Camper/4WD Transport options for Kimberley Trip

[Jaysea]

We live in Sydney and had planned to do the Kimberleys next year. Plan was originally to get to Katherine quickly - about 7 days - we have done NT Darwin already) then spend about 5 weeks to Perth before doing a dash back to Sydney.  What was going to take me about 7-8 weeks  (family less as they were going to fly to Darwin then out of Perth) has become a problem as I now can't take that amount of time off work.

I can probably stretch 5 weeks so was thinking about trucking camper and 4WD to Darwin and then similar from Perth back to Sydney to maximise time in WA.  I know it won't be cheap but we really want to get to the Kimberleys before the kids get into serious study at school.

While I know there are companies that truck empty cars/trailers it seems there is a problem when they are loaded.

I would also consider paying someone to drive it if that was possible but not sure implications and where to start.

Any bright ideas apart from quit work now or do it when we are grey nomads?

[lincolnland]

Whats tour tow vehicle and what are you towing?

[edz]

Could you do the trip in reverse by sending the rig and trailer by rail to Perth then rail it back to Sydney from Katherine or Alice Springs on the return leg.
We looked at doing a similar thing once from Brisbane to Cairns for a Cape trip [ vehicles only though ] From memory it was about $400+ per vehicle .
Found this http://www.railmaps.com.au/motorail.htm

[marvellous_matt]

I know a few people that have moved vehicles to and from ALice Springs, something the transport companies insist on is having them empty, although I know when you break down and require moving it does not seem to matter. Just some food for thought.

[Jaysea]

Whats tour tow vehicle and what are you towing?

Prado and adventure camper trailer. 

I had a quick look at rail option but they don't go from Sydney - only Adelaide Perth and Adelaide Darwin.

[Nifty1]

I wrestle with the same dilemma, and sometimes wonder about the practicality of doing a share trip - you drive it over and do the Kimberley (forget the long drive to Perth) and fly back, then have a trusted accomplice/swagger take over, do their own Kimberley trip, and drive it all back for you. Another option is to hire someting locally I guess, but half the enjoyment is using your own rig.

[lowflyer]

I've used Openica Transport http://www.opsl.com.au/ a couple of times now, transporting between Perth and Townsville. Pretty sure they will come up to Port Hedland (where I am now) and the let you have your vehicle loaded.

[Jaysea]

I've used Openica Transport http://www.opsl.com.au/ a couple of times now, transporting between Perth and Townsville. Pretty sure they will come up to Port Hedland (where I am now) and the let you have your vehicle loaded.

Thanks lowflyer

I have sent them an email requesting a quote


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[peter_mcc]

We looked around for a cheap way to get our Prado and Tvan from Sydney to Perth recently and couldn't find anything economical.
The car wasn't too bad - $1200-$1500 from memory. The Tvan was more like $2500. I couldn't find anyone who would take them together - they wanted to send them separately and so the Tvan was a hassle because it didn't have a "motor". Some people were going to put it on a truck, some in a container and then by sea.

Loading the camper trailer should be ok because they don't need to get into it. I think the issue with loaded cars is you may claim they have stolen something at the other end and they have no way of proving they didn't - easier for them to force you to have it empty.

I gather Perth-Sydney is cheaper because most of the road freight goes the other way so people are looking for a load back.

We ended up getting some friends to take it to Perth for us - they are almost there. You have to be happy entrusting your vehicle to someone else and there is a risk they will have an accident but we decided it was worth the risk. They lent us their BT-50 and I had an accident in it on the weekend (reversed into someone because I find it really hard to see out the back) so the risk goes both ways 

Another possible starting point might be Alice Springs - I'm flying our family back from there and got Qantas Frequent Flyer tickets cheaply (18k pts x $50 taxes per person). From there you can go up the Tanami Track to Halls Creek/Bungle Bungles and onwards to the Kimberley. Alice is a bit closer to Sydney - you could drive back in 3 days if pushed.

[Bird]

The car wasn't too bad - $1200-$1500 from memory. The Tvan was more like $2500.

I reckon you could ship car/trailer to NZ for less than that.

[speewa158]

Having traveled through WA from Perth up ,it will be better to reduce the scale of the trip to a smaller area . SYD through the Kimberly to Broome will cover your 5 to 6 weeks easily the rest of WA can wait till you are Grey Nomads . Sitting at home looking at maps on the kitchen table & planning from there is Cool .
lf you want to see anything then reduce the area you wish to cover to a smaller area then you will enjoy your trip more .
Don't bite off more than you can Chew                   
Having lived & worked in the Kimberly  , l know that a map will tell you which way to go . Maps wont tell you just how tuff it is to get there          

[Jaysea]

We looked around for a cheap way to get our Prado and Tvan from Sydney to Perth recently and couldn't find anything economical. .......

Thanks Peter for your feedback.  It definitely is a challenge. I think the option of a friend who is willing to drive it over is probably the best but unfortunately I've got no takers. If only I could retire early ??

[peter_mcc]

Thanks Peter for your feedback.  It definitely is a challenge. I think the option of a friend who is willing to drive it over is probably the best but unfortunately I've got no takers. If only I could retire early ??

You need more friends 

Some suggestions:
- don't sell it as "drive our car to Perth" - sell it as a family adventure across the Nullabor and South West WA with a car/camper provided. Give the family 2-3 weeks to do it so they can have a proper adventure on the way over. Some people we ran it past thought it was it was a daft idea - who'd want to drive all that way. Some thought it was an interesting concept but it didn't fit their holiday plans. And, in our case, one family thought it was a great idea and are having a fantastic adventure at the moment.
- organise a camping weekend with people from school and tell everyone in your kids classes they are welcome to come (including telling their friends). You'll get to go camping (yeah) and might meet another family who are interested.
- If you end up having to drive it yourself consider flying the family to somewhere cheap (Perth/Alice Springs/Darwin) - you can make a lot more progress each day if you don't have the kids in the back complaining. Google Maps says it's 40hrs driving to Perth - if you left on a Friday afternoon you'd be there Monday night (and probably reasonably tired)

[mudge1]

I would be interested in doing a delivery, depending on dates etc


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[speewa158]

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