Love it or hate it, the fact is the online booking system for national park campsites is gradually extending its reach.
In WA’s South West, the transition to online bookings and payment is being made in stages, with three more spots being added to the online list later this year.
The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) says online bookings through the Park Stay WA booking system can be made now to secure campsites from December 1 at:
Belvidere campground in Leschenault Peninsula Conservation Park is one of the campgrounds that will require bookings from December. PIC: DBCA.
There were 17 South West campgrounds managed by DBCA that moved to the Park Stay WA online booking system in 2024.
While many grey nomads aren’t convinced by the online system, and many report a surge in ghost camping whereby booked sites remain empty, Parks and Visitor Services Coordinator, Nick Evans, said the move to online booking and payment provides more certainty and flexibility to campers.
“Knowing how many people are booked to stay at our campgrounds also helps our rangers and staff manage visitors and facilities, so we can appropriately allocate resources and manage demand during busy periods,” he said.
Bookings and payment can be made up to 180 days in advance via the Park Stay WA booking system. Bookings can be amended or cancelled up to one day before travel if plans change, allowing flexibility and freeing up campsites to be booked by other campers.
Last month, a petition calling for camping in NSW national parks to be kept at affordable levels, and for the booking system put in place during Covid to be removed, gathered more than 13,000 signatures before being submitted to the state’s Environment Minister.
Are you a Grey Nomad member yet? Click here to find out about the discounts, competitions and other benefits on offer.
Be ok if the system worked and no “ghost” camps occurred but many times places appear online to be full when in actuality they are nowhere near full. Rangers need to be checking and releasing sites that are ghost camps.
Totally agree. Ranger presence. Supervision . Safety and no ghost camps. Many oldies are computer illiterate..
My probleme is internet coverage, at one stage we rang a park, and a voice recorder said we don’t open till 2pm till 4pm and book on line. This was 10am.
Totally agree. It requires supervision to ensure booked sites are only taken by the booked & that ghost sites are released.
Introduce a ‘no show’ fee. You don’t cancel and don’t show up, then get charged a penalty.
Here, here agree. Free up sites for real campers/Grey Nomads
100%!
Caretakers could be used
I aggree.
Unfortunately it is here to stay as all departments of government find it a way to reduce staff. The biggest problem I see is a safety problem. How is an elderly couple going to move on campers that are on their site. Most National parks have no communication or staff to help.
See above
It will stay as long as staffing funding is done by counting number of booking not actual camps occupied.
this enables those in charge to tell governments it is working, and they require more funds to manage the increase in numbers which do not actually reflect the true picture whilst
including sites that have proved to be vacant due to ghost booking
This system has only one winner…DBCA. We recently booked a couple of nights at Wrights Bridge here in the SW of WA but due to illness we cancelled about a week prior. DBCA thought it was very appropriate to charge us one nights fee as a “cancellation fee”. We then tried a couple weeks later and tried to get a site we like but was fully booked so took another site which turned out okay but while there, no-one turned up on our preferred site. Very frustrating but have had similar issues in NT and Qld. Not sure what the answer is as I like first come first serve but people also need the security of a confirmed site before making a long trip to get there.
Extend the minimum refundable cutoff days to cancel from 1 day to say 7 days. The greedy multi bookers will then lose out financially and maybe learn a lesson or two.
If Ive booked and someone is on our site I will just find another, if full find a spot and let the Rangers sort it out if they show up…………………… Try not to use NP’s as always some hassle and some really annoying folk tend to think they are park police.
So sorry national parks are for the people it’s the same as for the country. If I’m travelling I get tired I camp where ever I want. Have tired to book on line and get told no space. So go have a look and there is heaps. So sick of their crap.
I so agree, this is ridiculous. As a 50 something I remember the freedom of travelling and camping we used to have. Today the government has restricted our freedoms too far. I don’t know if it’s our idiotic increase in population, but I’m sure that’s part of it. Hence my opposition to excessive immigration. Totally nothing to do with xenophobia
If you book on line using credit card and arrive to find someone has chosen to camp on your designated site can claim you never received the service/ product paid for and have credit card c bank refund charged fee?
We no longer camp in NPs because without phone coverage in remote areas where travel schedules are unreliable, bookings can’t be made or changed. Also, we were charged $120 for an entry & camping fee by an online system for a single night. After a lengthy phone call to the “help desk” it was refunded.
