Meet the ultimate grey nomads

When Ronan received the phone call that changed his and his wife Maura’s lives, he was, in his own words, “absolutely thrilled”.

A representative from Play for Purpose had rung to say they’d won first prize in Raffle 19, valued at $250,000, including a Volkswagen Crafter Kampervan and more than $100,000 in cashable gold bullion.

At National Seniors Australia (NSA), we were also delighted because, from a list of other worthy charities he could have supported in the raffle, Ronan chose to buy his entry through us.

Under Play for Purpose rules, $5 from every $10 ticket purchased through NSA goes directly to support our advocacy work on behalf of older Australians.

Ronan’s life-changing phone call came back in March 2023, and after a few months of preparation, the couple, from Manly NSW, set off to put their prize to good use.

Since then, they’ve travelled around the country, and they have big plans to keep going.

“We left the Gold Coast in August 2023, travelled north to Mackay, west to Longreach, Kununurra, Broome, Perth, Esperance and [we’re now in] South Australia,” Ronan said recently.

“There are many things we enjoy about the van. The key one is its perfect size for two people. It is large enough to house all the conveniences to be off grid and yet manageable enough to drive like a car into towns and shopping centres.

“We are often stopped and admired by people wanting to get one themselves.”

Ronan said he especially enjoyed the social aspect of travelling in the campervan. 

“On our travels, we meet all kinds of lovely people. We share stories. When it comes to the topic, ‘Where did you buy the van?’, we sometimes tell the story.

“People love to hear that they are talking to a winner and that anybody can be a winner!”

While Ronan said it was difficult to choose their favourite place, he said they had enjoyed their time in Western Australia where, among other stops, they visited Kununurra, 80 Mile Beach, Coral Bay, Kalbarri, Rottnest, and Esperance.

“We allow up to three days in each location to view the local attractions. In some places we spend much longer,” he said.

“Each day, we do the local exploration and then find a the most beautiful viewing spots to relax. We open the back doors, have lunch, a swim, or walk or whatever.”

Overall, they will have stayed in 74 places and travelled 19,000 kilometres in seven months. And when they’re done with the mainland this time around, Tasmania is next.