Sydney family who sold everything to travel Australia left blindsided by $500 tank of fuel

A family of four who sold everything they owned to travel Australia in a caravan have been left blindsided by the soaring cost of diesel.

Sydney couple Lisa and Blake Walsh put their house on the market last year and took their two children and dog on an adventure of a lifetime.

The past seven months of travelling the country have been bliss – but it has almost become too expensive to keep driving due to the astronomical prices at the pump.

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The family paid nearly $500 to fill up at a petrol station in Rosebery on Tasmania's west coast.

"We have two kids and a dog, we've got our whole lives with us, so we are very heavy and fuel was already our biggest expense," Lisa told Nine.com.au.

"And now that that's completely blown out of the water, our whole budget's shot.

"We've really got to go completely back to the drawing board."

Diesel at a Tas Petroleum station in Rosebery was priced at $3.09.9 per litre yesterday.

This is slightly above the average of $3 per litre for diesel in Tasmania, according to FuelCheck.

The couple didn't even fill up an entire tank and it still set them back a staggering $495.

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"We can't afford to pay much more than this. Realistically, we're going to drain our savings pretty quickly," Lisa added.

"We will just [have to] pull up somewhere and get some work."

Lisa and her family are aiming to stay on the road for another two years, using money from the sale of their house to keep afloat, provided that fuel doesn't deplete their savings too quickly.

Other travellers have already buckled under the financial pressure.

Caravan parks are under threat of sitting empty as regional operators worry travellers will simply stay home over the Easter break.

"Some people that we know have just said that they're going to stop and work," Lisa said.

"I've seen cancellations left, right and centre online.

"People posting on Facebook groups saying, 'Oh hey, I had this site booked over Easter, but we're not going anymore'."

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Sydney travellers Brad and Karen, who take their caravan out on holidays and over weekends, told Nine.com.au that their personal limit is $4 per litre for diesel.

Despite growing nationwide concerns that fuel could nudge this price, the couple desperately hope it won't come to that.

"We haven't cancelled trips yet, but now budgeting $1000 in fuel or $4/l – effectively doubling the budget to cover costs for our next short trip, then assess the next big trip on what happens with fuel costs," Karen explained.

"Our last tank was $120 for only 43 litres of diesel and 280km travelled."

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