ll need to make sure you’re dog’s vaccinations are up to date in order to kennel them,
• You will also need to be aware of any quarantine requirements (I think this really only applies to Tasmania which requires they have their Hydatid Tapeworm tablets within 14 days of visiting.
• Also, we advise keeping a collar and tag on your dog that has your mobile phone number on it. Microchip details are only valid in the state of registration for your animal as far as we’re aware, which means if you lose your dog, when it’s found, it might not be as easy to reunite them with you as it would be at home.

Is It Hard To Travel Australia With A Dog?

The real truth is, that while we wouldn’t change travelling with our dog at all, it does mean we need to be flexible and mindful of our choices. The honesty of the situation is that we do sometimes have to miss out on some National Parks or Conservation areas that don’t allow dogs, and while there’s an ever-growing number of caravan parks and free campsites that allow dogs to stay, it does sometimes limit our options.

If you decide to travel with your pet, you need to be OK with the fact that you might need to re-arrange entire sections of your travels in order to accommodate them. We are on an open-ended trip, so we have time and no real schedule. If you’re on a shorter trip, with limited time, it might be much harder to work around having your dog with you.

When we decided to do a cruise on the Arthur River, for example, we left Yoshi in a kennel that meant we travelled an extra 80km’s or so to come back and get him. But the cruise was definitely worth it and was something we didn’t want to miss out on. We wouldn’t change having our boy with us, he’s a part of our family and he’s relatively easy to travel with, he loves exploring, and he’s a really big fetch addict who makes us lots of new friends no matter where we are, with his big, brown puppy dog eyes sooking at everyone within reach to ppplllleeeeaasssseeeee throw his stick.

If you have ANY questions about travelling with your dog, then please drop us a line, or ask in the comments below……

The post Travelling Australia with a Dog. appeared first on Little Aussie Travellers.

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We’re excited to share this wonderful opportunity to win a wonderful holiday on the Sunshine Coast thanks to a partnership between Sand Dunes Resort; Curly’s Cafe and Underwater World Sealife Mooloolaba. One lucky winner will secure themselves the following:

• 3 night’s accommodation in one of our modern 3 Bedroom poolside villas at Sand Dunes Resort,
• A $60 meal voucher at the popular Curly’s Café,
• A voucher for 4 people to see all of the underwater wonders at Sealife Mooloolaba!
• Entries close 06/07/17 so hurry!!

How do you get to chance to win this wonderful prize?

Simply head over to Sand Dunes Resort simply by clicking on the image and enter your details following the instructions for a chance to win.

Easy to enter with lots of ways to get extra points for extra chances to win; imagine kicking back relaxing and soaking up the sunshine, or heading out to take advantage of all the wonderful Sunshine Coast attractions. Whether it’s exploring or relaxtion; the Sunshine Coast has it all and Sand Dunes Resort is the perfect travel base.

The post Win A Sunshine Coast Holiday appeared first on Little Aussie Travellers.

Sadly, this question just like many others related to travelling is another “how long is a piece of string” question; one that is highly dependent on your own personal travel choices and desires. For that reason, I can’t tell you exactly how much it costs to travel Australia, but I can give some insight into the typical costs and expenses you’re likely to face on the road, and how some of your choices may help to stretch your budget or swallow it up with great speed.

The average cost we see thrown around tends to be $100 per day, lots of families spend more than this and lots spend less, it depends on your setup and how luxurious or frugal you’d like your travel to be.

If you haven’t started to plan your lap of Australia, then go here first for some insight.

The Biggest Expenses You’ll Face, Travelling Australia.

Your biggest expense on the road is usually one of three things:

• Fuel
• Accommodation
• Food

For Us The Biggest Expense When Travelling Australia Is Fuel.

