Winnebago owners from four states converged on the Anchorage Holiday Park at Iluka last week, united by social media the group collectively travelled tens of thousands of kilometres to enjoy their motorhomes in the town the models were named after – Iluka.

Organiser Bruce Stratton said 37 members of the Facebook Winnebago Iluka Owners Group travelled from as far as north Queensland and South Australia to meet in the town their motorhomes share their model’s name with.

“We’ve got people from South Australia, Melbourne, far-north Queensland and NSW who are all members of the Facebook group,” he said.

“Last year I decided to ask whether people who owned Winnebago Iluka motorhomes wanted to get together, so I ran a poll on Facebook and people said let’s go to Iluka, because that’s the model of the motorhome.”

Mr Stratton said last year’s inaugural Winnebago Iluka pilgrimage saw 21 motorhome owners from around Australia visit Iluka for an annual event that continues to grow.

He said the consensus from owners was they wanted to visit a park where they could bring their dog, in March, for several days, so the Anchorage Holiday Park was an ideal location.

“We had Winnebago come along to the park to do a talk to all the motorhome owners, we had someone from the Campervan and Motorhome Club of Australia CMCA come and do a talk and Bosch Mechanical Services from Queensland come and do a presentation on maintaining our motor homes,” he said.

“Everyone loves the Anchorage Holiday Park, the layout, the pool and sharing each other’s company.

“The motorhome owners love the town of Iluka, the fact it is surrounded by National Parks and beautiful beaches and enjoy the great fishing just across the road from the Anchorage Holiday Park.”

Mr Stratton said owners compared their motorhomes and the modifications they have done which can see some of the Winnebago’s worth more than $250,000.

Last Thursday night, Mr Stratton said a group of about 70 enjoyed a delicious farewell dinner at Club Iluka.

Anchorage Holiday Park owner Ken Perry said they were delighted to welcome even more Winnebago Iluka owners than last year, who provided a welcome economic boost to the town during their visit.

“They are a lovely group of people who enjoy Iluka and bring a lot of money to spend in the town,” he said.

“Last Wednesday night we had an entertainer “A little bit of Country” perform and we put a sausage sizzle on for them which they thoroughly enjoyed, and they tipped about $300 into the entertainer’s hat which was wonderful.”

Mr Perry said the Anchorage Holiday Park was looking forward to welcoming even more Winnebago Iluka owners next year.

“They said to me their numbers will grow by about 30 per cent next year, so we are expecting numbers in the mid-40s, with some already booked in,” he said.

“It is great for Iluka and the area to have such a group of return visitors who love the area, spend money while they’re here, and tell all of their friends what a lovely place Iluka is.”

This article appeared in the Clarence Valley Independent, 13 March 2024.