A family of five who converted a 58-seat bus into a self-sufficient home to travel Australia says “no plan is the best plan” when it comes to living off the grid.
Rob and Peta Basile, their three children Indiahna, 15, Santino, 12, and Angelo, 10, and their Golden Retriever Maple have been on the road for almost eight months in their customized bus.
Consuming a whopping 33 liters per 100 km, the 12.5-meter coach features a fridge, gas oven, cooktops, sink, washer and dryer, shower, bathtub, king-size bed, living room, units of air conditioning, two screen TVs and huge storage units.
It also tows a 4.5-ton trailer that hauls several bikes and a Ford Everest for when they want to be nimble.
The Basile family (from left: Santino, 12, Rob, 40, Maple the Golden Retriever, Indiahna, 15, Angelo, 10, and Peta) in the kitchen area of the former 58-seater bus that they converted into a self-sufficient family home
The coach, which consumes a whopping 33 liters per 100 km, has a fridge, gas oven, cooking plates, shower, bathtub, king-size bed, living room, air conditioning units, two flat-screen TVs and a large outdoor awning area.
The family rented their Gold Coast home in November and traveled more than 10,000km through New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland, often with no idea where they might spend the night.
“No plan is the best plan – every time we plan something goes wrong,” Rob, 40, told Daily Mail Australia.
‘We just improvised all the way. We have nowhere to be, so if the road is closed we will go another way. We are totally self-sufficient.’
The Basiles bought a second-hand 2001 Mercedes 58-seat bus during the pandemic from a tour company in Sydney looking to offload some vehicles.
Peta, a former sales manager, said they had always dreamed of traveling the country as a family and wanted to do it while their eldest, Indiahna, was still young enough.
The couple have been homeschooling their children for the past five years, so they weren’t worried about them missing class.
“We sent the bus to Brisbane and at first we thought, ‘What have we bought?'” Peta said.
All family members helped to tear out the 58-seat coach.
Tables in the living room fold out to create a movie theater (pictured)
Rob gutted it. He spent a good couple of months getting everything out of all the seats and luggage compartments and then we professionally built it inside.
The custom build, which took almost a year, was done by Motorhomes on the Costa Doradaa company specializing in 4WD and small van conversions.
Jack Watt, the firm’s principal, said they had never encountered a job of that size and were initially intimidated by the “huge task.”
“A lot of my staff were a little burnt out by the size of the job, but we just broke it down into different parts of the build and worked with Rob and Peta, who were great, to make their dream come true,” he said. .
‘It certainly is one of a kind.’
The bus is completely self-sufficient and its huge solar panels, consisting of six 300-volt lithium batteries, can maintain its electricity for two weeks.
The bus tows a 4.5 ton trailer carrying several motorcycles and a Ford Everest for when they want to be nimble.
“All the appliances inside are what you would get in a normal house: it has a refrigerator, gas oven, stoves, toilet, bath, shower, and king-size bed,” Rob explained.
They try not to use the RV parks as they don’t need electricity or water – all they need is space to park the bus.
The parents sleep in a king-size bed in the back room, while the three children sleep in the center of the bus.
However, the Basiles are the first to admit that their mammoth journey across Australia was not off to the best start.
“The first day, we had just left the Gold Coast and there was a really bad smell, so I pulled over to the side of the road and it was pitch black everywhere,” Rob said.
The project was a true labor of love and took over a year to complete (Pictured: Rob ripping out the old seats)
The bus has a king size bed in the back of the bus where Rob and Peta sleep (pictured)
It also contains a washer and dryer (pictured)
The bus’s 550-litre ‘black’ tank, which carries human waste, had burst at the seams.
The other two tanks, for grey, clean water, suffered the same fate and then had an ‘extremely expensive’ breakdown outside Melbourne, where they were attending a wedding.
“That hurts, but it’s all part of the adventure,” Peta said. ‘These things are sent to test us.’
The family was blown away by the natural beauty of South Australia, where they traveled with another family for a month.
“My favorite place is definitely Rapid Bay,” Peta said.
“We planned to stay there for two nights, we ended up being there for seven. It was absolutely spectacular.
Rob at the wheel of the 12.5 meter bus that swallows 33 liters of diesel every 100 km
The family’s favorite place so far has been Rapid Bay in South Australia.
Rob and Peta say the best plan is to have no plan when it comes to life on the road.
They then traveled to South West Queensland to attend the Big Red Bash, the most remote music festival in the world, with 30 friends and family to celebrate Rob’s 40th birthday.
Peta admitted that they might “still be in the honeymoon phase” with life on the way, but have no immediate plans to stop.
Maple contemplating a sunrise
“The best thing has been being able to be together as a family,” said Peta.
‘Obviously, we were always at home together, but you’re very busy. You still go to dance classes, you still go to footy, doing this and that.
“Our life was very fast-paced, so it’s been really nice to relax and spend time together.”
Rob, who works in security, said the only thing he occasionally missed was the space in a house.
“But then we have our own room, the kids have their own room, there’s the living room, we have a huge awning we can sit under,” he said.
And his advice for families considering a life on the road?
‘Dont wait. There is a lot of work out there. Just make it happen,” Peta said.
“Any small step towards the end goal is a step in the right direction.”
The Basile family has bounced back after a rocky start, involving an expensive breakdown and a burst water tank, and has traveled more than 10,000km with no desire to stop exploring.
