Home on the road

By Jade Lawton
Next month, the duo will leave their Berwick home for a 13-week, all expenses paid road trip around Australia, and a makeover of their campervan, worth about $35,000.
The dream tour is first prize in Dometic Appliances ‘follow the sun’ competition, which attracted more than 1000 entries.
As Dometic ambassadors, the couple will now conduct tours with locals and post regular blogs detailing their adventure.
Mr Goncal said he and Dianne had well and truly been bitten by the travel bug, and had so far driven to most parts of Australia, except Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
“Our most recent trip was to Robe, in South Australia, which is famous for its sand dunes, beach driving, crayfish and lobster. We’ve done that trip probably twice in 12 months, but our favourite is Fraser Island in Queensland,” he said.
“The best part is not so much the destination, but the journey. You meet so many people along the way, and I think that’s why we keep doing it.”
Mr Goncal said our country had as much, if not more, to offer than popular overseas destinations.
“The places we see are no different from overseas, but we can usually do it at a fifth or tenth of the cost. There is so much to see in Australia and we thought, let’s see home first,” he said.
“Australia is awe-inspiring, as far as I’m concerned.”
They have already started preparing the Nissan Patrol and limited edition Kimberly camper for their departure in early June.
“We are contemplating maybe extending the tour to as close to Christmas as possible, for as long as we can afford. It’s a great opportunity,” he said.
Follow the Goncals’ journey at www.dometicfollowthesun. com.au