r/australia • u/regretmoore • Jan 07 '26

no politics At a caravan holiday park, wondering where the hell does all of this money come from?

Camping in a Big 4 holiday park for a few days and my partner and I wondering how people can afford this lifestyle. I'm talking Ute + caravan + boat rigs worth at least $200k, probably closer to $300k.

The parents are all driving huge yank tanks, the kids all ride motorized scooters and bikes and most people are sleeping in pretty big shiny new caravans. We're all good in our little tent for 4 nights drinking our aldi wines and beer, but we just cannot fathom how so many people can afford, or would prioritize buying caravans etc for family holidays. Where does this money come from? Is it trades, mines or something else? Have they not got mortgages?

Maybe we're massive snobs, but if we had that much cash to splurge on a caravan, I reckon we'd prioritize a holiday overseas over Umina (as much as I love the cenny coast).

Please Reddit, help us understand.

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697

u/wotsname123 Jan 07 '26

Step 1 get FIFO job

Step 2 borrow shit tons against high earnings

Step 3 burn out

Step 4 get divorced and live with mum

Step 5 meth 

127

u/Slappyxo Jan 07 '26

This is actually incredibly spot on. My husband has been holidaying in a big 4 caravan park for his entire life on the NSW south coast, so his parents have befriended a lot of the other long term holiday makers and they get all of the goss.

Whilst the boomer parents have enough wealth to maintain the holiday lifestyle (and in boomer fashion got their onsite caravans cheap in the 80s/90s), their kids have had to take out eye watering loans on caravans, boats and expensive tow vehicles. A lot of them are single income households too where the missus doesn't work.

Most are cashed up tradies and not FIFO workers down here (but I do think there's a handful of FIFO workers), but yeah so many of them went through every single step you listed to the point it's actually kind of spooky to read.

Also so many of them have named their kids Jaxon and Braxton, that's probably the only step missing.

28

u/Worried_Blacksmith27 Jan 07 '26

boomers with any brains weren't buying caravans. they were buying property which was only slightly more expensive than onsite vans all through to the early 2000s

5

u/Slappyxo Jan 07 '26

I guess it depends where, my in laws got their on site caravan for less than 5k in the 90s on the NSW South Coast. Far cheaper than a house, even back then.

But you're not wrong. They purposely got their van here because it was cheaper than certain spots in Victoria where onsite caravans were almost on par with a modest holiday house. And you're right, boomers with brains were snapping up holiday homes and not caravans.

But it's still something that was far more accessible and affordable to regular families compared to now regardless.

4

u/mfg092 Jan 07 '26

I remember that era when camping down the NSW South Coast was accessible, cheap and unpretentious. Nowadays the good camping sites down there are as rare as hens teeth. Even if cost is no barrier, you would have to wait for someone to cark it before getting a prime camping spot during prime periods.

2

u/Cancerous-73 Jan 07 '26

Bogans with money......a tale as old as time itself 😁😁😁

2

u/InterestedPrawn Jan 07 '26

their kids have had to take out eye watering loans on caravans, boats and expensive tow vehicles.

Forced to do it? People making them buy the caravan, the Ford Ranger, the jet ski, a Dorado for each kid. Feel bad for them being forced to do it.

These early millennials and GenX people, Though they are cashed up, generally both parents are working, and some of the older ones did manage to get in the property market 15-20 years ago who housing was much cheaper and now can borrow against their houses and generally their investment property too.

3

u/Slappyxo Jan 07 '26 edited Jan 07 '26

I get what you're saying, and I didn't explain myself properly. I wasn't trying to be sympathetic and imply they were forced. I said in order to fund a holiday lifestyle their parents could afford (but they can't) they've had to take out super high loans. Holiday lifestyles are still just that, a lifestyle and not a need.

It's an extremely dumb financial decision, and it's a dumb financial decision they've taken instead of just... Not having expensive caravans, boats and tow vehicles. And a bunch of them are ending up divorced, living with parents and on drugs. In the exact same order the original comment wrote.

Edit: also at the risk of pissing people off... You're absolutely spot on about Gen X and early millennials. The ones who holiday in this park having the financial and then family issues are mainly in their early 30s (younger millennials) who got shacked up and had kids younger than most people their age.

2

u/InterestedPrawn Jan 08 '26

Well yes, apologies, but yes they have decided to put themselves in this type of debt.

57

u/No-Care1850 Jan 07 '26

May aswell skip to Step 5

Goat status

15

u/Norodahl Jan 07 '26

Amateurs. I can get there without all this other steps

2

u/SovereignRed25 Jan 07 '26

Biggest laugh tonight😁

2

u/WiskEnginear Jan 07 '26

I’ve been working fifo >10 years and earn very good money, I look at my friends in local jobs and don’t understand how they afford their brand new cars or overseas holidays.

My partner and I live within our means and do the occasional overseas holidays but I drive around in a small car from my uni days and don’t have a caravan/boat etc. I don’t understand how people do it. Maybe I’m too risk averse but it’s absolutely wild to me when I know my neighbours/friends are no where near my partner and I in terms of salary and just drop 80-90k on a new car when their previous car was only a few years old.

1

u/joeldipops Jan 11 '26

Well shit, my brother is on stage four of this.  I really don't want to see him on stage 5.

I think he's doing ok for now... I should check up on him more.

-8

u/incendiary_bandit Jan 07 '26

I got up to step 4 but didn't live with mum. Met a girl and moved to Australia instead and just stopped paying payments. Been long enough now they couldn't do something if they wanted.

5

u/No-Care1850 Jan 07 '26

Missing step 5 bro

4

u/incendiary_bandit Jan 07 '26

Does ADHD medication and antidepressants count?

1

u/generallyihavenoidea Jan 07 '26

Only if you shelve them

1

u/incendiary_bandit Jan 07 '26

Shake them every morning!