Improving camping in NSW national parks

The community is invited to provide feedback on a proposal to introduce more consistent and simplified state-wide camping fees and bookings for NSW national parks and reserves.

The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) has developed changes to deliver a fairer camping experience for national park visitors and address persistent campground issues such as ‘ghost bookings’ (i.e. no-shows).

A key element of the proposal is a tiered camping fee system across NSW campgrounds with a sliding scale of pricing based on services and facilities (barbecues, hot showers etc) and seasonal demand.

NPWS is proposing to simplify the booking process by removing booking and extra person fees. Refunds of up to 80 per cent would also be provided to encourage cancellations when plans change as a result of ’ghost booking’ where numerous sites are booked but no one turns up.

The improvements were developed following extensive consultation with more than 200,000 campers and national park visitors.

The proposal represents the most substantive change to national park camping arrangements since 2017 and will help tackle issues that are a source of common frustration, such as people booking more campsites than they need or not cancelling or turning up.

Campground issues such as ghost bookings have been a growing concern within NSW national parks over the last decade as visitation continues to rise. In 2023–24, there were 1.8 million overnight stays in 365 campgrounds across the state.

The proposal is in response to feedback about what visitors wanted from their national park experience. NPWS is always looking to enhance the visitor experience and provide improvements to campground facilities and services.

The proposed changes are now on public exhibition and NPWS welcomes feedback until Sunday 25 May 2025.

For more information and to provide feedback, visit Improving camping in NSW national parks | Have Your Say.