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Kellie Campbell has just given up her unit on the Gold Coast and her husband is about to move overseas so she’s hitting the road to live in a van.
Key points:
- Kellie Campbell says she’s excited about the opportunity to live in a van and not be bogged down with bills
- The Australian Bureau of Statistics says 772,627 caravans and campervans are registered in Australia
- There are almost 12,000 members of the Solo Women Campers Meetups Facebook group
The 50-year-old said she and her husband had been living — on and off — in their van for a year, but his decision to return to South Africa for work forced her to travel alone.
“It’s a nice opportunity to live in the van and be a bit more free and not be bogged down with bills.
“It will be nice now for me being on my own.”
Ms Campbell said she planned to stay in Queensland until December and then travel to Parkes in New South Wales to visit family.
“You can be at the beach, you can be at the mountains,” she said.
“You can meet people … when you’re in the van people are more open to talking.”
The Australian Bureau of Statistics doesn’t have any data on how many people are living a ‘van life’ in Australia, but figures for 2021 show there are 772,627 caravans and campervans registered across the country.
The decision Ms Campbell made — to live in a minivan — is becoming more common, according to those who live on the road.
Finances drive decisions
Aarha Stewart has been living in her bus for seven years and is currently in Whyalla, South Australia.
Accompanied by her cattle dog Dusty, the 59-year-old said her decision to live in a bus was driven by money.
“I was unable to continue working due to health issues,” she said.
“I couldn’t really afford to continue living in a house and pay bills and just live from week to week.
Ms Stewart said there were many benefits of solo travel including visiting amazing locations, chasing warmer weather and meeting new people.
“There are a whole lot of solo people out there on the road at the moment, especially in my age group,” she said.
Ms Stewart said there was a sisterhood among women on the road, but it could also be a bit clicky.
“I’m in a little bus, so if you see another bus you go running over and say “g’day” whether it’s male or female,” she said.
“Females do tend to check each other out a bit more.
“The ones in the motorhomes tend to stick with motorhomes, little campers or tents seem to stick together, it’s funny.
The long-term traveller recommends that women contemplating a solo travel experience have money in the bank or the ability to work so they can access funds for unexpected expenses.
“When you have breakdowns you’ve got to have somewhere to go,” Ms Stewart said.
“I was broken down for the best part of five months and for a lot of that time I was unable to live in my van.
“If you’ve got a house and can rent it out, and keep it as a back-up, do it.”
Solo sisterhood
The growth in the number of lone travellers prompted Candi Kelly to start the Solo Women Campers Meetups on Facebook in 2017.
The Brisbane-based traveller said the community had grown to almost 12,000 members.
“We’ve got a lot of what I call ‘cashed up baby boomers’ and an enormous amount of single women seem to be in that age group,” Ms Kelly said.
“We are finding there’s a very strong movement of women getting onto the road.
According to the 63-year-old, a large number of women say the catalyst for travel is the breakdown of a relationship, estrangement from children or metal health conditions, including anxiety and depression.
“Obviously the ideal is women that are ‘doing the lap’ of Australia, they’re going on an adventure,” she said.
“They’ve broken up with their partner, their kids are off their hands or whatever.
“Particularly there’s a lot more of that happening, because these are the same women that might be going to Italy once a year or at least Bali.
Ms Kelly says many women do end up “finding their tribe” in a new community, after starting afresh.
The feature film Nomadland, released in Australia in February this year, centred on a woman in her 60s embarking on a journey through the American West in a van.
Actress Frances McDormand won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of the lead character.
Ms Kelly said the film resonated with women in Australia.
“Women have a lot of resources now to go forth like some kind of warrior woman and be empowered.”
Plenty of advice available
Ms Kelly recommends any woman contemplating solo travel should connect with a community of women through social media.
“There is advice that is given to women even about what type of van to buy … batteries, solar power,” she said.
“There’s a lot of ‘just do it’ about it.
Ms Kelly also advises women to start with smaller road trips over a few days or a week to build up their confidence.
Men loving van life too
Rob Moore says he’s been living in “relative luxury” for a decade in his bus, which boasts a shower, separate bedroom and a kitchen.
The 76-year-old, who’s currently staying on the Gold Coast, says he’s noticed a rise in the number of women travelling solo.
“They’re loving it and travelling around and meeting other people … I meet a lot of them.”
But Mr Moore said he was also meeting more women who were living on the road out of necessity.
“A lot of them are young ones who’ve lost their part-time jobs,” he said.
“I’ve seen them with their cars, with their surf boards stacked up, and they’ve got to use the beach toilets.
“The poor devils have got to go and find a shower and a lot of councils turn off the hot water to keep the backpackers away from the showers.”
Kellie Campbell says she’s prepared for the hardships of being a solo traveller until her husband returns.
“It’s nice because you can really wake up somewhere different every day and that’s the blessing of it.”
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