That’s because our chosen travel vehicle for our trip was a Nissan Patrol. It’s a great four wheel drive and will get us almost anywhere and it has a very generous tow limit (one of the best on the market), the pay-off for this, is that it is a heavy vehicle, and it likes to drink A LOT of diesel. So, for us, I think at the moment we are getting about 700kms to our 110 litre dual tanks. This can vary on how much of the time we are towing, and the terrain we are towing in. Without towing, we get over 800kms to our dual tanks, and lately, it’s been costing around $140-$160 to fill up. Of course, if we’re in smaller towns or remote areas, diesel is going to cost us a lot more and the cost of filling both tanks is likely to head to $200+.

So, this means for us, if we want or need to move long distances quickly, we’re going to pay the price with a large fuel bill. We spread this large expense out by travelling relatively slowly, and shorter distances at a time.

Free Camping Keeps Accommodation Costs Down When Doing A Lap Of Aus.

We almost always free camp or budget camp. If we aren’t free camping, we’re budget camping. By budget camping we’re aiming for $20 per night or less. If you don’t like free camping or are not set-up to be self sufficient, then the reality is you’re accommodation expenses are going to be much larger than ours, especially if you’re aiming to stay in caravan parks.

For a family of five to stay in a caravan park, we generally would be looking at paying from $35 (this would be a very cheap park) right through to $120+ per night. It’s really difficult to afford long term travel if required to pay an average of $100 per night for a family.

There is nothing wrong with caravan parks just know this option costs more: Caravan parks have their place, we were always staying in caravan parks before we chose to do some long term travel. Caravan parks are the perfect place for families to stay on holiday. Caravan parks are a wonderful way to take an enjoyable break from the rigours of free camping and enjoy wonderful facilities. Some families are able to budget to stay in caravan parks as part of their journey. For us, we just couldn’t afford it.

There is often tension between long term travellers and caravan park owners. I wish it wasn’t the case, but it occurs because there’s often a lot of pressure forced upon councils in certain areas to close free camping areas so that people stay within caravan parks only. What generally happens in this case is that families and travellers either bypass the area all together or stay only a day or two and move on instead of staying longer and spending more money in town.

There needs to be a balance, and you need to make the choice that is affordable for your family. Setting yourself up to be able to free camp before you leave, will make your travels cheaper in the long run.

Keeping Food Costs Low When Travelling Australia With Kids

The trick to keeping food costs low when travelling Australia is planning! Planning your food and meals helps you to not only cut down on the expense of the food you buy; it also helps you to minimise any food wastage. There are several points to consider when it comes to food:

• Larger towns and centres will mean cheaper food bills, it’s a good idea to stock up on non-perishables when you’re in areas with access to cheaper food prices.
• Getting creative with staples will help keep your food bills down. Things like rice, pasta, coconut cream, tinned fish, tinned tomatoes and other tinned veggies, flour, sugar and salt will help you rustle up a great meal even when other ingredients aren’t readily available.
• Take advantage of regional produce. While not everywhere in Australia is a food producing region; many of the areas you visit will provide access to beautiful fresh produce directly from the farm gate. Tasmania has an abundance of boutique food providers and food growers and our food bill there was great – unless you’re in a remote area as I mentioned already, then we had to buy smart!
• Plan your meals and DON’T overcook! You’re not going to have the storage space you’re used to in a house, and you won’t have access to a giant fridge either; this means that storage space for leftover is limited! When you do have leftovers, be sure to eat them for the next meal or at the latest the next day, often caravan and camp fridges can struggle so it’s best to eat them quickly and do be sure to re-heat thoroughly.
• Don’t Eat OUT!! Eating from cafe’s or takeaway stores will eat into your travel budget! Pack your lunch, take healthy snacks and only drink water out of a drink bottle you carry with you. This alone will save you thousands of dollars that are better spent elsewhere!

Other Tricks For Saving Money When Travelling & Keeping Costs Down

Don’t go to every attraction you come across: If you saw a zoo or a wildlife centre in the last town, really think about whether you need to visit one at your current stop. Some attractions are well worth the extra expense, some however will be a bit repetitive. Usually you will find free or gold-coin donation entry at local museums and historical centres which will often be a whole lot more beneficial for learning and understanding the region.

