The eucalyptus forests in Blue Mountains and white sand beaches in Jervis Bay are just a few places travellers love visit in New South Wales. Lately though, these spots are filled with smoke or even wiped out completely by fires. Travelling Australia with bush fires can become more difficult as such.
Although it may seem like the entire country is on fire, it’s not a reason to postpone or cancel plans to see certain places. Unless they’re closed due to fires—which is indisputable.
Being in the middle of many of these bush fires, it’s hard to even know what to do. Fire fighters and life saving services are doing their best to maintain fires and help the public. But the dry, hot and windy weather mixed with years of drought—in some areas—have resulted in a nearly impossible battle to stop the fires.
Most of the bush fires in Australia are focused around coastal regions, which effect a lot of travellers doing coastal trips. To help for those concerned travellers, I’m sharing tips on travelling safely Australia with bush fires.
Table of Contents
Check bush fires status online
There’s a few different ways to check the status of bush fires online. The easiest is through the Google Maps app on your phone, but this app has limitations. It normally just shows where the fire is, but no information on where it spans or its state. This is when the Fire Services websites and apps work better.
In NSW, the app is Fires Near Me NSW, but it can also be viewed on the website. Southern Australia has its own website, the South Australian Country Fire Services. And, in Queensland check the government’s Rural Fire Services site. These are just a few of the states where bush fires are taking place, check online for other states if that’s where you’re travelling.
Be aware and cautious
When travelling through Australia with bush fires, it’s important to be aware of what’s going on where and when. It’s one thing to check the status on fires, but new and current fires can start or expand at any time. If there’s a lot of smoke in the area where you are, ask tourist information centers, other campers (if you’re at a campsite) or even locals about where it’s coming from.
This can prevent from surprises and mistakes in coming across other fires. The problem with the hot, dry Australian summer is it creates a sporadic environment for bush fires—especially when there’s so many around already.
Plan ahead
With the sporadic nature of bush fires in Australia, plan your trip around the fires. This can prevent ending up somewhere that you can’t get to and offers time to plan alternative routes, if necessary. Many highways have been temporarily shut-down due to bush fires.
Same goes for some national parks and free campgrounds near or around high-risk areas with fires nearby. Check online before showing up with nowhere to stay.
While there are signs and alerts highways are closed, it is possible to miss these signs and end up somewhere you shouldn’t be. If you’re worried of this check the news before heading out. As for bookings, most tours and accommodations don’t offer refunds for no-shows due to natural disasters. Try booking closer to the date than risk losing your money.
Be (extra) prepared
Being prepared for encountering bush fires is similar to other natural disasters—but hopefully not as extreme. This doesn’t mean getting equipped with emergency fire-fighting gear. But, to avoid added stress, pack extra food and water in case there’s traffic delays or highway shutdowns due to bush fires.
Whether you’re travelling Australia by bus or vehicle, problems can arise across the board. Something else to consider is your budget, keep some savings in case your ride falls through from the fires and you have to stay another night at a hostel.
Follow officials and evacuation orders
Many people choose to ignore evacuation orders and official notices about bush fires. More often for long-term residents who don’t want to lose their home over travellers. Either way, don’t give it a second thought. Evacuation orders are put in place for a reason. Ignoring these safety notices just to see a landmark or other tourist point isn’t worth it.
Another point on respecting official notices and evacuation notices isn’t even about the safety of the people. When people linger in an area after these notices, it creates more work for life-saving services. These resources should be focused on reducing the impact of bush fires, rather than saving people that don’t listen.
Understand the risk
During a challenging time travelling Australia, understanding the risk is key. Travellers can plan accordingly by understanding the risk of fires, which is really just the unpredictability. Often if a highway is shut down, there may not be any other way to get where you’re going—without waiting.
Even if you’re not in close proximity with a fire, the smoke can be dangerous. In Sydney, the smoke from bush fires was so bad at one point, it was on par with smoking 30 cigarettes a day. For travellers with underlying medical conditions, travelling Australia with this smoke could be a problem. Even if you’re healthy, it’s best to avoid exercising outdoors with excess smoke in the air.
Travelling Australia by vehicle? Check out my tips for purchasing a vehicle to travel the country and understanding Australian vehicle insurance.
