How Much Does A Big Lap Cost

Money is the thing that keeps most people from starting their Big Lap. Not because it’s impossibly expensive, but because nobody gives them a straight answer about what it actually costs. Ask in a Facebook group and you’ll get replies ranging from “$400 a week, easy” to “we spent $3,000 a week and it wasn’t enough.” Both are probably true. They’re just very different trips.

The reality is that a Big Lap costs whatever you make it cost. You can do it on a shoestring or you can do it in luxury. But you need to understand where the money goes so you can make informed choices about what to spend, where to save, and whether your savings (or income) will actually last the distance. This guide gives you the real numbers.

The Two Types of Big Lap Costs

Big Lap costs split neatly into two buckets: the upfront investment (what you spend before you leave) and the ongoing weekly spend (what it costs to live on the road). Most people fixate on the weekly costs, but the upfront investment is often the bigger number, and it’s the one that catches people off guard.

The upfront costs include your tow vehicle, your caravan or camper, and all the gear to set it up. The weekly costs include fuel, food, camping, insurance, and everything else. Understanding both, and how they interact, is the key to building a budget that actually works.

Upfront Costs: Getting Set Up

This is where the range is widest, because it depends almost entirely on what you already own and what standard you’re aiming for.

Your Caravan or Camper

A secondhand caravan in good condition starts around $15,000 to $25,000 for something basic but road-worthy. Mid-range secondhand vans (3 to 8 years old, well-maintained) sit between $30,000 and $60,000. New entry-level caravans start around $40,000 to $60,000, mid-range new vans run $60,000 to $100,000, and high-end or off-road new caravans can easily exceed $120,000 to $180,000.

Camper trailers are cheaper: a decent secondhand unit starts around $5,000 to $15,000, while new camper trailers range from $15,000 to $60,000+. A rooftop tent setup on a 4WD can be done for $2,000 to $5,000.

More expensive doesn’t always mean better for the Big Lap. A well-chosen $35,000 secondhand van with good bones and sensible features will serve you just as well as a $120,000 new one. Sometimes better, because it’s already been shaken down on real roads and the previous owner has already discovered (and fixed) the issues.

Your Tow Vehicle

If you already own a vehicle that can safely tow your van, this cost is zero. If you need to buy one, expect to spend $25,000 to $50,000 for a capable secondhand 4WD or ute (think Prado, Fortuner, MU-X, BT-50), or $55,000 to $90,000+ for a new one. The tow vehicle needs to be matched to your caravan’s weight, and getting this wrong is expensive and dangerous, so don’t cut corners here.

Gear and Setup

Even a well-equipped new caravan needs additional gear: electrical cables, water hoses, levelling gear, recovery gear (if going off-road), camp furniture, kitchen equipment, tools, and spares. A basic gear setup costs $2,000 to $4,000. A thorough one with quality brands across the board pushes $5,000 to $10,000. If you’re adding solar panels, upgrading batteries, or fitting a diesel heater, add $2,000 to $8,000 depending on the scope.

Vehicle and Van Preparation

Servicing, safety checks, new tyres if needed, a pre-trip inspection, and any modifications or repairs. Budget $1,000 to $3,000 for a basic service-and-check, more if the vehicle or van needs work. This isn’t optional. A failed bearing or blown tyre 500km from the nearest mechanic costs far more than a pre-trip check.

Upfront Cost Ranges at a Glance

Weekly Costs: Life on the Road

Once you’re on the road, your costs settle into a fairly predictable weekly rhythm. The four big categories are camping, fuel, food, and everything else. Here’s what each one actually looks like.

Camping: $0 to $420 per Week

This is the single biggest variable in your weekly budget. Free camping (bush camps, rest areas, council reserves) costs nothing. A basic unpowered site in a caravan park runs $25 to $40 per night. A powered site is $35 to $60 per night, and in peak season at popular parks, you’ll see $65 to $85 or more.

Most Big Lappers use a mix. A common pattern is three or four nights free camping followed by one or two nights in a park to use the laundry, refill water, charge batteries, and let the kids run around a playground. At that ratio, your average nightly cost is roughly $15 to $25, or $100 to $175 per week. People who stay in parks every night are looking at $250 to $420 per week. People who free camp almost exclusively can keep this near $0.

Fuel: $150 to $400+ per Week

Fuel is the cost you can estimate most accurately because it’s driven by maths: distance travelled × fuel consumption × fuel price. A typical tow vehicle pulling a caravan burns 15 to 22 litres per 100km. At an average fuel price of around $1.80 to $2.10 per litre (more in remote areas, occasionally over $2.50), and an average driving distance of 800 to 1,500km per week, your weekly fuel bill sits between $150 and $400+.

The key variables are how far you drive each week (rest days save fuel), what vehicle you’re towing with (a diesel ute towing a light van is very different to a V8 petrol towing a 3-tonne rig), and where you buy fuel (city prices versus remote prices can differ by $0.40 to $0.80 per litre).