Keep Gas Stocked Up in Larger City Centres: We got stuck paying over $40 for a gas bottle refill in a remote area because we just didn’t realise there would be such a big price difference. We could have filled it up for $25 only 50kms before! It was a mistake we didn’t make twice.

 Visit Visitor Information Centres For Discounts: Not only do visitor information centres offer a wealth of local knowledge, you’ll also find visitor booklets on display and you’ll often be nicely surprised by the number of coupon vouchers on offer! Any saving is a saving that helps you travel further!

How Much Do You Spend Travelling Australia?

There are so many variables for the cost of travelling around the country that your experience may well differ from ours. Have you got any tips for our readers on how much it costs to travel or how to save money while on the road? We’d love to hear it, just leave a comment below.

The post How Much Does it Cost to Travel Australia with Kids? appeared first on Little Aussie Travellers.

While taking road trips is fun; it’s also serious; and it’s important you make sure that your 4WD is safe for travel, and you’re prepared in case of a problem. Nobody wants a family holiday memory that involves their family being stuck in the middle of the outback.

Follow these 4WD preparation tips to make sure that nothing dampens your family road trip adventure!

Understanding 4WD Driving Conditions

You may be an experienced driver, but remember that each driving condition requires that you handle your 4WD differently. Also, remember that you will need different 4WD accessories to help you get out of sticky driving conditions. Driving on sand, gravel, or snow all require specific knowledge, and even situations such as driving in high heat while towing will require mindful decisions to be made. If you plan on a trip around the country or even just regular 4wd’ing trips; it’s a great idea to do a 4wd driving course, or even just join the local 4WD club and learn through the knowledge of experienced drivers.

Carry a 4WD Outback Survival Kit

Aside from bringing a first aid kit on your road travels, you will also need to bring your 4WD’s outback survival kit. For example, bringing 2 spare tyres and a spare wheel should be on your list. Recovery tools, plugs, and wheel bearing kits are also useful to have, as is an air compressor. Make sure your gear is rated for use with your 4WD. Many products are suited to smaller cars and 4WD’s often require heavy duty gear due to their size and weight.

Carry a Heavy Duty Air Compressor When Driving a 4WD

The more off-road driving you do, the more you’ll end up using your air compressor. Hence, having a heavy duty air compressor is a must have accessory if you own a 4WD; you never know when you might need to re-inflate your tyres. You may even use the air compressor to inflate camping accessories like inflatable floating devices or an airbed! Having a heavy duty compressor is a must for those with a 4WD. Our patrol runs on light truck tyres and a standard compressor just doesn’t cut it when trying to inflate our tyres, it’s no good carrying a compressor unless it’s right for the job.

Understand & Implement 4wd Preparation for Long Trips

Make sure that you have your vehicle inspected by the 4WD experts before taking it out for long off-road trips. The state of the brakes, the level of fluids and the condition of the oil tank are among those that should be checked. You can also ask your 4WD specialist like Macquarie 4×4 for any advice about the proper accessories and tools you need to bring on your trip. Become familiar with websites that provide information so you know the types of things to look out for; but head to the experts for a thorough safety check.

Carrying Excess Weight Risks Lives & Insurance Validity

4WDs are not trucks. So don’t try to bring everything for your camping trip, otherwise you might end up with an overloaded and broken down vehicle. To avoid this ugly scenario, prioritise bringing the essentials: water, food, fuel, shelter, and clothes. Don’t forget to bring communication devices in case you need to call for help, but aside from that, leave all other gadgets at home and focus on the family trip and the scenery! 4WD’s are often fitted out with accessories that add weight and when people and camp gear are thrown in on top of this, the car actually becomes illegal to drive. Please know your weights; if you don’t, your insurance is likely to be void in case of an accident.

So what are you waiting for? Have your 4WD’s checked and plan your family’s next big camping trip! Don’t forget to share your safety tips with us as well.

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Possible Causes of Tension for Travelling Families?

Let’s take a look at this shall we? Your entire world has just changed, the kid’s entire world has just changed.

