The council in Winton is seeking to reassure grey nomads that they are still more than welcome at the town in central western Queensland.
Earlier this week, it was revealed that a local caravan park owner was considering legal action after a large group of free campers stayed behind the motel, apparently on council land. Narelle Lenton also called for an exclusion zone to be set up around Winton within which free camping would not be allowed.
Talking to the grey nomads website, the Chief Executive of Winton Shire Council, Thomas Upton, said the authority was investigating the specific complaint made by the caravan park owner and would deal with the matter ‘as required’. However, he said the outcome of the complaint would not have any ramifications for the broader arrangements for free camping around Winton.
“Winton has provided a free camping option for self-contained travellers for a number of years at the Long Waterhole, about three minutes drive out of town,” he said. “The area is quiet, spacious and scenic … self contained travellers are welcome to stay at the Long Waterhole for as long and as often as they like.”
However, he stressed that camping in the town precinct was only allowed at approved facilities.
Mr Upton said while the council was well aware of the economic benefit that free-camping grey nomads brought to the Winton area, it was not just about money.
“All visitors are welcome at Winton not because of how much they spend but because we like showing off our little corner of the country,” he said. “All visitors to the region receive the same friendly welcome.”
He said the Winton Shire Council was trying to take a balanced approach to the competing interests and sympathised with the position of both parties.
“Self- contained campers wish to travel and have freedom of choice about where they stay, indeed many couldn’t travel if they had to stay at accommodation houses all of the time,” said Mr Upton. “Caravan park owners wish to sustain their investment, earn a living and provide local jobs.”
He said there were up to 60 vans a day staying at the Long Waterhole and the overwhelming response to the current arrangement was positive.
“Invariably my experience has been that both groups are made up of good and decent people who simply have differently priorities,” he said. “Council believes that making free camping available at the Long Waterhole but prohibiting it in the town precinct provides a fair and equitable response to the needs of both parties.”
Comment below
Winton and the caravan park owner need to realize that not all nomads like free camping, and the more nomads that are encouraged to goto Winton the greater the share the CP owner will get. I have just sold my old motorhome that was fully self contained to a new owner and he prefers to goto Caravan Parks whereas we never did.
Could we adopt this sensible Shire Council CEO and have him speak to other not so far sighted Councils who ban overnight stays completely. An intelligent and balanced account of the situation with a well thought out strategy to resolve it. I haven’t stayed at Winton but will certainly put it on the bucket list now.
I agree with Bob, not all self contained motorhomers want to camp independently. Some like myself do not want to stay in CP’s with jumping castles, pools and spas etc and crammed in next to each other. It is not just about the money. I prefer to call it ‘independent’ camping not ‘free’ camping as that concept seems to annoy the CP owners.
Well done Mr. Upton.
I agree with you Suzanne. I like freedom of choice too and like your comments of independent camping. Judith
Big thumbsup for Mr Upton. 🙂
Perhaps the C/P owner could visit the FREE CAMP area and talk to a few people there. An open mind and a few polite questions as to what the campers would be prepared to pay, what their requirements would be, could perhaps produce a positive outcome for both parties. Campers don’t need pricey parks to stay in, Caravan parks need tenants….there has to be middle ground in there , somewhere
Well done Winton!Well thought out and balanced decision.Suzanne Campbell is right..maybe the term should be “independent campers” rather than “free campers” as for many of us it’s more about not being packed in a CP’s like sardines than the financial outlay.
Yes the money is important, many of us simply could not afford to travel if we paid for CPs. That said in my case I wouldn’t stay there if the price was $1 a night, I simply do not like that type of environment. But many people do so I can’t see why the two can’t co-exist (as they appear to do at Winton). Long Waterhole is one of the camping gems of the QLD outback and Winton is a nice town, we must have spent a heck of a lot there over the years.
My wife and I recently inspected parks at a tourist location and decided not to stay, not because of prices, but because we did not like the environment, the way vans were crammed in close to each other, and the number of children in the park (because of the facilities provided to attract children). However, some parks we enjoy. At our age we like the peace and quiet of free camping areas.
I agree it is not always about the money, and for us it is more the environment.
