RV FEATURE
I’ ve been writing about the Australian caravan and camping industry and lifestyle for close to 20 years. In that time, I’ ve seen them weather boom and bust cycles, financial crises, a pandemic and so much more.
Through it all, one fact has been made clear over and again: the industry benefits from a built-in resilience to hard times. At our core, Australians are an adventurous lot, fortunate to live in a diverse country that can be explored on one one passport, with one currency. An entire continent, all to ourselves.
When the economic proverbial hits the fan, reminding us that life and money are never guaranteed, it spurs a desire to travel while we can. Some cash out their super to live the retirement of their dreams; others buy what they can afford. Zoom out, and I think you’ ll find that what we really want to do is to see this storied land before it’ s too late.
Imported vans continue to make up a huge section of the market.
LARGER VANS PREFERRED?
A new report from the Caravan and Camping Industry Association of Australia, however, has revealed a mixed bag. On the one hand, overall production of RVs decreased, but visitation to caravan parks increased significantly in some areas.
Context matters a great deal. 2025 was a year of persistent cost-ofliving pressures, meaning that discretionary spending was measured, despite an easing of interest rates. But the Caravan and Camping State of the Industry Report 2026 nonetheless details a pretty robust landscape under the circumstances. While outbound international travel grew by 11 per cent, the domestic visitor economy still recorded 17.3 million overnight trips, 57.9 million visitor nights and $ 12.6 billion in expenditure.
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