Most grey nomads won’t need to read the statistics to know that caravan parks and camping grounds have been incredibly busy this holiday season.
But the data does confirm just how packed out many places have been.
In the Sunshine Coast, for example, almost 128,000 visitors stayed at the area’s six council-owned van parks last year, compared to 119,000 in 2022.
The parks, operated by Sunshine Coast Holidays Parks, include the largest in the state, Cotton Tree Holiday Park, where people have been camping since the 1880s.
However, the number of visitors staying over the festive period has not increased much, because it can’t … the parks are pretty much at full capacity.
All across the country, regular holidaymakers have been joining grey nomads on the road ... and in the caravan parks and camping areas. PIC: Cizza
The Sunshine Coast News reports that more than 8,200 people were expected to stay at the council’s six parks during these summer holidays.
“This number is pretty consistent (year on year) due to the finite capacity of the parks,” a council spokesperson told the paper. “Sunshine Coast Holiday Parks have experienced very high demand over the past two to three years, with sites often booked out a year in advance over peak periods.”
Sunshine Coast Holiday Parks park manager, Jason Filippini, told the Sunshine Coast News there had been growing interest in caravan parks in recent years.
“There has been a massive increase (in demand) due to a change in culture since post-Covid, and more people having camping products,” he said. “Demand is always high during peak seasons … and some parks are difficult to get into (during shoulder and off-peak times) as weekends book out quite quickly.”
The Sunshine Coast News reports that the influx of people to caravan parks provides a significant boost to the area.
“Tourism Australia estimates that each domestic visitor to a region spends on average $95 per day, so all tourists are valuable to the Sunshine Coast,” a council spokesperson told the newspaper. “With almost 128,000 visitors to the six Sunshine Coast Holiday Parks in 2023, the benefit to the local economy for the year would be more than $12 million.”
There are more than 30 holiday parks in the Sunshine Coast and Noosa council areas.
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