Jayco Newcastle Blog

There’s no better feeling than cracking our Jayco Journey Outback out of storage to set her up for a getaway. This time, we had packed in record time and the kids were nagging to get going… The only problem was that we weren’t booked in until the following day.

It’s 2 pm Good Friday and the caravan park is over 5 hours away. We hop onto wiki camps and decided to pick a rest stop halfway to get going and test our baby off-grid. We headed up the freeway and arrived at Johns River Rest Stop at dark. The place was quiet and spacious and the fella on the end of their phone number was friendly and extremely accommodating. There was no need to unhook, we just jumped into our home on wheels. We had hot water for a shower, the TV was cranking, lights were on – all without power. The beauty of a Jayco Journey Outback model.

We were up and off at sunrise the next day, headed to Ingenia Holiday Park South West Rocks. Not before I drop our brand-new Go Pro Hero 9 right near the wheels of our caravan and drive over it. Maybe next time I buy a Go-Pro I’ll get to use it!

Anyway – after a million “are we there yets” and a decent coffee or 4, we found the park. We headed to our site and what a bloody jackpot. A large drive-through site, double slabbed under a beautiful tree. The pool and waterslide were right behind us and the river in front of us. Park roads looped around our site so eyes were on the kids at all times when they were riding bikes and scooters. Yep – this was home for the next 4 nights.

Ingenia put on an absolute blast of a time over Easter. We watched local aboriginal performances, were visited by the Easter Bunny, played chocolate bingo, and enjoyed the water slides and pool. We paddled up and down the river every day, jumping off the jetty bridges and fished for hours.

The local pubs put on an amazing feed and have Canadian Club Dry on tap (if that is a game-changer for anyone like myself).  The salted caramel gelato at Chillatis is the best ice cream I’ve ever had in my life. Read that sentence again. Big call that I’m willing to make. I’m happy to travel 6 hours for another scoop of that.

We highly recommend visiting Little Bay and Smokey Cape – beautiful local spots that just scream history. We’re so excited to head back to see Trial Bay Gaol and all it has to offer as well.

We loved Ingenia South West Rocks so much that we have booked a cabin and two sites for the whole family to join us next Easter. Absolutely loved it. 10/10.

Where: Ingenia South West Rocks- Gordon Young Dr, South West Rocks NSW 2431
Cost: $442 for 4 nights over Easter
Amenities: Powered site with water. Shower, toilets, and laundry available. Games room for the kids and a camp kitchen with barbecues and microwaves for those who camp light. Amazing pool and slide for the kids and a local boat ramp for access to the river.
Tips:

• The park backs onto the river canal which is amazing to paddle up to the jetty and bridge to the beach, a local favourite to jump off during high tide. There is a local bike track that links to the local roads heading into the wading river canal and bridges as well.
• If you’re after a campfire beside your van, the park hires out fire pits that they deliver to your campsite providing there isn’t a complete fire ban, something our family really loves having when the temperature drops.
• The local pub, Seabreeze Beach Hotel provides an awesome family environment for a pub dinner and to catch up on the footy. Also, don’t leave without trying the local gelatos at Chillatis!