Adventure Advice

Australia’s camper-trailer market has plenty of top-shelf campers, with the hefty price-tags to match, but it also has plenty of well-priced campers that will suit those with less funds from which to draw.

Camper-trailers add a whole new dimension to your camping game - they provide highly mobile accommodation and can be set up in minutes anywhere and everywhere. But how do you get the most of them and ensure that you have a great time away while you’re camping in one?

Camper-trailers are a big investment so you need to do your research and spend your hard-earned cash wisely.There are several things to avoid when buying a new or second-hand camper-trailer and here is our top 5 list of camper fails to give a wide berth.Avoid camper-trailers your vehicle is unable to towIt’s different strokes for different folks as far as towing and tow vehicles are concerned. Small vehicles will be able to legally tow smaller, less weighty camper-trailers and large 4WDs will be able to handle larger burdens at the back. Check the weight of your potential camper-trailer – it will be listed in the camper’s specifications. Hard-core off-road camper-trailers (built using heavy-duty materials and construction) or campers packed with features or options will be heavier than their cheaper, bare-bones or lighter entry-level on-road counterparts.Check your vehicle’s towing capacity – those figures will be listed as unbraked and braked* in your driver’s manual. Towing capacities can range from 640kg (unbraked) and 1200kg (braked) in a compact AWD SUV, to 750kg (unbraked) and 3500kg (braked) in many large SUV wagons and dual-cab utes, through to the 6989kg (braked) towing capacity of a Ram 3500 pick-up. For more, read our towing advice story here.*Your tow vehicle needs an electric/electronic brake controller system fitted and functional in order for you to be able to legally tow any camper-trailer, boat-and-trailer combination or caravan weighing more than 750kg.If your vehicle is legally able to handle the burden, then you’re good to go; if not, think about changing your target camper-trailer or upsizing your tow vehicle, if your budget allows. For more on vehicle and trailer weights, read our special feature.Avoid camper-trailers with below-par designNo matter which type of camper is catching your eye – pop-top (almost like a caravan), soft-floor or hard-floor, forward-fold or rear-fold – if it’s been poorly designed, you’ll be behind the eight ball before you even head off.Look for quirks and design flaws that may pose bigger problems down the track a bit: winder handles that don’t work as smoothly as they should, gas struts that aren’t doing their job properly, bed bases that are vulnerable to outside moisture, pinch-points on hinges, canvas that doesn’t tuck away or unfold neatly enough when setting or packing up, awnings/tented sections with too many spreader bars and no end wall, or those with a flat roofline which are prone to catching water when it rains.Avoid camper-trailers built with poor materialsThe better the materials used in the construction of your camper, the safer and more comfortable you’ll be. Check for top-quality materials such as a hot-dip galvanised steel chassis, Australian-made canvas, aluminium or steel poles, and a high-density foam or open-cell foam mattress on the bed. If these are in good shape then chances are the manufacturers haven’t skimped on other materials.Avoid camper-trailers with poor constructionIt doesn’t matter how good the materials used are if they’ve all been linked together in a chain of poor construction.You’re looking for a level of workmanship that matches the cash you plan to spend.Look for full, clean welds with support pieces in corners and crucial joins, including on the chassis and drawbar.Avoid campers with stapled woodwork in cupboards and kitchen where possible as it is prone to weakening and separation (after prolonged exposure to general usage and travel). Tidy and bolstered woodwork with glued or screwed joins is much better.Hinges, clips and latches need to be durable enough to cope with the rigours of camping and touring, and adjustable enough to squash tight in on dust seals to prevent water and dust ingress.Check the paint work on non-galvanised chassis and drawbar; a powdercoat finish is plenty tough enough for touring and camping; hammertone is also hard wearing – anything else can be a bit of a compromise.  Make sure all canvas on awnings or tented sections is well-stitched, blemish-, damp- and tear-free, and that there are no large holes in the sewing.Are all electrics (plugs, wiring etc) neat, tidy and safely functioning?Are water and gas fittings well put together, secure and in great working order?Avoid camper-trailers with labour-intensive set-up and pack-upIf you’ve seen people struggle with a particular camper’s set-up or pack-up process, then you should consider another camper.Ask the expert at a camper dealership for step-by-step instruction on how to set up your potential camper purchase, watch them do it, then have a crack at it, at your own pace. You’ll get better at set-up and pack-up with familiarity and repeated practise, but the process shouldn’t be terribly difficult to begin with – if it is, then that’s not the right camper for you.It only takes between five and 10 minutes to get the bulk of a camper-trailer set-up done, then probably another five to 10 minutes more to finalise the process, i.e. get awnings fully erect, all canvas sides pulled taut etc.