Food and Groceries: $150 to $350 per Week

If you cook most meals in your van (and you will), grocery costs are similar to what you’d spend at home, sometimes slightly more because regional supermarkets are pricier and you’re buying in smaller quantities due to limited fridge and pantry space. A couple cooking all meals should budget $150 to $200 per week. A family of four or five, $250 to $350. Eating out or buying takeaway even twice a week adds $50 to $100+ on top.

The trick is meal planning, buying in bulk when you’re near a major supermarket (Coles, Woolworths, or Aldi), and resisting the urge to buy overpriced convenience food from roadhouse servos.

Everything Else: $50 to $200+ per Week

This category covers the smaller ongoing costs that add up over a long trip:

Vehicle and caravan insurance: Roughly $30 to $80 per week depending on your cover level and vehicle value.

Phone and internet: $10 to $30 per week for a decent mobile plan. Add $25 to $35 per week if you’re running Starlink.

Activities and attractions: Highly variable. National park entry fees, tours, and experiences can add $0 to $100+ per week depending on how active you are.

Laundry: $10 to $20 per week at caravan park or town laundromats if you don’t have a washing machine in the van.

Vehicle maintenance on the road: Averaged out, budget $20 to $40 per week for tyres, services, and the occasional unexpected repair.

Gas refills: LPG for cooking and hot water, roughly $10 to $20 per fortnight.

What Different Travellers Actually Spend

Averages are useful, but what really helps is seeing what specific types of travellers spend. These are realistic ranges based on what Big Lappers consistently report.

These are running costs only. They don’t include the upfront investment in your vehicle, van, and gear. For a total Big Lap cost, add your upfront figure (from the table above) to your running cost total.

A couple with a $40,000 secondhand setup doing a 12-month Lap at $800 per week is looking at roughly $40,000 + $42,000 = $82,000 total. A family with a $100,000 setup doing 9 months at $1,500 per week is around $100,000 + $58,500 = $158,500. These are big numbers, but spread over the time involved, they’re often comparable to (or less than) the cost of staying home once you factor in rent or mortgage, utilities, commuting, and childcare.

The Costs Nobody Warns You About

Beyond the big four (camping, fuel, food, insurance), there are costs that catch almost every Big Lapper off guard at some point.

Repairs and breakdowns. Something will break. A fridge relay, a water pump, a tyre sidewall on a gravel road. Small repairs ($100 to $500) happen regularly. Bigger ones (a new caravan fridge, suspension work, a tow vehicle service) can hit $1,000 to $3,000+. A robust emergency fund is essential.

Tyres. You’ll go through tyres faster than you expect, especially on unsealed roads. A full set of caravan tyres costs $400 to $800. Tow vehicle tyres are $250 to $400 each. Most Big Lappers replace at least one set of tyres during the trip.

Ferry crossings. The Spirit of Tasmania costs $400 to $800+ for a vehicle and caravan, one way. That’s $800 to $1,600 return, plus your time in Tasmania. Not a small addition to the budget.

Tourist attractions. They add up. A Reef snorkelling trip is $150 to $250 per person. Uluru helicopter flights, Kakadu boat cruises, whale watching tours: all $50 to $300 per person per activity. If you’re doing a couple of these a month, that’s $200 to $800 in activities alone.

Alcohol. It sounds trivial, but happy hour is a genuine Big Lap institution, and buying a six-pack or a bottle of wine every few days adds $30 to $60+ per week that rarely makes it into the budget spreadsheet.

Pet costs. If you’re travelling with a dog, vet visits, kennelling for national park days, and pet-friendly park premiums add $20 to $50 per week.

Can You Actually Afford It?

Here’s the thing people don’t say enough: for many Australians, especially homeowners, the Big Lap can be close to cost-neutral. If you rent out your house for $500 to $700 a week while you’re travelling, that income covers a significant chunk of your weekly road costs. Some people come home having spent less overall than they would have staying put, paying a mortgage, running two cars, and covering all the expenses of stationary life.

If you don’t own a home, the equation is different but still manageable. The Big Lap replaces your rent, utilities, commuting costs, and most of your entertainment spending with a single weekly number. For couples, going from $600/week rent plus $200 utilities plus $100 commuting plus $100 entertainment ($1,000/week) down to $800/week on the road is actually a saving.

Working on the road changes everything. Even part-time remote work earning $500 to $1,000 per week turns the Big Lap from “burning through savings” to “mostly self-funding.” There’s a reason the remote work wave has made the Big Lap accessible to a much younger demographic than the traditional grey nomad. For a full breakdown of the options, from remote work to seasonal picking to caravan park management, see our guide to making money on the road.

The honest question isn’t “can you afford to do the Big Lap?” It’s “can you afford the upfront setup, and can you sustain the weekly spend for the duration you want to travel?” If the answer to both is yes, even tightly, you can do it. You don’t need a $150,000 rig to have an incredible trip. Some of the best camps in Australia are free.