Australia on my own, late 50s?

[MsCupcake]

I have a longing to travel, for many years this has not been possible but finances now allow more freedom.

DH isn’t bothered and is more than happy to stay at home. My question, could I hire a camper and tour at least a little bit of Aus? Would it seem weird? (And should I care if it does?)

I am 45, single, but go on holidays alone. I dont care as it means I can do what I want when I want and explore different foods and cultures. I just miss talking to someone at the end of the day to say what I enjoyed etc.

I have met many people who I call friends.

Its not scary or weird and if you went and got called weird who cares? You might regret not going which is worse!

I travelled round Australia on my own in my late 20s, can't see that it would be wildly different tbh. I didn't know a single person on the continent. Stayed in B&Bs and did a few organised trips too eg sailing, trips into the rainforest.
I probably wouldn't drive though. Australia is frigging massive, especially if you aren't sharing the driving. Look up internal flights and scenic trains.
What are you worried about "being weird"?

My question, could I hire a camper and tour at least a little bit of Aus?

Yes you could, but Australia is huge and you'll be driving for hours to get anywhere. Trains and planes and hire a car for the bits in between.

www.virtualoceania.net/australia/maps/how-big-is-australia.shtml

Useful comparison maps here.

I think it sounds great.
I do a lot of things on my own now as my DP is not keen and I just got sick of dragging him to walks, trips etc.
I haven't been as far as Australia..
My sister also travels a lot on her own and she's also in her 50s with a husband, has been to China and Argentina on her own

Similar age OP, but have been fortunate to have visited Oz several times. Everything from backpacking in early 20's, to naice 5-star hotels in Melbourne.
Go for it. Go go go. It is a fab country and while it has it's own culture and lingo, it feels very familiar and manageable for Europeans.

But, dont drive!

It's huge....think 24 hours bus from Cairns to Darwin... or Brisbane to Sydney.
Look at train journeys, or flying. There are some fab train trips along the South coast. City trips, Melbourne +/- Sydney.
Fly to Alice Springs, take a trip to Uluru.

Would funds allow for a package tour in a group?

That’s a useful comparison, thank you.

i was thinking of concentrating on just a small part, maybe South East corner, but I can see that I would miss so much.

Many thanks for the suggestions, there are some great ideas 😀

I think I’m going to enjoy the planning almost as much as the travelling.

Australia is so big that concentrating on a small area makes very good sense. And the planning is half the fun 😀

BTW if you like train journeys can recommend the Indian Pacific Sydney-Perth. Haven't done the Ghan or the Spirit of Queensland, that's in the plan for my retirement trip.

Fly to Perth and drive down and around the south west. There are lovely places there including the Margaret River wine region.
www.australia.com/en-gb/trips-and-itineraries/perth-and-surrounds/14-days-driving-australias-stunning-south-west-corner.html

We've done motorhome between Sydney and Melbourne, it's a nice trip if you spread it out. I'd have 5 days in Sydney then pick up motorhome and take time going to Melbourne. Then drop off motorhome home and have a few days in Melbourne. Then fly back from Melbourne.

I've just joined an over 50's solo women traveller Fb group. I might have to leave again as I am in complete envy looking at pictures of their adventures!

You should watch the Miriam Margolyes documentary for inspiration. She’s travelling solo in a camper van. It’s on iplayer. Well worth a watch, such a fabulous country.

Don't discount Tasmania - it’s stunning and was my most favourite state.

I now have some superb ideas….

Have you considered New Zealand, OP? Hiring a campervan and driving the length and breadth on your own would be completely doable.

I'm 52 and will be in Australia on my own for 3 weeks in March. I'm staying in a mixture of hotels and AirBNBs and hiring a car when I'm outside cities (so in this case, when I'm in Tasmania and Kangaroo Island). I fly into Sydney (have a good friend there), then will head to Tasmania for 8 days, then Adelaide and Kangaroo Island and fly home from Adelaide. My flights are using Avios so Avios flight availability was what dictated me flying back from Adelaide as that wouldn't have been my number one choice (but it means I get to visit Kangaroo Island which I've always wanted to see).

I almost always travel alone. This is my 4th trip to Australia. I've erred away from driving long distances alone as the thought of breaking down in the middle of nowhere alone makes me nervous. So I've happily driven the Great Ocean Road alone (amazing!!) but when I was in the outback around Uluru, I went on organised small group trips instead and I fly between locations rather than drive for days.

I’d def go and tour Australia but would stick to public transport and a few organised tours (good to meet randoms when you’re travelling solo)
wouldn’t fancy driving a camper by myself it’s massive

I'm Australian and grew up in southern NSW. This is a very good plan, you'll see some wonderful country.

Why not? Go for it!

Tasmania is one of my most favourite parts of Australia. I visited the north-west (Penguin, Strahan, Cradle Mountian) for a week previously and in March I'm going back for another week but to this time to the south-east (Hobart, Bicheno, Freycinet, Maria Island). I wish I could spend much longer there. The people are so lovely (it's mainly Australian intrastate tourists plus locals), the food and wine is amazing, stunning scenery, incredible wildlife and the roads are a pleasure to drive. Totally underrated but it's becoming a 'hot' destination for the Aussies due to the gastro scene in Hobart.

Depending what you want to see and how 'different' to England, I'd suggest trying to spend some time in Far North Qld or the NT. You could fly from Sydney or Melb to Darwin at the end of the trip and spend a week up there - very rugged and beautiful, and not at all like home.

I've been here for 12 years now and I love Melbourne, but Victoria especially reminds me a lot of the UK, which might not be what you want of a holiday

Definitely go. But yes as others have said, I've looked into driving in Oz and even though I like driving, don't mind 8 hour driving days it'd be too much for me.

I've known middle aged women to go backpacking round Australia staying in hostels.

Or try WWWWW.

Being a solo traveller is cool but I would definitely stick to main routes if driving on your own. As others have said the distances are vast, I’ve lived here for 15 years and still find it strange that I can be in a plane for five hours and still flying over Australia. If you end up in Sydney PM me. I am a similar age and would be happy to meet up for a glass or two of wine 😊

Thank you so much for the encouragement and ideas.

You have persuaded me that I can do this, now I need to work out finances and logistics - is this a once in a lifetime mega trip or the first of several 🤔 😃 what a great dilemma to have!