• The environment is constantly changing.
• Nobody knows what the new ‘rules’ are for this new life.
• The accommodation is way more restrictive than a house; there’s no locking yourself away in your bedroom to escape each other.
• There’s packing up and setting up, a stressful experience in itself.
• Hours of driving to get to new destinations.
• Often the family diet goes through some changes.
• Schooling changes to something new & unknown.
• Homesickness happens, especially during tense and stressful times.
• There’s normally restricted ability to relax or tune out activities like watching television or playing video games, because power and electronics are much more restricted when travelling on the road.
• You have to get to really know each other as a family; not just exist together.
• There is NO HIDING from problems that existed before you hit the road.

Do NOT Despair, Family Travel Is Worth The Tough Times!

So, I’ve just shared the most common reasons for why there’s so much tension in your new travel lifestyle, and it may sound overwhelming. If you haven’t left to travel yet, it may be causing you to doubt heading off at all.

I promise, that although your trip around Australia may challenge you as a family; it is going to make you stronger, closer and create memories that will enhance your life in a way that isn’t possible any other way.

We get emails, and questions via our Facebook page asking if other people argue, is it normal, what can be done to fix it, and the answer is YES!

Most people we speak to have suffered the struggle of getting used to their new lifestyle. Generally at the beginning of the adventure, tempers are short, patience is thin, and it seems as though nobody will ever be happy about being on the road, but that just isn’t true.

Arguments are common, frustration is common and a feeling of uncertainty and even regret are all commonly reported by families who are starting their life on the road.

It does get better, and we’re going to take a look at what you can do to make travel as a family less stressful.

Strategies to Decrease Stress Related to Family Travel

So, now you know it’s ok to stress and feel tension, because truly, it happens to everyone; you want to know how to decrease the problem right?

Here are our top tips for keeping things stress free and happy on the road:

Allow at least 4-6 weeks to settle in to your new lifestyle. Adjustment takes time, and it’s OK if everything doesn’t feel perfect right away.

Find a nice place and stop for a while. The faster you move, the more stressful your travel is likely to be. If things are feeling tense, then find a lovely campsite and stop. What are you rushing for anyway? This time is meant to be spent bonding, getting to know each other better and enjoying your surroundings. Rushing helps no-one, so take in the surrounds, do some exploring and put some roots down for a short while; it can make all the difference.

Join in happy hour. For parents on the road, it can seem a constant battle to maintain healthy adult relationships. Get dinner sorted early, or have something easy, that way when all the child-free travellers are enjoying happy hour together (which normally happens around family dinner time in campsites) you’ll be able to join in too and share stories.

Talk it out! Unlike life at home where everyone could disappear into their own world, life in a camper or caravan doesn’t allow for dodging confronting emotions. Get things out of the way, sit down and talk honestly about what’s irritating you, how everyone else feels and make a plan to move forward feeling positive.

Have some alone time: This one can be tough, but if you like to read, make some time to do that. Like to visit the shops and there’s some handy then do a solo shopping trip. Go for a short walk, have a swim, whatever it is that will give you some inner peace, make time for it. This is really where parents need to work together to give the other time for a break. It really does make all the difference with being able to handle the more stressful events that travelling will throw at you.

Cut each other some slack: We  all go into travelling with expectations of what it will be like and how ‘it’ will look. Chances are actually being on the road may look very little like your imagined trip of a lifetime. That is OK! Breathe, relax and let everyone find their sweet spot for travelling. If your children are older they may be missing friends, cut them some slack, let them call to say hi. If school work seems to do little but spark arguments, take a couple of days off, resentment won’t achieve anything positive anyway.

Be Flexible: This is possibly the most important tip of all. Travel should be about adventures and togetherness, not strict schedules and deadlines. Learn to be flexible, if everything isn’t perfect it doesn’t matter, if you’re late it doesn’t matter, if you need to stay an extra day or three somewhere it doesn’t matter. Let go of your preconceived ideas and enjoy what is, because it will be over before you know it.

Do you have any tips for easing stress for long term travel? Did you have a bumpy start?

The post Family Tension: Expectations When Travelling Australia With Kids. appeared first on Little Aussie Travellers.

Our answer to anyone is: Go the very second you can!

