The caravanning and camping boom has seen thousands more travellers head out into Australia’s remote regions … and they aren’t always happy about what they find there.
The ABC reports that the days when Outback travellers were relieved when they could find a place to get a cold beer and a hot shower are over … with today’s pampered ‘adventurers’ expecting to find all the creature comforts no matter how far off the beaten track they travel.
Matt Hawke, the co-manager of the Mount Barnett Roadhouse on WA’s Gibb River Road, said he had seen a change in traveller attitudes over the past decade.
“Every year people get about twice as difficult — a bit more demanding, a bit more in a rush — and this year has been 10 times that,” he told the ABC.
Some travellers are disappointed to find not all creature comforts are available in the Outback. PIC: Cizza
“There’s a lot of people pushing rapid travel, getting the photo and glossing over the realities of living, working and travelling on this road.”
Mr Hawke suspects social media has given people unrealistic expectations.
“People are living this for the second time, even though they’ve never been here before,” he said. “They used to be eyes wide open – ‘This is wild!’ – and they’d ask us for advice, you’d make friends and it was lovely.”
He says these days they say they’ve seen this on the internet and ‘they’re telling us how things are’.
Of course, even in in the internet age, isolated communities, roadhouses and tourist camps still have to get food and fuel trucked in from hundreds of kilometres away and basic services like electricity and telecommunications can’t always be relied on.
Veteran traveller Cynthia Anderson recalls how finding the most basic of provisions or facilities was a real thrill when she first did the Lap 35 years ago.
“We went prepared to find virtually nothing in terms of comfort in the Outback and – to be honest – that made it all the more adventurous,” she said. “The fact it wasn’t easy and not that many people did it was a huge part of the appeal … and we certainly didn’t complain if a remote store didn’t stock my favourite brand of shampoo or something like that.”
However, Tim Meecham from the Gascoyne Region’s Quobba Station told the ABC that these days many travellers weren’t prepared for basic or isolated camping conditions.
“There’s people leaving the city that are just so far disconnected from rural or Outback Australia that when they turn up out here … they’re actually put into shock,” he said. “They get angry.”
But he said most that most Quobba visitors were ultimately ‘gobsmacked by the scenery’ and appreciated its remoteness.
“It is just a small percentage of people that just aren’t suited for this kind of holidaying,” he told the ABC. “I would far rather have to deal with a mob of cranky ewes, trying to put them through a gate for half a day, than dealing with a cranky tourist!”
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You find them everywhere in anything less than a Coastal City .
Anywhere west of the Dividing Range , is just not what they were expecting .Travel agents , and social media are responsible for over stating what is really the norm in these ” Outback ” centre’s.
I have seen glossy brochures of some certain camping and caravan ” hot spring ” farm stays that are very rudimentary to say the least .
But hey what do you expect .
5 star accommodation.
I blame greedy advertisers etc that prey on the wealthy newby tourists by exaggerating the facilities provided by ordinary country people trying to gain a bit of extra income from what is probably just a natural occurrence on their Station or farm.
Get real!!!!!!
Maybe the realistic camping apps like Camps and WikiCamps could put in an explanation about what to expect and what not to expect as they travel remotely.
Also us more seasoned travellers could gently advise the more unprepared travellers on how to improve their experiences by lowering expectations and enjoying the differences.
Come on stop being a city slicker your in the outback for damn sake, just for a minute think about how difficult it is for the country folk that support our country with limited supplies that we take for granted but they do have some annoying tourists that I’m sure open there arms to welcome you to what they have and guess what they are happy and if they were in your shoes in the city they probably wouldn’t like it and would see how un lucky you are.
Some travellers expectations often show up in their review comments when they complain about the lack of facilities in our remote regions. Half the fun is “making do” and sometimes just an unexpected hot shower can make your day.
Take it as you find it. Enjoy the good with the bad. It’s all an experience to be remembered.
Some of our best memories are of places that weren’t what we expected. Both good and bad. Just get over yourself and get on with it. Treat other people’s community’s as you would your own and be grateful you have the chance to travel many cannot.
Best l heard while shopping in Leonora, WA, was a lady complaining to husband they didn’t have her brand of orange juice. It was hilarious , told them to step outside and have a look were they are .