CARAVANNING NEWS


STOP PRESS	DECEMBER 29: Caravanners and campers flee as wild weather batters Queensland's south-east coastline --- DECEMBER 27: TOOWOON Bay Caravan Park on NSW Central Coast evacuated as firefighters tackle blazing stolen plumbers van containing gas cylinders --- DECEMBER 22: Tasmania's Hobart Showground now open to 'self-contained' caravans and motorhomes --- DECEMBER 17: Caravanners escape unhurt as rig overturns on Princes Freeway near Geelong, Victoria --- DECEMBER 13: Car and caravan roll on Gold Coast's Smith Street, Southport. No one hurt --- DECEMBER 10: Firefighters save Tandanya Caravan Park as bushfires rage on SA's Kangaroo Island --- DECEMBER 8: Uproar over Burnett Shire Council decision to ban overnight caravans and camping at popular Norval Park beach, north of Bundaberg, Queensland --- DECEMBER 7: Police rescue man after ride-on mower plunges into river at riverside caravan park in Moruya, NSW --- DECEMBER 7: Queensland man charged with negligent driving after his caravan overturned on Princess Hwy near Bega, NSW			LINKS	REST AREAS	ED'S HOME PAGE
Queensland outback	Carnarvon Gorge	Sydney circular	Imbil	Santa's trip	Formula One interlude	Moore Park Beach turtles

Brisbane Weather Forecast, Australia

December 2007

Editor: Dennis Amor
PO Box 678
Caloundra
Queensland 4551
Australia
Click to send email

$13 just to have a cuppa with chums

Park visitor fees anger caravan couple

Story by DENNIS AMOR

OUTRAGED caravanners have blasted a four-star New South Wales caravan park which attempted to charge them for visiting friends staying there.

The retired couple from Sydney wanted to call on pals at the four-star BIG4 park in the South Coast seaside town of Kiama ... but were asked to cough up $13 for the privilege.

And now the furious former electrical engineer and his wife have posted their grouse on a popular web-based caravanners' forum, resulting in an avalanche of wrath from fellow travellers, some slamming the charge as "greed". [More]

Quartet joins Oz Park chain
ANOTHER four caravan parks have joined the go-ahead Oz Parks chain. The fledgling national caravan and tourist park group, launched only two years ago, now boasts 36 parks covering all mainland states. [More]

Death and chaos as wild weather hits
A TEENAGER was killed and caravan parks evacuated as wild weather battered Victoria. State Emergency Service volunteers received nearly a thousand calls for help as flash flooding, falling trees and power lines created havoc across the state. [More]

Hybrid Base Station targets thrillseekers
JAYCO has developed the ultimate getaway for thrillseekers who like extreme sports and leisure. The innovative Base Station is a hybrid product ... half caravan and half mobile garage. [More]

BIG4 snares its 175th park
THE award-winning Ashmore Palms Holiday Village on Queensland's Gold Coast has joined the BIG4 chain. Just 15 minutes from glitzy Surfers Paradise, the 14-acre park becomes the group's 175th member. [More]

Crash boy survivor still in hospital
AN eight-year-old boy, badly injured in a Northern Territory caravan crash in which his father died, is still recovering in hospital. The boy's mother and 11-year-old brother were also hurt. Witnesses said it was a miracle anyone escaped the crash alive. [More]

Drink-drive caravanner jailed
A MAN caught drink-driving while towing a caravan has been jailed for six months. Albury Local Court was told police saw his panel van and caravan allegedly swerving across the Olympic Highway, about 7km north Culcairn in New South Wales. [More]

Aliens from outer space real: park boss
CARAVANNERS have scoffed at claims that UFOs and aliens are invading the Northern Territory. But the boss of a caravan park where some sightings have been reported told Caravanning News: "There is far more to life than we understand." [More]

Grant helps park save water
A WEST Australian caravan park will fit water saving devices, thanks to a Federal Government grant. The three-star Flinders Bay Park in Augusta will finance the work after receiving a share of $340,000 through a Community Water Grants scheme. [More]

Greener road ahead for motorhomes
TRAVELLERS renting motorhomes in Australia will soon be driving into a new age of environmentally friendly touring. New Zealand-based Tourism Holdings Limited is pouring $50 million into creating a new generation of low emission, fuel efficient Maui, Britz and Backpacker tourers. [More]

Tap water creates havoc
CARAVANNERS couldn't believe their eyes when they turned on taps at a Queensland caravan park. Instead of the usual crystal clear water, the supply was more like brown sludge which ruined clothes and caused havoc. [More]

Parks scoop swag of tourism gongs
CARAVAN parks collected a swag of gongs in nationwide tourism awards. BIG4 chain members featured prominently, with some earning a place in next February's prestigious National Tourism Awards in Canberra. [More]