Here are a few problems - minor and major - that may reveal themselves when you're out and about in the bush or on the beach in your camper-trailer.

Australia’s camper-trailer market is about as busy with makes and models as our car market is – there’s something for almost everyone and, as a result, deciding on a camper can become a real confusion of choice.It’s a big ask trying to get your head around what campers are available, which ones are worth checking out more closely and which should be avoided altogether, no matter how appealing their low price is.Well, here’s our go-to guide to help you find the best camper if you have $20,000 or more in your sky-rocket. (Note: for the purpose of this yarn, we’re concentrating on new campers; we will write a yarn about buying a second-hand camper down the track a bit.) If your budget to buy a new camper doesn’t stretch beyond $10,000, no worries. We’ll check out some of the best campers under $10k in an upcoming feature.$20,000-$30,000As with anything, the more you spend, presumably, the better quality the product is. Sure, it’s not always the case – you can find cheap, well-made products –  but it’s often enough true to be a sound basis on which to make the majority of your buying decisions. You also tend to get more for your money as well.

The simple notion of a camper-trailer itself conjures images of grand adventures on the beach or in the bush, but there is a distinction between those campers capable of being taken into true off-road territory and those that aren’t.

So, you’ve made the decision to upgrade from a swag or tent to a camper-trailer, but the sheer volume of makes and models from which to choose is giving you a massive headache? No fear. Because to cut through all of the confusion, and to help make sense of the dizzying array of campers available, here are our top-five ways to buy the best camper-trailer for you. Read on so you can head bush as soon as humanly possible.PriceThis is an easy one. As for any major purchase, if you work out how much you’re willing and able to spend before you start looking and researching in earnest, that will help no end to narrow your search and thin the field of potential buys, thus making your job of tracking down one of the campers you’ll likely buy so much easier.If your budget tops out at $10,000 you’ll be mostly looking at used camper-trailers and a few rather basic new campers.Above $10,000 and your camper options grow quite a bit more, with many new models available across a variety of styles and equipment levels. The bonus here is that you’re safe in the knowledge that your camper has never been used before.From $20,000 and beyond, your camper horizon expands a great deal with regards to build quality and standard features – and there are plenty of campers stretching past $40,000 with unreal attention to detail, fantastic design, supremely practical features and hard-core off-road suspension.SuitabilityBuy to suit your lifestyle and your current family set-up, whether it be as a couple or family. And buy a camper to match your tow vehicle. Think about it: it’s no good buying a 2500kg off-road caravan if you have a Yaris hatchback. If the most challenging trip you ever plan to do in your camper will be driving in dry weather along a well-maintained gravel road to a national park campsite, which has a bitumen carpark, then there’s really no need for you to buy a bush-ready camper with stone guards, chequer-plate everywhere, and dual-shock, airbag suspension. You should aim for something like a pop-top touring-style camper with road-suited tyres and suspension.However, if you do intend to take your camper on anything tougher than dirt roads, then it’s a great idea to make sure you’re as prepared as possible, so get something purpose-built for the rough and tough trips you have in mind: think off-road tyres and suspension, as well as a greater degree of dust-sealing efficacy, robust build quality and extra ground clearance.In other words, buy a camper that will suit you and your intended purpose for it.Same goes for accommodation; it’s no good buying a camper that comfortably sleeps four people (two adults, two kids) if you’re a happy couple with no plans to have children just yet. In that case, an entry-level lightweight camper which sleeps two people will suit you both well for a fair few years to come. You can upgrade when the time is right.Build QualityThis is of the utmost importance, even if you don’t intend to take your camper on any rough roads. High-quality fit and finish, design, engineering and build quality are worth the extra money, no doubt about it.While it’s tempting to buy a dirt-cheap brand-new camper and then shower yourself in the money you’ve saved not buying a more expensive version, that decision will likely come back to bite you on the arse. The same principle applies to buying a camper as it does when making any purchase: spend more cash to buy something that’s been well designed and made and you’ll ultimately spend less cash – on maintenance, repair or replacement of parts – during your period of ownership.Standard FeaturesYour potential new camper purchase should be chock-full of standard gear already onboard in readiness for your first trip away, rather than you having to rely on buying a stack of options to make your camper life do-able.Don’t get me wrong, it’s great for a camper-trailer to have an extensive list of extras because that gives you the flexibility to modify and add-on to your adventure set-up as you see fit and as your finances allow, but you don’t want to head off on a family trip only to realise 500km away from anywhere that you didn’t opt in for the very thing you assumed was a standard feature anyway, such as a tropical roof, canvas walls for your awning, folding solar panels, or even hot water.Before your throw any money down, do your research, ask around, ask the sales person and check, check, check.After-sales SuportA camper-trailer can be, to the novice at least, quite a sophisticated bit of kit. There are many moving parts - sometimes winches, sometimes winder handles, slides and drawers and electrical wiring and much more – and the operation, maintenance and repair of a camper can be a little daunting at first. As well as a decent warranty – five years structural warranty is good; a lifetime for a winch – and roadside assistance, your camper-trailer purchase must have strong customer support. The people you buy from need a solid knowledge of their products and ready access to the mechanical and technical expertise to get you back on the road if something does go wrong with it after you have bought it. Common sense? Sure, but something people tend to forget when they become dazzled by new gear and the potential for grand adventures.Take your time to ask questions and demand high-quality after-sales support. Chances are you won’t need it – well, much – but better to have it and not need it … etc etc. You know what I mean.