But, of course, life’s not always as simple as that, is it? Having your children out exploring Australia at any age, is an enriching experience for the entire family, no matter the age or length of time, getting out on the road, sharing unique adventures with your kids is truly a life-changing opportunity.

That being said, here’s some of the biggest considerations for when you should head off on your big lap of Australia and our thoughts, which have changed since we originally began planning, hit the road, and then became stalled again:

How long are you planning to travel Australia, and what suits kids?

The length of time you want to head off on the road can impact the best age for your child to go on your Aussie adventure. If you’re only doing a short trip and need to move quickly in order to see a whole lot, then you’ll need to consider how well your children will travel.

For younger children, being stuck in a car seat for hours on end can be really frustrating and it’s hard to communicate as a parent that you’ll arrive soon. Young children just want to move and play.

You know how much travel time your children can cope with, and go with what suits your child. Ours were doing 5 hour car trips from the time they were born; as we’d often go and visit family. As people moved further away, that stretched into 7-8 hour car trips, but I know lots of kids who would never have coped with that (as well as some parents who would have considered a trip that long their worst nightmare).

Slow travel means you can break travel into shorter distances, making it a little easier for everyone.

How much do you want to see during your Aussie Road Trip?

If you’re wanting to take in the entire country in just a matter of months, this is likely to end up a stressful experience no matter the age of the kids. In our experience, taking quality time to see fewer things is a better recipe for family travel success!

Our first ever long trek, we knew we had 3 weeks, a hire car and a tent. We also knew we wanted to see Central Australia, and so we travelled from Darwin, through Kakadu and down the centre to Adelaide over a three week period when the kids were aged 18 months, 3 and 5. They were all good travellers and although we were moving pretty quickly, they coped well with it. That pace wouldn’t have been sustainable for longer travel, but it worked well to get a taste of adventure.

Knowing how long you’ve got, and how much you want to see, it pays to make certain areas or landmarks a priority and focus your travels around these places.

What Type of Accommodation are you Travelling With?

Is your accommodation cozy and child friendly? There are families out and about in tents, camper trailers and caravans and other options too, but your type of accommodation may affect your child’s comfort and stamina for travel.

While the Jayco Swan was a good choice, and I’d use one again for shorter trips; for us it became awkward for our children to share the queen bed together and we knew that it wasn’t going to be a viable long-term solution, and so bunks in a caravan became our goal.

Comfort definitely plays a role in how well the entire family copes with the travel process, and budget options are awesome, and great, it’s better getting out and exploring than not at all, so it shouldn’t be a deterrent but it should be a consideration for what your children will cope with.

What is your Travel Goal?

Why do you want to head off? Is it for freedom, to leave behind an unhappy job, to take a short break, do discover a new region to settle down in? Knowing your goal and what you hope to get out of the process, will help guide you when deciding if your children are at the right age to undertake that goal achieving travel with you.

Life is Meant to be an Adventure!

It doesn’t matter what you decide, how old your kids are, how far you get, how many places you do or don’t see, the entire process and journey is meant to be a wonderful adventure. It is not going to be a perfect adventure. Things will go wrong. Things will be amazing. Things will be stressful. Things will be awesome and unforgettable.

Just like most things in life, there’s never a perfect time, other than this very moment we’ve been given to make the most of the time we have.

Happy travels, comment below if you have any questions or drop us an email!

The post What’s the Best Age for Kids To Travel Australia? appeared first on Little Aussie Travellers.

We’ve been researching great things to do, and are sharing some of our ideas here with you. We’d love to know if you have any other hot tips.

Top Tips for Fraser Island

Fraser Island, located on the Queensland coast near Hervey Bay, is the world’s largest sand island and is World Heritage Listed. It’s a natural paradise spanning some 166,000 hectares with over 100 fresh water lakes and a beach highway stretching 120 kilometres. You can visit Fraser Island independently and explore as the master of your own adventure. For those taking their own vehicle, there are daily barge services from River Heads and Inskip Point. There is camping available but National Park permits will be required, as will 4wd permits for driving through many areas. For those wanting to explore with a local’s view, then you can look into a collection of Fraser Island tours like we mentioned above that our friends have done in the past. While you’re there, make sure you tick off as many of these things as you can, because it’s a truly unique Aussie destination.

