Camping is famously cheap once you've bought the kit — but with fuel, food and firewood prices the way they are, even a simple weekend bush trip can take a real bite out of the wallet. Smart campers stretch every dollar.

Here's the practical guide to driving your camping dollar further: cheaper firewood, group economics, fuel-saving driving habits, and the side hobbies (fishing, foraging) that actually pay for themselves.

Photo by Wietse Jongsma on Unsplash

Firewood at petrol stations and camp kiosks is highway robbery — $20-30 for a small bundle that burns 90 minutes. A weekend's worth of fire = $80-100. Better options:

• Bring your own from home if you've got fallen branches, prunings or leftover construction offcuts. Costs $0
• Detour through a state forest on the way. Most state forests permit personal collection of fallen wood (NEVER cut standing trees, alive or dead). Quick call to the local forestry office confirms current rules
• Buy in bulk from a local farm near the campsite — often half the kiosk price for double the volume
• Briquettes + small kindling stretch your hardwood. A bag of heat beads ($15) plus a smaller hardwood load gets you 3 nights of cooking and ambience
• Honest tip: store firewood under the car overnight in case of rain — dry wood the next morning is gold

• Shared kitchen — one big pot of curry feeds 8 for not much more than feeding 4. Rotate cooking duty
• Shared gear — one big shelter, one camp oven, one large esky between the group
• Shared firewood + fuel — bulk-buy splits cleanly
• Shared kid-watching — couples can take turns supervising the pack of kids while the others fish, walk, or just relax
• Site fees sometimes drop per-head when you book multiple sites together — ask

The bonus: camping with friends is just better. Stories, music, more hands for setup, more company round the fire.

Photo: Trevor McKinnon / Unsplash

Aerodynamic drag increases with the square of speed. Bumping from 110km/h down to 95km/h can cut your fuel burn 10-15%. Real money on a 1000km trip.

• Drop your highway speed 10-15km/h. Get off the freeway, take the back roads, see the country properly
• Accelerate gently — heavy throttle loads the engine, burns more
• Check tyre pressures at every fuel stop. Under-inflated tyres = 5-10% fuel penalty + faster tyre wear
• Use cruise control on flat highways — keeps the right foot honest
• Service before the trip — a clean air filter alone can save 5%
• Lighten the load — every 50kg = ~2% fuel use. Don't pack what you don't need
• Roof box adds 10-30% to fuel use — only fit it if essential
• Plan stops at cheap fuel — apps like FuelMap, MotorMouth, or 7-Eleven Fuel show prices live

A $100 starter rod-and-reel combo pays for itself in two trips of fish dinners. The fishing is also free entertainment for the whole afternoon. See our fishing for beginners guide for the basics.

• Estuary fishing (bays, river mouths) — bream, flathead, whiting, leatherjacket. Easy, calm, productive. Target channels, weed beds, drop-offs
• Beach fishing — tailor, salmon, mulloway (jewfish), flathead, snapper. Long rod required to cast through the surf. Cast into gutters and channels
• Lake / dam fishing — many state-stocked Family Fishing dams cost nothing or just a licence. Trout, redfin, bass
• Always check the local bag and size limits before keeping anything. Penalties dwarf the savings

A basic tackle box for under $50: extra line, knife, needle-nose pliers, floats, sinkers, swivels, hooks, bait. Plus first aid, torch, bucket, soap (scent-free), sunscreen, repellent.

Photo: Dylan Shaw / Unsplash

• Free camps — Wikicamps shows thousands of free + low-cost bush camps. Crown land, free-camp areas, trucker rest stops, showgrounds (often $5-10 for power)
• National Parks — typically $10-15 per site, beautiful country, often the best camping in the area
• Conservation parks + state forests — typically free or $5
• Caravan parks — $35-60+ per night. Convenient (showers, laundry, power) but expensive. Use sparingly to clean up between bush camps
• Hipcamp — Airbnb for camping. Private landowners, often $20-30 per night, often beautiful and uncrowded

• Pre-cook + freeze meals at home — defrost on day 1 (becomes ice for the esky), reheat as dinner. Way cheaper than buying premade camp meals
• Buy bulk groceries at home, NOT at the small-town IGA where prices are 30% higher
• Bring full water + fuel from home — often cheaper than topping up rurally
• Library books for the trip — beats buying paperbacks
• Buy gear second-hand — Marketplace + Gumtree are full of barely-used tents, swags, fridges from people who decided camping wasn't for them
• Maintain your gear — properly cleaned and stored gear lasts 10+ years; neglected gear lasts 2-3
• Solar panel + auxiliary battery — once installed, all your power is free. Pays back in saved generator fuel + caravan park fees

Camping is one of the cheapest holidays going — but only if you plan it that way. Bring your own firewood, share with friends, slow down on the highway, fish for your dinner, stay at free or low-cost camps, and pre-cook your meals.

Done well, a 4-night family camping trip costs less than ONE night at a city hotel. That's the magic of the lifestyle — and the savings buy you the next trip.