You’ve probably been planning your Australian road trip forever. You’ve booked the flights, researched the best spots, your beach-body ready and you’ve watched enough episode and Neighbours for a life-time…
But do you have a checklist for the last-minute? Here are 9 essential items you’ll need for your road trip!
Get Your Wheels!
If you plan on travelling a huge distance down under, you probably need your own wheels. If you’re backpacking, hostels and backpacker hangouts are a mecca for cars. We got our Ford Falcon for a bargain from a guy who was leaving that day – get it serviced and get on the road! Check Gumtree out for a good used car online.
Mapping
You won’t believe how massive Australia is. It’s neat and orderly within city limits, but it’s really easy to get lost once you’re in the outback.
You don’t really need to take a physical map along like you’re Indiana Jones, but make sure you have your online map handy and an app that lets you store information offline.
Google Maps will let you download and store certain routes and locations for a limited time, so backup this data before you leave.
Get a Cooler
There’s absolutely no way you’ll survive an Aussie road trip without a cooler (or an ‘esky’) in your car. Get a high-quality, sturdy cooler that keeps food and drinks cool for at least 12 hours.
Road-worthy playlist
You could simply tune into the local Aussie radio, but not everyone’s going to be into this music and local bands. Just to be safe, download a whole playlist of some road trip-worthy tracks before you set off on the journey.
Toiletries
It’s easy to forget the toiletries or assume you’ll find a lot of rest stops along your journey. But Australia’s countryside is pretty sparse.
There could many miles between service stops and sometimes you simply won’t find any. So, stack up on sunscreen, toilet paper, antacids, pain relievers and a basic first-aid kit.
Spare Pillows and Bedsheets
If you’re on the road for more than a few weeks, take no chances with the linen.
Anything can happen and finding a place to buy more bed sheets is nearly impossible once you’ve left city-limits. Get at least one pair of extra pillows and bed sheets.
Car Power Inverter
Count the number of people travelling along with you and multiply that by four. That’s probably the number of electronic devices your group will have put together.
Power a laptop, tablet or phone with a power inverter.
All those gizmos need juice and you won’t be able to rely on the mains socket in the car forever. Carry an electric power inverter along to charge all your devices and keep them running.
You’ll be happy you checked this off your checklist when you realise how much you rely on your smart phone to guide you through unknown routes.
Solar Power Charger
Once you realise how important your phone is, you’ll understand the need for a solar charger.
If there’s one thing you can predict in Australia it’s many days of sunshine. Take advantage of the sunlight and keep your most important tool powered-up.
Auto Repair Tools
There’s a good chance tools such as a car jack and spare tyre will be included in the car or camper van you buy. Make sure it’s there before you drive off. There’s nothing worse than being stranded in the middle of nowhere with a flat wheel.
Check, and double-check all these essentials before you head out on your road trip through this incredible country.
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