Camplify Uncovered: weekend in Sunshine Coast Hinterland

Travel looks a little bit different in 2021. These days it’s less about the long haul, and more about the short stays, local adventures and exploring your own backyard.

Recently Hannah and I wanted to embrace a local stay in our very own way with a long weekend stay in the stunning Hinterland of the Sunshine Coast. With big ambitions to one day do the big lap of Australia in an off-grid camper, we have always wanted to try out our very own home on wheels.

Our Camplify experiment

What better way to discover what our needs might be than to have a test run through Camplify. Feeling inspired by the recent resurgence of the classic road trip, there was no better time to get a feel for it and try out all the different vehicles that are available to help us make an informed decision about how we approach our future travel plans. The very first thing we did (after drooling over vanlife and off-grid camping inspo) was to jump onto Camplify and pick out our vehicle.

The handover

The van of choice: a Jayco J-Pod Outback. Perfect for long-distance touring due to its off-road capabilities and fully functional off-grid set up, and equally as perfect for exploring close to home for the weekend! Destination - Maleny.

The handover process was as seamless as we have come to expect from Camplify. Julie from Leisure Caravans met us at her property on the Northside of Brisbane before running us through the van, hooking us up to the tow and sending us on our way.

Huge thanks to Julie for being so very helpful and an all-around legend! With only a quick 1-hour drive ahead of us it didn't take long to get a feel for the tow and were soon on the highway and heading North. The J-Pod towed like a dream, even with a midsize SUV.

Our location for the weekend - Riverdell at Maleny.

Riverdell is a private camping property and working farm, so we were surrounded by nothing but rolling hills, open skies, bunya trees and cattle for the weekend.

The trickiest part was navigating to our site which was halfway down a treacherously steep farm track, but once again the J-pod proved itself as a fantastic off-road camper and did not miss a beat driving down the property and down to our site.

After arriving fairly early in the afternoon, we allowed ourselves plenty of time to get set up in the prime position, explore the features of the trailer, get a roaring fire going and sit back and relax with the sunset over the valley. With views across the Blackall Range right down through the valley towards Nambour, Mooloolaba and Coolum, we were treated to one of the best views on the Sunshine Coast.

Maleny is a very popular location for weekend trips, day trips and more, and offers amazing views in every direction. It is such an ideal location if you’re wanting to base yourself right in the heart of the hinterland. The drives that traverse the range are stunning in their own right and each town on the range has its own unique charm. Make sure to stop into the towns and support local businesses while you’re up there, there are some truly hidden gems. Not to mention the beautiful national parks and waterfalls just a stone's throw away from Maleny.

The J-Pod

Our J-pod was fantastically equipped and very comfortable for such a small and compact trailer/van. The J-Pod is far from your conventional camper trailer, it is almost in its own category.

The main ‘pod’ is primarily occupied by a large double bed with a huge storage vestibule underneath, an AC powered fridge, additional storage and room to sit/stand. The rest of the action happens outside of the pod: the kitchen is entirely modular and slides out, as do the awnings and shower ensuite. This frees up the inside of the pod and keeps the size down, whilst still retaining all the convenience of a ‘caravan’.

The best thing - no need to set up or pack down, no tents involved, and complete protection from the elements if the weather turns. The set up process is as simple as unhooking from your car, pulling out the awning and you’re ready for a cold one by the fire in no time.

We absolutely loved the fact that the rear of the trailer opened right up, as opposed to other ‘pod style’ trailers out there which typically have a much smaller, side opening door. We loved being able to open the rear tailgate right up and enjoy views from bed. It also just opened the space right up and made it feel extremely spacious. This thing is much smaller than you might imagine based on how much is packed into such a small package!

The ‘outback’ model of the J-Pod has the added advantages of being equipped with large offroad tires and a hefty suspension system to be able to traverse rougher roads to see some of the best that Australia has to offer, which we love. One day we hope to be able to hit the road in a camper of our own, so trying out this model was such a great experience for us.

The versatility of Camplify

With the recently changed attitudes towards domestic travel, we loved being able to use this time to explore things a little closer to home whilst also experiencing a myriad of different camping styles with the help of Camplify.

With larger motorhomes, smaller compact vans, 'Troopys', rooftop tents, camper trailers, off-grid campers and more, we have so many things to consider ahead of our own big lap but we are embracing it and looking forward to exploring all the amazing locations that South East Queensland has to offer in the process.

The variety of vehicles and styles of campers available on Camplify is endless. Being able to conduct our own research, pick a vehicle for each individual adventure and try it out for a short local trip is so helpful in determining what our eventual needs would be before committing to our own van! After booking a few more adventures I feel confident we will have made the best decision on a van, and when we aren't using it we might even Camplify it out ourselves to help pay it of, win/win!

Many thanks again to Leisure Caravans for making our trip a smooth and successful one, for anyone in Brisbane we can highly recommend them!