The 12-foot six-inch [3.8 metre] long home-away-from home had been put on the market by a dodgy character who left it sitting in a car park at Warrnambool for collection.

"He wasn't game to be there for the handover," Mr Vavra said. "When I called him and told him he was a crook he said 'that's what you get for trusting people on the internet'."

The first inkling the deal was not all it could have been came when the couple found the interior had been stripped out of all its fittings and cabinetry. The second was when it started to fall apart on the way home.

Following some running repairs in Ballarat the Capricorn, a Geelong marque founded by two post-war migrants, made it back to Canberra. It then sat in the driveway for a couple of weeks while Mr Vavra cooled down.

An experienced car restorer with nine vintage Austins, including the rare 1800 ute he uses to tow the van, to his credit, he quickly concluded there was nothing for it but a complete rebuild from the chassis up.

The final result, which is both immaculate and highly original, is a tribute to the wide range of trade skills he was able to bring to the party. "It's not too bad for an IT guy," he said.

The Capricorn, which is to be on display at the National Caravan Clubs Rally in Canberra which starts next Monday [September 19], has literally been a labour of love.

"Maureen wanted to buy it because it was very much like the caravan we hired for our honeymoon," Mr Vavra said. "We towed that behind our 1968 Cortina 1600 from Sydney up through Tamworth, Armidale, down to Nambucca Heads, Coffs Harbour, Port Macquarie and then back to Sydney. We loved it."

The couple's passion for caravanning has only grown over the years.

"You've got the freedom to go wherever you want to and to stop whenever you want to for however long you want to," Mrs Vavra said.

"It's a great chance to see the country; you get to meet some wonderful people and, in some cases, make friends for life."

More than 1400 people and about 700 vans are expected to converge on EPIC for the week-long rally.

While the rally is a closed event the general public will have the opportunity to see historic vans, including the Capricorn, and a trade display, on Saturday, September 24.

"The farmers' market will be on and that is in the middle of where we [the rally participants] will be," Mr Vavra said.

Next week's rally comes at a time when interest in caravanning is booming.

Wednesday's National Visitor Survey (NVS) results found an additional 3 million visitor nights were spent in NSW caravan and camping accommodation in the past year, a 22 per cent growth in nights in the state.