While the Covid pandemic boom sparked a spectacular surge in demand for caravans and domestic travel, there are signs that some grey nomads or ‘would-have-been’ grey nomads are now being tempted overseas instead.
Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows international travel has now rebounded to pre-pandemic levels.
Caravan Industry Association of Australia spokesman Luke Chippindale told the Herald Sun that there were clear shifts going on.
“The 55-plus market has started to move back more towards what some would classify as their more traditional travel behaviours, cruising and international travel, but the family market is still really strong,” he told the paper. “The 35 to 54 age bracket is still really focused on caravanning and seeing the country.”
Would your rather be here ... or heading for the airport? PIC: Cizza
Changes in the level of demand, combined with increasing competition from overseas manufacturers, and the cost-of-living crisis has though had an effect on some local businesses. Already this year, Melbourne-based manufacturers, Tango Caravans and Highline Caravans, have both gone into liquidation.
The Herald Sun reports that the new economic situation has forced some consumers to reconsider the purchase of a new van, which on average costs between $60,000 to $80,000.
It says that the pandemic and its effect on domestic tourism led to a surge in the number of vans being built … a record 23,931 in 2021. That lift added to an 11.5% increase in vehicle numbers, both towable and motorised, recorded over 2020.
At its peak, the wait time for new vans hit two years. However, Mr Chippindale says wait times today are back to the three-month mark.
He insists though that while the industry was facing headwinds, demand still remained strong by any historical measure.
“It’s not what it was but manufacturers are now having to adjust to that, as well,” Mr Chippindale told the Herald Sun. “We’re still above the pre-Covid level – 2% or 3% up on 2019 – in terms of manufacturing, so the demand is certainly still there.”
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We’ve been predominantly caravaning over the past 14 years of our retirement.
We’ve also enjoyed a monthlong trip without the caravan every one of those years.
We do a flight trip every year, it makes a nice change to towing a caravan.
We enjoy staying in apartments lodges & luxury hotels.
We find many Asian oversea resorts are less per night than 1 night in a caravan park in australia and include breakfast!! But we like to do both caravaning and overseas.
yes, strange is it not!! We are effectively a Third World country now if you measure the cost of residents living in their own country!!
Like Keith H we too mix it up a bit now that international travel restrictions have eased and the world has opened up. While there is little substitute for caravanning an overseas trip once a year opens the mind to other cultures and is quite refreshing. Having said that there’s nothing quite like kangaroos and rainbow parakeets circling your van is there?!
Wouldn’t invest so much money on a new caravan there a lot of bad RV manufactured in this country and others going under you can have a lot of long term holidays in Asia for a lot less the a new 4WD and caravan or Motorhome
they dropped of the list of important things with there pricing since covid caused such ridiculous increases, wait another 12 months for when the bottom falls out of the RV industry, all ready they don’t want trade ins same with the used car market the bottom has already started to fall out of it like the new cars are, look at what’s happening in America and we follow there trends without fail
I usually do 8 weeks in Europe and multiple shorte lengths with my CV
Sometimes it’s enough to go to a campsite for a week every month
Nowadays I dread the thought of sitting in an aeroplane. No more fighting off the touts! No more ruthless airline tricks! No more getting stranded, nor being robbed and ripped off!
I have a wonderfully reliable little 23 year old Hiace camper van, my surrogate home. Give me good old Oz – the land of the free – with its excellent roads, free roadside camping, and the bush ringing with birdcalls. No health worries, no food worries, no exorbitant personal insurance, no luggage, no tight schedules. Freedom!
Roberta T
Yes we travel overseas as in most cases we stay at a hotel for $50 to $70 a night with breakfast have sold our van but will buy another bu only 16 foot