Pursuant to my earlier post on caravan parks, we have
become quite acquainted with the likes of these travel stops as the weeks have
progressed on our World Nomads Whirlwind Trip. And no two parks are the same,
which is part of the charm of such travel.
When you check in at a big name chain hotel or motel, you
know exactly what you’re going to get, right down to the brand of mints on the
pillow. But even among franchised caravan parks (which are a rarity), you will
get some terrific variety. Everything from the amenities, to the scenery, to
the surroundings; it’s a crap shoot.
And unlike the variety of accommodations we saw in the
guesthouses of Bangkok, the variations are all relatively appealing; it just depends on
what you are looking for.
Like Forrest Gump said, “Caravan Parks are like a box of
chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.”
Wait a minute. He didn’t say that. Ah well – something like
that, I’m sure.
Since we are constantly on the move while in the World
Nomads van, and since we enjoy the great outdoors, we tend to gravitate towards
parks that are a little secluded and scenic. Not to say that our times smack
dab in the middle of some of the towns we visited were bad – but it’s just not
our idea of camping. For the permanent or long term residents of those parks
though (and there are those in almost every caravan park), I’m sure being close
to town is heaven on earth.
So when we rolled into the town of Mildura,
we got a list of caravan parks, almost all of them directly across from the
mall. Wireless internet access was a need since we hadn’t been online for a few
days. So that alone became a deciding factor and brought forth a range of candidates.
And the cost of the wireless internet ranged from $6/hour to over $20/hour.
While getting overwhelmed weighing options, nightly costs,
and internet fees, we decided to fill up on petrol (that's "gas" for non-Aussie readers). While crossing the bridge
over the pretty river, we saw a small sign for another caravan park, right on
the river. We looked at each other.
“There’s no way they’ll have internet access,” I said. “But
since we’re here, we may as well check it out.” It screamed of a more appealing
atmosphere than the cramped city parks we had resigned ourselves to staying at.
As soon as we walked into the office of Buronga Riverside Caravan Park,
we hit paydirt (and not the Opal kind). The atmosphere was
great, the scenery spectacular, and the wireless internet: free. Praise be to
the wireless internet gods; we found the one and only place in Australia
to offer free wireless internet.
Needless to say, we stayed there. In fact, we were so
impressed with the
facilities and staff, we changed our plans of passing
through to stay two nights there.
Our next stop was the Grampians: a national park close
enough to both Adelaide and Melbourne
to be a weekender’s Mecca. Nestled
in the mountains with hundreds of walking trails and a charming little village
atmosphere, we could see how it is counted among Australia’s
little jewels.
And there too in the Grampians, the variety of accommodation for
our little van was varied. We stayed in campsites with nothing more than a pit
toilet and a fireplace. We also stayed at Parkgate Resort Holiday Park, a
glorious top-notch facility with all the amenities you could want and more. And
with a range of accommodations within the park ranging from tent sites to full
cabins, amenities like the pool, dvd rentals, tennis courts, jumping pillow,
and cafe are well utilized and appreciated.
We certainly appreciated such amenities; after camping for a
few nights and smelling like campfire everywhere we went, a chance to wash up
and enjoy some luxuries like a camp kitchen and dvds was a welcome treat.
As we press on and wrap up our trip, we continue to
enjoy the mixed bag that caravan parks can be. No Trailer Park Boys episodes
here…this is caravanning!