Beyond the realm of swags, tents and any manner of DIY shelters, camper-trailers provide a comfortable way for you to enjoy the outdoors in all their glory - to become at one with nature, even. Sounds like a bunch of bollocks, doesn't it?But it’s actually true. A camper-trailer is a low-cost, low-impact way of experiencing the beach and bush as much as is possible. So, in the spirit of that philosophy, here are our top-five reasons to buy a camper-trailer.Low CostCompared to the purchase price of some off-road caravans, or the cumulative costs of staying at a hotel, resort or in Airbnb accommodation, camper-trailers are a relatively low-cost option. There’s the initial outlay (anywhere between $5000 and $60,000, depending on your budget), plus any maintenance and repair costs you’ll be obliged to pay during your years of ownership.But think about it, you may use your camper-trailer on numerous memorable trips in the foreseeable future. And you can take them when and where you want. So a camper-trailer is well worth the cost, which works out to be not too much at all anyway.Low ImpactAlong with taking your campsite rubbish back home with you when you leave, minimising the extent of damage you might do to tracks on the way to your campsite and back are crucial aspects of responsible use of the outdoors. Camper-trailers are, by their very nature, designed to be low-impact vehicles, and towed well, they will have very little, if any, impact on the environment through which they’re hauled. They are light and narrow, especially when compared to bulkier, heavier off-road caravans, and they generally have track-friendly wheel tracks and tyres, as well as purpose-built suspension – all resulting in less of an impact on vegetation at the sides of tracks and at campsites.They are also self-contained units with plenty of storage space, so there’s no need to discard anything when used or emptied; it can be neatly packed away into the camper.VersatilityCamper-trailers, especially those built for off-roading, can be towed through a great variety of terrain, but be aware of your camper’s limitations. Touring versions of campers are generally set up for mostly road driving, while adventure-styled models of some campers are engineered for dirt or gravel roads, but nothing more punishing than that.There are, however, purpose-built off-road campers with, among other things, better dust-sealing properties and greater ground clearance than regular campers, as well as bush-ready tyres and suspension and an overall build quality that's more robust than any mainstream campers. These go-almost-anywhere campers are regularly seen on adventures in places such as Fraser Island, the Simpson Desert, or on the way to and from Cape York.Please note: As always, read your warranty and/or owner’s manual because some manufacturers, for instance Jayco, make it very clear that even their Outback range of campers is only intended “for limited unsealed road usage” and “under no circumstances” should those campers “be exposed to water crossings at, or above, body floor level”. The warranty goes on to state that those campers “are not designed for hard impact or heavy landings or severely rutted roads or tracks”, and they “are not designed for use on four-wheel-drive-only tracks”.ConvenienceMany contemporary camper-trailers are equipped with all of the mod cons – well, most of them anyway – that you could ever wish to use when you’re out camping. Sure, some features are optional extras but camper-trailer owners can have access to hot water, drawers for everything, slide-out stoves and fridges, a stainless-steel kitchen and sink, bedside lighting, and even stuff like a Weber BabyQ barbecue on a swing-out arm.Easy to TowCamper-trailers, generally small, light, narrow and not so tall, are easy to tow by a variety of vehicles, small SUV or otherwise. The modest dimensions and weight of the majority of camper-trailers give them enormous appeal to, well, everyone, but especially those who care about the impact they have on the environment and those who may not be so comfortable with towing responsibilities.Camper-trailers in Australia range from about 400kg (for a pod-style roof-top camper) to about 1400kg and then some.Its light weight means a camper places less cumulative stress on a tow vehicle, and because its dimensions are not gargantuan, a camper is also easier to maneuver anywhere.All in all, a camper-trailer makes for an attractive towing proposition.

How do you decide which one is right for you? Read on.

As with the choice between a soft- or hard-floor camper, whether it is rear- or forward-fold is not really a deal-breaker in the grand scheme of things.