A young Aussie has revealed how his unique way of paying for his trip has helped him see the country in a way most people wouldn’t.
Jonny Charles told Yahoo Lifestyle he’s been travelling in his 2002 Toyota Corolla since March, and has seen Alice Springs and Australia’s East Coast since setting off from Victoria.
To help fund the trip, the 24-year-old hooked up a $2,500 coffee machine to his car and has been selling everything from caramel lattes to short blacks at every caravan and camping site he pulls up in.
Jonny Charles is crossing the country in his 2002 Toyota Corolla
(TikTok/@jonnycharles__)While the money in his pocket is great, he revealed the heartwarming and unexpected bonus of this side hustle.
“It’s nice to meet the community as well,” he said.
“I tend to meet a lot of locals and hear a lot of stories, and that’s been really cool.
“It’s definitely a different way to immerse yourself in a town.”
When you’re travelling, many people will only see the sights and then move on. They might have a passing conversation with someone, but it’s typically only surface-level.
But Jonny has found that coffee brings people together, and it has been a “special” way to meet people he’d never otherwise meet.
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Aussies have been enraptured by the side hustle, with content creator Sienna Mallon even supporting Jonny by buying a coffee when he stopped in Kununurra, the gateway to the Kimberley.
“There’s this absolute madman who decided he wanted to live out his dream of travelling Australia, but he didn’t have enough money to do it, so he bought a Corolla and put a coffee machine in it and is selling coffees,” she said.
“And we’re going to visit him today.”
She said it was “such a good idea”.
Did you pay for your holiday in a unique way? Get in touch claudia.poposki@yahooinc.com
Young Aussie’s Corolla gets a lot of looks in the outback
When people drive around Australia, they typically pick a caravan or a 4WD to make the treacherous endeavour more comfortable.
Very few pack up a car as old as they are and hit the road.
“The reactions are hilarious,” Jonny told Yahoo Lifestyle.
He copped a lot of surprised faces when he was driving through the Gibb River Road, which is a stretch of 660km-worth of unsealed roads in the Kimberley region in WA.
“The Corolla was a workhorse, which you wouldn’t expect to have out here,” he said.
“But so many people still drive them everywhere.”
He said the best part of running a cafe out of his car was meeting people.
(TikTok/@jonnycharles__)Why did Jonny set up Cafe Corolla?
Funding a trip around Australia upfront would have been an impossible feat for Jonny, and it would have delayed him for months.
So, he thought of a brilliant way to still make money while he was on the road.
“I love making coffee, and I wanted an excuse to buy a really good coffee machine,” he said.
It’s been dubbed Cafe Corolla, and he’s found spots on campsites and private properties throughout his journey that let him set up shop.
The cafe does your standard cafe options, anything with espresso or ristretto shot as the base.
He has syrups and teas, and charges enough to pay for petrol, his next meal or where he’s set to sleep for the night.
He hasn’t revealed how much money he’s made so far.
“If I set up and I make $50, that’s fine. That’s a couple of dinners, or half a tank of fuel,” he said.
“If I make $150, that’s amazing.”
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