RV FEATURE
THE WASH-UP
Anecdotally, 2025 was a tough year for a lot of operators in this industry, and 2026 has only proven to be more difficult. Yet, this report indicates that – from a wider perspective – interest in the lifestyle did not wane. People were still buying caravans, holiday parks were still bustling, and tourism dollars still flowed to regional communities.
As we know, Iran’ s throttling of a large portion of the world’ s oil supply has thrown a spanner in the works this year, increasing the cost per kilometre of travel, causing people to redirect their holidays locally or to cancel them for fear they’ ll become stranded. While fuel for now seems stable and the price per litre has fallen, we’ re a long way from being out of the woods. Further, confidence is in short supply, considering who’ s in charge: one an irrational narcissist who may or may not be suffering from dementia, the other a madman who has wanted this war for longer than I’ ve been writing about caravans.
And yet … the hunger for our way of life endures. It can be witnessed at regional caravan shows, which continue to be well attended, or in holiday parks around the country. Pockets of the industry have suffered, while others have had to adjust to remain viable, and others have fallen by the wayside entirely.
But the numbers indicate resilience. As I said at the beginning of this screed, when the economic chips are down, Australians extend a metaphorical middle finger. We understand we have the best backyard of all, and that we only get one life with which to explore it.
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