Great value rentals from Australia's most trusted campervan hire providers
The capital of Australia’s “Sunshine State,” Brisbane is a great place to begin your campervan road trip. Once you have collected your campervan, the biggest decision will be choosing between heading north or south, as both options can unlock opportunities to build a once-in-a-lifetime road trip of memories.
There are a few reasons why Brisbane is the perfect base for picking up a motorhome rental. The city is surrounded by famous locations such as the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast. Further afield, you could drive to Cairns, or even Melbourne or Sydney (or both!) from Brisbane. While Brisbane is a great base for seeing some of Australia’s best scenery, the city itself also has many exciting features including theatres, Chinatown, nightclubs, bars, restaurants, parklands and outdoor sports venues.
Brisbane Gateway Resort is at 200 School Road, Rochedale just 16 kilometres south of Brisbane’s CBD. The Brisbane Convention Centre, RNA Showgrounds, Suncorp Stadium, Ballymore Stadium and both restaurants and supermarkets are situated nearby. The park is children friendly and has campsite activities such as camping, cycling, swimming, tennis and bushwalking. The accommodations offered include tourist caravan/campervan sites, en suite cabins, lodge rooms, on-site caravans and tent sites.
Brisbane Holiday Village can be found at 10 Holmead Road, Eight Mile Plains. The park is kid-friendly and just twelve minutes drive south of Brisbane’s CBD. Its campsite facilities include a barbecue, office/business services, camp kitchen, car park, child pool, communal kitchen, communal refrigerator, communal showers, cots, equipment hire, gas, high chair, iron kiosk, laundry, movie hire, playground, restaurant, shop, tour desk, public telephone and full size tennis court.
Australia Zoo, home of the Crocodile Hunter and lies within Beerwah. It is an award-winning and very popular zoo owned by Terri Irwin, the widow of the Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin. The zoo was first founded by Steve Irwin's parents in 1970 and was then named the Beerwah Reptile Park. Steve and Terri's popular documentary series "The Crocodile Hunter" brought more prosperity to the zoo and made it what it is today. Australia Zoo homes a wide variety of birds, mammals, plants and reptiles and allows its visitors to pet and feed some animals as well as see live crocodile feedings.
City Botanic Gardens formerly Brisbane Botanical Gardens is located within Gardens Point, Brisbane. It is on the banks of the Brisbane River, open as a public park featuring wonderfully landscaped gardens, showcasing a variety of species. Visitors can enjoy the gardens via a number of walkways connecting the area to the central district.
Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary was founded in 1927, making it the world's largest and oldest koala sanctuary. The sanctuary can be found within Fig Tree Pocket in Brisbane. Visit the sanctuary to see a range of animals such as Australian parrots, cockatoos, echidnas, emus, kangaroos, koalas, platypus, Tasmanian devils and wombats.
Mount Coot-tha stands 287 metres above sea level and is Brisbane's highest peak. It lies to the west of Brisbane's CBD and is a popular tourist destination. Mount Coot-tha's lookout offers wonderful views of the city, the Brisbane River and surrounding mountains. Other highlights include the rich flora and fauna, the wishing waterfall gardens and the Kuta Cafe and Gift Shop that offers tasty food and drinks.
Southbank Parklands are an area along the southern bank of the Brisbane River. The site is popular for its picturesque views and impressive fusion of rainforest, grassed areas, water and plazas in one site. Over eleven million people visit the Southbank Parklands every year. If you visit the parklands you will also be able to see the Grand Arbour, Nepal Peace Pagoda, Riverfront Promenade, Streets Beach, Suncorp Piazza, Queensland Conservatorium and the Wheel of Brisbane.
Roma Street Parklands can be found at 1 Parkland Boulevard, Brisbane. The park covers over sixteen hectares of land at the heart of Brisbane and features a wide range of recreational areas, pathways, themed gardens and an amphitheatre. The venue is currently the world's largest subtropical garden within a city centre.
