This year, we collaborated with Mandy and Rolly from Memories Not Money, a family documenting and sharing their experiences traveling around Australia. They’ve visited the  Big Red Bash 5 times, and 2024 was their 6th.

Here is what they have to say about driving to and attending the BRB.

Driving to:

Preparation is Key

Driving to Birdsville requires meticulous planning. Ensure your vehicle is in top condition, and pack essentials such as spare tires, air filters, oil filters, fuel and fuel filters, water, and food. Navigating the challenging outback roads demands preparation for potential breakdowns or emergencies

Check over everything, it’s a big journey, so you want to ensure your tires, roof racks, and bolts look good. Check your brakes and prep for rocks by covering electric and water pipes with pool noodles or similar. Here is another tip, if you are driving a wagon, place cardboard or similar ( a yoga mat works) over the back windscreen to prevent rocks from kicking up and smashing it as you drive.

Fuel & other resources

Map your trip. Know km’s between fuel stops and possible camps for the night. Carry extra fuel. We recommend filling up every time you see fuel once you’re out there, if you see a station, fill up, just to keep yourself covered.

Make sure your water tanks are full. You can fill up along the way once you are out there. Once you get to Birdsville, you’ll find there are taps everywhere. But there can be lines for these, just be patient!

Attending: 

Pack clothes you can layer as the temps at Birdsville go up and down. A jacket and beanie are helpful. Have good shoes you are comfortable in, you will do a lot of walking. Bring a type of lip balm you prefer as its likely you’ll get chapped lips!

Bring lots of wipes! Even if you have a shower in your van, wipes are so handy for quick clean ups and a refresh.

Bring a boogie board. Kids (and big kids) will have a ball sliding down the sand dunes.

Walkie talkie! Handy to be in contact with other vehicles while traveling and also with your kids while out at the Bash.

Good walking shoes! You will do a lot of walking. Bring Mud Boots for rainy weather.

Pre-order your firewood. You don’t have to have a firepit out there to have a fire, you can have the fire directly on the ground. 

Bring all of your own alcohol. No glass allowed out of your camp kitchen. Bring an esky (we have a backpack esky) to cart your drinks up to the main stage. There is the famous country pub at Birdsville which can be nice to head in and try out. It’s nice to get out and support these small regional towns as much as you can.

There are plenty of food vendors out there to try. You can plan to buy one meal a day and bring the rest, or buy it all. Whatever suits you best. There is a servo in Birdsville that has all your general grocery items, from meat to dry goods.

Bring Cash! A lot of the food vendors only accept cash. The merch tent has EFTPOS.

Check out Many and Rolly’s channel Memories Not Money here: http://www.youtube.com/@memoriesnotmoney

Please note, that the advice given in this article is general and may not be tailored to you. Always keep in contact with local and regional authorities and ensure you are well prepared to take a multi-day journey into the outback.