Yes John, I agree with your thoughts too. Judith
A happy medium needs to be found, as Mr Tom Upton the CEO of the Winton Shire Council has stated and I support. What the edited article did not say was that I said Mr Upton had been a very fair man during these proceedings. A comment was made about the potential 20km radius in Charters Towers; however this is not what was implied for Winton. This issue has all stemmed from 40 vans which were allowed to stay on crown land and behind a hotel for free. This was a breach of the local by-laws. It was an unregistered van park. Before this day, it was a level playing field in town and everyone supported each other. The land in question happens to be in close proximity to my registered caravan park which on the nights in question was not filled to capacity. We had a couple of people check out of our park and ask for a refund because they did not know that you could camp behind the hotel for free. Parks in Winton pay Rates of about $16000 to $24000 per annum. We have to protect our investment in a tough economic climate. There are also other issues which cannot be commented on due to legal proceedings. So to reiterate, as a Caravan Park owner I understand there are different needs for various travelers and I believe that “Long Waterhole” located minutes from town serves these different groups, however overnight stays within the town boundary should not be allowed. I have a great deal invested (1.2 million to be precise) in this great town and am just looking for a level playing field. I have met many wonderful grey nomads in my park. There are three types of travelers, Grey Nomads, Free Campers and Bush Campers. In these groups, we have made many friends and they love our park. We spend time with all of our clients and ask many questions regarding their views. Our repeat business is very high and we appreciate the custom. Winton has so much to offer you all. A lot of good people are involved in this decision. This story is simply about a publican who invited 40 vans to stay behind his hotel and on crown land in unregistered van parks, making it difficult to compete fairly.
Sorry Narelle, but saying “overnight stays within the town boundary should not be allowed” is tantamount to you wanting protection from competition. You invested $1.2 mill as a business risk but there are no guarantees in business and you are not entitled to any either. No-one gives the local butcher, baker etc protection from competition from Woolies and Coles!
this issue has really opened a can of worms. With more and more caravans on our roads we all need to be aware that everyone has different needs, we don’t enjoy van parks full of kids, don’t get me wrong I love them but as you get older you prefer peace and quiet. I don’t like paying for all the playground equipment that I don’t need. My other aversion is permanents in van parks, that is not what they are for, . Maybe councils need to have special parks for low cost cabins for those financially disadvantaged. Van park owners need also to remember that those free camping still need to purchase food and fuel and the more negative comments that they put forth the more vanners will deviate from coming to their towns. Not everyone can afford to stay in a park every night, it really cuts into your finances to do so. We live in a wonderful country and so need to work together so that everyone gets a slice of the pie.
Well said Sheryl. We are living on a limited budget too and do not need all the kids playgrounds. I love my grandchildren immensely, but when traveling this wonderful country, I want peace and quiet, just me and my beautiful dogs!!!!!
So, we lose more and more the freedom to just be free. Next, Taxi drivers will say it’s not fair to them when we drive our cars in town and then it will be illegal to pack your own lunch because restaurants don’t have seats full. Come on people, do what you like and leave others alone to enjoy their own choice of living.
We intend to support towns that encourage us to stay, whether it be at low cost parks or free camping. In this instance I think Winton would be high on my list to stay at – not because of the caravan park, because I dislike cramped and crowded conditions, and not because of the free camping behind the pub on council land, primarily for the same reason. Winton certainly does appear to cater for all comers admirably by providing the alternative of the free camping out of town.
I was delighted to see Narelle’s comments and a little sad to see people jumping on her. Sure she has taken a business risk, but so do all businesses in the town. How would the local cafe feel if the hotel started selling meals from a tent situated on that same Council land? How would the local service station feel if someone pulled up a tanker on that land and started dispensing diesel at reduced prices? (I know this is not practical, just an extreme example). Let’s remain fair and open to argument from Caravan park owners who appear to be willing to share, but not to the extent that this story was about – the free camping behind the hotel.
“Value Adding” to a product, inn this case the CP being the product, was invented by big business to increase their income potential. CPs have fallen for the trap too. The more features in a CP, the higher the tariff.
So when a CP’s owner invests more in his property, it usually switches the majority of freecampers off to that establishment.
Mind you, free camping behind the Winton CP, just outside the fence resulted in the bull being provoked by a red flag.
JR