Bay of Fires

Tasmania is an incredibly varied and beautiful place boasting stunning beaches, rugged mountains, ancient forests and rolling fields.

Happily for the growing army of grey nomads, it is also perfectly set up for a cheap and spectacular camping holiday. The Bay of Fires Conservation Park, to the north of Hobart on the east coast, boasts white sandy beaches and beautiful blue water.

There is also an amazing selection of scenic beach camping sites along a well-maintained dirt road. The facilities consist of a couple of long drop toilets but it's all free and for those of you who are pretty self-sufficient you won't do much better than this. The camping spots, which include Big Lagoon, Cosy Corner and Jeanneret Beach, are all equally fantastic.

Happily, the attractive and well-serviced town of St Helens is not far away either, so if you need to stock up on food or water, it's not a big deal. If you have been out in the bush for a while the council also offers free hot showers in a block near the marina.

The fishing here is good and there are some nice walks but really it's all about chilling out and enjoying some amazing beach scenery. Watch out, too, for the numerous possums which will make themselves very much at home in your camp if you're not careful.

The Bay of Fires is just a great spot and hats off to the Tasmanian authorities for developing and servicing free campsites such as the ones on offer here. Long may it continue.

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