Indian Head

Drive along almost the entire stretch of 75 Mile Beach to Indian Head, the coastal headland on the eastern side of Fraser Island. Marvel at the giant headland from below or get your walking shoes on and climb the track to the top for panoramic views and the perfect vantage point for spotting whales and dolphins around the point.

Lake Wabby

If you’re not afraid of a little exercise, visiting Lake Wabby will get your heart pumping. Lake Wabby is slowly being filled in by the sand dunes that surround it, so you should make it the top of your list.

Lake McKenzie

Lake McKenzie is pure paradise with soft white sand and crystal clear water. You can park close to the lake and walk down the track for a swim and then back up to the picnic area for a bite to eat.

Eli Creek

Eli Creek is refreshingly cold, even on a hot summer’s day. Follow the crowd and walk up the boardwalk before floating back down the creek with the current. It is quite shallow, so just relax and enjoy the tranquility.

The Champagne Rockpools

Located at the very top of 75 Mile Beach, you have to drive up and around Indian Head to access the Champagne Rockpools. Splash around in the salt water pools, but watch the sea as it crashes over the rock ledge.

Kingfisher Bay

Take the inland 4WD tracks from 75 Mile Beach to Kingfisher Bay and relax in the guest section of the luxurious resort. Walk along the jetty with an ice-cream in hand and dip your toes in the water after a long lunch.

The Maheno Shipwreck

What was once a washed up shipwreck is now a rusted landmark as you drive from one end of 75 Mile Beach to the next. Pull over, have a look around, and learn about the ship’s history and how it came to be stranded on Fraser Island shores.

Lake Birrabeen

Much like Lake McKenzie, Lake Birrabeen is a crystal clear lake surrounded by soft white sand and a lush green rainforest inland from the main beach. Lake Birrabeen is popular among tourists for its calm and cool water.

The Coloured Sands

The many colours of sand you’ll spot on Fraser Island is breathtaking as you drive from Hook Point right up to Indian Head. There’s mustard yellow, sandy brown, burning orange and bold red, burgundy, brown, camel and white.

Central Station

On your journey across island on the inland tracks, you’re likely to come across Central Station. It is the perfect place to stop for a snack amongst the lush greenery and loud wildlife before continuing on to your next destination.

Are you now inspired more than ever by the amazing landscape and things to do on Fraser Island? Spend a week in a holiday home or camping on the beach as you explore hidden parts of the island as well as Fraser’s most loved locations. You can get lots of other information from the official Fraser Island tourism website, and I bet you’ll be as keen to get there as we are. We can’t wait to explore later this year and uncover what we find and share it with you!

If you’ve been to Fraser, please let us know how much you loved it!

The post 10 Things to do on Fraser Island appeared first on Little Aussie Travellers.

Working your way around Australia extends the amount of time you’re able to travel, and gives most families more of a chance to hit the road in the first place. It removes the need to have massive amounts of money saved, and creates a travel itinerary based around slow travel, where time and experience, immersion within communities and a lifestyle change, rather than a fast-paced holiday.

We get a lot of questions asking when to travel to which Australian regions to access jobs such as fruit picking, harvest work, and farm work that tends to be quite seasonal.

As part of our best-selling ebook “How to fund your trip around Australia“, we included a handy calendar based fruit picking and harvest table which shows a break down of regions offering harvest, fruit picking and farm work around Australia, as well as the times of year they are likely to be looking for workers.

Because those people who have purchased the e-book via the Amazon Kindle, or similar platform may have problems with the formatting of the tables on their device, we’ve included them on site here as a handy .pdf file so that everyone can grab it and print off as a resource to use during their travels.

Click below to download your file, and check out our ebook for more great info on funding your travels.

The post Yearly Fruit Picking & Harvest Guide for Australian Travel appeared first on Little Aussie Travellers.