Britz campervan hire Nullarbor: crossing the big, flat bit properly

The Nullarbor is not a neat weekend loop unless your idea of a weekend involves 2,400 km and suspicious instant coffee. Most travellers collect in Adelaide or Perth, then cross between Ceduna in South Australia and Norseman in Western Australia. That Ceduna-to-Norseman section is roughly 1,200 km of Eyre Highway, roadhouses and sky.

A one-way hire can make sense if you are stitching this into a Big Lap or an Adelaide-to-Perth run. A return trip suits grey nomads with time, but build in rest days; the place looks empty until you stop and hear it.

• Minimum sensible crossing: 3 days Ceduna to Norseman.
• Comfortable pace: 5 to 7 days with Head of Bight, Eucla and Esperance.
• Adelaide to Perth: allow 10 to 14 days if you want more than fuel receipts.
• Do: check availability online early for one-way dates and vehicle size.
• Do not: plan your first night 700 km from pickup unless you enjoy learning in the dark.

The Eyre Highway is sealed all the way across, so a Britz campervan Nullarbor crossing is generally 2WD-friendly. The famous 90 Mile Straight is 146.6 km with no bends worth bragging about. It sounds easy until a crosswind starts shoving a high-roof motorhome around like a shopping trolley.

Road trains can run more than 50 metres long. Give them room, hold your line, and do not overtake unless you can see a very long way ahead. Dawn and dusk are kangaroo, emu and wombat hours; hitting wildlife in a hired motorhome is a rotten way to meet your excess.

• Speed limit: usually 110 km/h, but 90 to 100 km/h is often kinder on fuel and nerves.
• Road surface: sealed highway; lookout tracks may be gravel or corrugated.
• Wind: strongest on exposed cliff sections and open plains.
• Night driving: avoid it; wildlife and fatigue are the two big pests.
• Do: pull well off the road for photos, not half on the shoulder.

On a map, the Nullarbor roadhouses look close enough. In a headwind, watching the fuel gauge drop, they feel like they were placed by a bloke with a cruel sense of humour. The biggest common fuel gaps are around 180 to 191 km, including Balladonia to Norseman and Nullarbor Roadhouse to Border Village.

Remote fuel can be painful, often sitting around $2.20 to $3.00 per litre depending on season and supply. Fill at Ceduna or Norseman, then top up often. A britz motorhome Nullarbor trip is not the place to test the last eighth of a tank.

• Main fuel points: Ceduna, Penong, Nundroo, Nullarbor Roadhouse, Border Village, Eucla, Mundrabilla, Madura, Cocklebiddy, Caiguna, Balladonia, Norseman.
• Water: fill before you leave Ceduna or Norseman; ask before using roadhouse taps.
• LPG swap/refill: more reliable in larger towns; do not assume every roadhouse can sort your bottle.
• Rule of thumb: refill at half a tank, especially into wind.
• Do not: rely on mobile reception to find the next servo. Download maps offline.

You can mix holiday parks, roadhouse caravan areas and free roadside camps. Powered sites are handy after a hot day when the fridge has been working hard and everyone wants a proper shower. Free camps are part of the Nullarbor charm, but they are not an excuse to scatter grey water, toilet paper or bottle-o evidence across the scrub.

Stay in signed areas, obey local restrictions, and keep well back from the Bunda Cliffs. Limestone edges can undercut; your van is not a feather. In national parks and conservation areas, dogs may be banned and generators restricted, so read the signs before unpacking the chairs.

• Powered options: Ceduna, Penong, Nullarbor Roadhouse, Border Village, Eucla, Madura, Norseman.
• Free camping: use established rest areas and signed cliff camps only where permitted.
• Dump points: plan around Ceduna, Eucla or Norseman, and use caravan park facilities when staying there.
• Waste: carry rubbish to the next town; bins can be scarce or overflowing.
• Do: arrive before sunset so you can see slope, soft sand and cliff distance.

The trick with the Nullarbor is not to treat it as dead space between better places. Head of Bight is the big-ticket stop from June to October, when southern right whales often cruise close to the cliffs. Entry fees apply, and it is worth timing your drive so you are not rushing the boardwalk before closing.

Eucla has old telegraph station ruins half-swallowed by sand, which is exactly the sort of thing that makes you forgive the flies. The Bunda Cliffs look best in low light, but do not camp right on the lip. Out here, a million-dollar view still comes with zero guard rail.

• Head of Bight: whale watching season usually June to October.
• Bunda Cliffs: dramatic lookouts; stay back from edges and use signed tracks.
• Eucla dunes: short sandy walk to the old telegraph station ruins.
• 90 Mile Straight: take the silly sign photo, then keep moving.
• Nullarbor Links: golf holes at roadhouses if you like your sport with flies and road dust.

Crossing into Western Australia means quarantine checks. Fresh fruit, vegetables, honey, seeds and some plants can be restricted, so do not stock the fridge in Ceduna like you are feeding a shearing team unless you are happy to surrender half of it at the border.

Summer can push above 40°C, and winter nights can be surprisingly cold. After rain, dirt tracks to lookouts can turn greasy or corrugated. Your hire terms may restrict unsealed roads, beach driving and remote tracks, so treat side missions with suspicion unless they are signed, dry and permitted.

• Best season: April to October for cooler driving; June to October for whales.
• Heat: carry at least 10 litres of drinking water per person in reserve.
• Quarantine: check WA border rules before shopping for fresh food.
• Vehicle height: know your clearance before pulling into old bowsers, shade sails or low trees.
• Do not: take a rental motorhome onto beaches or rough tracks just because a ute did.