Brisbane has around 280 days of sunshine per year, making it a much sought-after destination all year-round. If you are looking to experience the Australian east coast, the road trip from Brisbane to Sydney will take you past spectacular coastal scenery and several charming towns.
On hiring a campervan in Brisbane
Unlike when hiring a rental car, people tend to book a campervan a bit further in advance, and there are a few reasons for this.
When you’re hiring a campervan, you’re not simply hiring something with four wheels to buzz around a city for a few days, instead you’re hiring a vehicle that you could well be living in for days, weeks, or even months. As such, people tend to have far more specific needs — some may require a certain number of berths, perhaps an onboard kitchen, or more comfortable living space. All this means that doing your research to find the right campervan for you can pay off handsomely — but it also means that supply is more limited. When supply is limited, it is a good idea to book as far in advance as possible so that you know that the campervan you need will be waiting for you when you arrive.
With this in mind, while it isn’t unusual for people to book a hire car the day before they need it, with campervans, people often book their vehicle months in advance. So our advice to you is if you’re planning to rent a campervan, start researching today, and when you find the right campervan for you, book it!
One more point, another way campervan rentals differ from regular cars, is that bookings are not instant. Once you make a campervan booking it will need to be approved by the provider. Yet another reason not to leave your campervan rental until you’re sitting in the airport boarding lounge.
If you’re new to campervans and not sure where to start, please give our campervans for beginners page a read as it explains many of the basics you’ll need to know to make an informed decision.
We could start off by telling you that a typical customer hiring a campervan in Brisbane tends to look at campervans with two or four berths (including a toilet and shower). This isn’t really all that helpful though, as they type of campervan you should hire in Brisbane depends very much on the type of campervan you — rather than a typical customer — needs. Consider the following questions:
How big is your travel group? What is your budget? What facilities do you need — or not need? Where are you planning to go? How long for? Knowing the answers to these questions — and plenty more — is the best way to make sure the campervan you hire in Brisbane is the right one for you.
Solo travellers or couples might find a compact campervan to be more than enough, while families — especially those with young kids — or larger groups might prefer a more spacious motorhome with multiple sleeping areas.
Next, consider the facilities you need and the facilities you want. These might sound the same, but they are very different! Basic campervans often include a bed and simple cooking gear, while more luxurious options feature kitchens, bathrooms, and comfortable bedding. For example, if you’re planning on camping, perhaps paying the extra for comfortable beds isn’t really necessary, but if you’re not even packing a tent, then the extra expense required to get more comfortable beds might be a smart choice.
Where you’re going also matters. If you’re planning to just potter around Brisbane and its immediate surrounds, then you could probably get away with a standard campervan. That said, if you’re planning to drive from Brisbane to Adelaide — or Perth — something more spacious would be a sound investment.
Think about your budget, as campervans vary in cost depending on size, amenities, and rental duration, and while shortening the length of your trip might bring different options within your budget, spending more to get a bigger van may mean you’ll spend even less on hotels. Either way, do the math!
In conclusion, when you’re booking a campervan for pickup from Brisbane, it pays to be honest when considering what you need versus what you want, along with what fits with your budget and overall travel plans. It’s the best way to maximise your chance of getting the perfect campervan for you.
For most rental caravan providers, the minimum age to rent a campervan is the same as for car rentals — 21 years of age. Depending on the campervan rental supplier, those under 21 may only be able to rent certain vehicles. Double check with the campervan rental provider to see what their specific requirements are.
In most cases, you won’t need to present a special type of licence to rent a campervan — you’ll only be asked to present your standard and valid full Australian driving licence. Keep in mind that a probationary, learner permit, or provisional licence are not accepted for campervan hire. If your licence is in a language other than English, you’ll need to provide an International Driving Permit in conjunction with your valid licence. If you’re unsure as to whether your licence will be accepted, you should contact your prospective campervan provider prior to booking.
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