Road trips are the ideal way to explore Australia
Here is a list with 10 things which essential are absolutely essential to have with you on a road trip
1. Mobile handsfree
A hands-free car-mount to fix your mobile to the dashboard or windscreen is the first essential on the list. It’s just the best way for using your mobile as a satnav with offline maps. It also prevents you from collecting a hefty fine. Using your phone without an hands-free will cost you (currently) 433 Australian Dollar, making a proper car-mount for your mobile a real bargain.
2. Offline Maps
Google Maps is great but only if you got 3G or 4G reception. But exactly this is DownUnder oftentimes not the case. So if your car doesn’t have a sat-nav you better have offline maps on your phone or tablet. It’s also always good to have them as a back-up. We got two recommendations for offline maps: Link
3. USB-Charger
A mobile with the GPS active draws a lot of power. We recommend a charger with at least two USB outlets. LINK
6. Music and podcast
It’s not only mobile receptions what is oftentimes not available in Australia. Even getting radio reception is oftentimes at least a challenge in the outback. So make sure your mobile or iPod is filled up with your favourite sound tracks and podcasts.
4. Line-In-Cable
It’s again about entertainment.
Most of the older car radios in Australia have a line-in jack. So make sure you got a line -in cable to feed the tunes from your mobile or iPod into your car stereo. Link
7. Extended charger cable
An extended charger cable will help you to keep your device juiced up in the hands-free mount or even on the back seat. The cables from ANKER are very robust, fair in price and up to 3m long: Link
8. Supplies like water, food, fuel and motor oil
Water
Safety first, better carry some extra 5 litres of water rather than running low in the middle of nowhere.
Food and snacks
You should also get a bit extra when you do your food-shopping. So you can stay that day longer at that cool lake you discovered, or take the longer route without starving.
Engine oil
Yes, that dark stuff that goes into the engine. A real backpacker car uses/consumes oil and this needs to be topped up to avoid motor damage and very expensive repairs. Even if it is a rental car it is your responsibility to check the oil-level regularly and to top it up when needed. So, if you clock up a couple of hundred kilometres a day you should check the oil every evening before setting camp or when you top up fuel. So make sure you talk to a mechanic or the check the car owner-manual to get the right oil and know how to top it up.
9. RACV membership – roadside insurance
TheRoyal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV) is the biggest roadside assist service in Australia. A membership runs usually for a year.
10. Travel insurance
Having the right insurance is very important as costs for an emergency are very high in Australia/ But not only in case of a medical emergency a travel insurance can save you from hefty costs. A good insurance can lower your insurance excess for a rental car. So if something goes south by ditching an another car with the rental car the x hundred dollars excess are covered.
If you travel in your own car make sure you got a third-party insurance.