Listen to grey nomads: tourism official
CARAVAN park operators have been urged to take notice of what grey nomads have to say. A tourism official said this particular group of travellers provided excellent opportunities for business and was a "great market" for tourism. [More]

Parks change hands
TWO caravan parks in Mildura, Victoria, have changed hands. Now the former bosses of one park are about to experience the industry from the other side of the fence ... on their dream trip round Australia. [More]

Grey nomads scheme worker pipped in finals
THE woman behind an innovative grey nomads scheme designed to help remote communities was a finalist in ACT Senior Australian of the Year awards. Indigenous services coordinator Helen McLaughlin was just pipped at the post and failed to win a place in next year's national finals in Canberra. [More]

Man hacked to death at park, court told
THREE generations of a gypsy family were jailed for hacking a man to death during a wild brawl at a NSW caravan park. The victim was a member of a rival gypsy clan and was attacked with hand axes, machetes and a samurai sword, the NSW Supreme Court was told. [More]

Travellers snap up outback land
GREY nomads on round-Australia trips have reportedly been snapping up land in outback Queensland. Ilfracombe Council says three groups of friends have each bought a block with the intention of settling in the area.

Couple part of caravanning history
CARAVANNERS Garry and Dianne Wright have just made caravanning history. The Sydney couple became the proud owners of Jayco's 100,000th caravan to roll off the production line. [More]

Altea targets budget conscious families
ADRIA has released a contender tailored for the value end of the Australian market - a family-sized touring caravan priced at just $29,990. The Altea 432 PX offers basic no-fuss requirements for a family on an extended road-trip, plus a few extras. [More]

For stories from the last six editions of Caravanning News, click on the appropriate month:

Caravanning News - November 2007 edition
Caravanning News - October 2007 edition
Caravanning News - September 2007 edition
Caravanning News - August 2007 edition
Caravanning News - July 2007 edition
Caravanning News - June 2007 edition

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the prior written permission of Dennis Amor.
Copyright 2005 Dennis Amor
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LETTERS TO
THE EDITOR

Please, give other road users a chance . . .

SOME caravanners should really go back to school and learn a few basic driving techniques! Travelling the Pacific Highway I was appalled at the apparent total lack of consideration for other road users, particularly in the overtaking stakes. To amble along at 70kph with traffic building up behind you ... and then speeding up to nearly 100kph when on a three lane section is appalling. But it happened time and again when I was heading north recently. Come on caravanners, give other road users a chance.

Frank Glanville
Victoria.

Tragic crash
a sobering reminder

THE photograph in the last edition of Caravanning News of that horrible crash in the NT was a sobering reminder to all travellers to take extra care. Tragedy can strike in a split second, and it doesn't necessarily have to be your fault.

Name and address supplied

Schoolies ruin caravan holiday

TO all those horrible schoolies who ruined our recent caravan holiday on the Gold Coast in Queensland I hope that one day you will be on the receiving end of your disgraceful, loutish behaviour. Three days were enough ... we upped steadies and vacated the place for somewhere quieter.

'Fuming'
NSW

A great
read!

THANKS again for a great read. Your last edition contained some very interesting stories. Keep up the good work.

Herb Wellings
Northern Territory

Report more
factual

THANKS for your informative web pages. I had heard snippets of the caravan fire (Heartless freeway drivers, November edition) but your report was more factual.

George Haigh
SE Victoria

Stamp of
approval

CONGRATULATIONS to Australia Post for its recent range of caravanning postage stamps. Certainly very nostalgic for us 'oldies' on the road!

KJ
Melbourne

WORLD BRIEFS

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No ... it's a flying cow!

AN American couple had the shock of their lives ... when a flying cow crashed onto the bonnet of their motorhome. The rodeo stock cow had escaped from a local ranch and plunged 60 metres down a cliff onto the hapless travellers' vehicle on Highway 150 in Washington. The shocked couple escaped unhurt but the beast had to be put down.

A MAN suffered horrific burns when a gas explosion ripped apart his caravan in England. The blast happened after the 61-year-old victim lit a cigarette inside the caravan near Hastings. He was airlifted to hospital.

PEOPLE who light fires in South African caravan parks face up a year in prison. The clampdown is part of a government drive to prevent runaway fires damaging crops, fauna, flora and the economy as the Western and Southern Capes face another hazardous fire season. The ban will last until next April.

SHAREHOLDERS in America's Oregon-based Monaco Coach company will reap in their sixteenth quarterly cash dividend this month. The company, which employs more than 5000 workers, manufactures motorhomes and towable recreational vehicles. The $0.06 dividend will be paid on December 14.

CARAVANNERS fled when a nearby dog training centre erupted in a ball of flames in Herefordshire, England. Part of a caravan park in Kingstone was evacuated as the wooden clubhouse belonging to the Golden Valley Dog Training Club burned to the ground.