I agree Kay, I am often off-line for days when remote travelling, with no rigid time line, so I put money in envelopes as unable to pay otherwise
They will stay. Pre paid but don’t turn up is a big win. Easy money. No one turns up. Great u can change booking 1 day out.Total B S. How many days r u out of ph coverage even when u r in a country town.
Council want prebooking for campsites. Joke. No passport coverage no ability to book.
When us boomers say stuff u and stop c vaning it will be cry poreas pre covid.
All to greedy
Booking online should work if everyone used it ethically.
At present the government is just as bad and is using the system unethically as a complete scam to make money. If a private business asked for money for a site that was occupied and then told the people to set up on a site that others had paid for, I am sure, they would end up reported to ASIC. So we paid for a second site and tried to get a refund. Very difficult as they require proof as if booking with the same name and rego number on the same night is something a sane person would do for no reason.
We recently travelled up to the north west… Exmouth, 80 mile beach.. etc
Wanted to stay at Cleaverville camp site on the beach… tried to log in with our iPhones… and couldn’t finalise our payment…
I contacted my daughter in Perth.. to log in with her PC… and was able to secure the overnight booking.
Online bookings should be iPhone friendly… when we are on the go!
The system is wildy frustrating for several reasons. You can’t be spontaneous anymore, if you don’t know and get there and there’s no reception, you cant book, ghost campers account for up to 50% of places, people don’t cancel, you get charged if you cancel, you get thrown off/timed out of the booking platforms (often after 20 attempts you give up), people camping on other peoples sites and not moving, its inconvenient when you travel all the time and don’t know where you will be so it becomes very restrictive, if making a booking and there’s going to be more than one car you cant say so, people book ‘just in case’ and don’t turn up, and if people want to join you last minute they can’t. The powers that be have probably never camped, don’t understand or care, they don’t know how many ‘users there are’ because half don’t go. Its just profiteering and staff reduction, nothing else. Not to mention people with little computer skills have serious difficulties. Coronation Beach in WA has an onsite WIFI booking station where you pay when you arrive, was great.
Just like the grey nomads that speculatively book out the motels in case they need a stop , now they are doing the very same with the camp grounds , I suggest a non refundable full fare deposit be required and anyone that defaults or cancels more than two camping spots in a row be banned for 12 months for making further bookings , the grey nomsds have had it easy and abusing the systems for way to long.
Firstly it should be made abundantly clear that funding of national parks should be made , of course, through the already existing departmental budget. Camping in National Parks should always be as it always was, free. Simply because it isn’t free anyway as we have already had it deducted from our income.
Secondly, the online system does not work. Simple and clear, it does not work. We have booked online and paid for sites, to arrive and find the campsite completely full. When asking for a refund we were simply refused.
Thirdly. This is a money grab, pure and simple, it was never about numbers or park management or staffing levels, it is and always was designed as a money grab in all states now implementing it.
Booking online there are still staff in caretakers at some of these site so why can’t we just use them and keep it simple booking online can be very difficult finding internet etc
How do you know if the ghost bookings are real or they just want to keep people out of the parks?
Good point Ian.
We are retired grey nomads who spend a significant amount of time on the road. The beauty of this life is the spontaneity.
This booking system does not suit this lifestyle at all.
We quite often see NP’s as we are driving but as there is rarely mobile service in these areas we are unable to book, if there are sites available.
Our only options therefore are to avoid camping in NP’s or camp without a booking.
The old money in the envelope system worked much better for people living/travelling like us.
I wouldn’t be booking a site as I travel on my own and not sure If I’ll arrive in time and on previous experiences I’ve had no phone signal. If I did manager to book and the site was taken I would camp in front of the ghost camper.
So I free camp somewhere.
Yes I’m an oldie so my computer knowledge is not up to date,.
This system fails abysmally for the happy wanderers cohort who prefer not to book in advance, but choose a spot to camp the day we need to park up. No time constraints, no deadlines, no erratic driving to get to where we need to be on a designated date, just the pleasure of pulling in at days end. We have passed these so- called ‘book on line’ campspots- to find there is no mobile coverage in these areas – to book online – go figure.
The system might work but what we’ve found is locals are making fantom bookings for $10 because they are locals and don’t want interstate travelers to take up their camping spots which sucks for this wonderful state
Give better access to care takers of sites so the can update the availability as many coastal camps are empty, which could be made available for last minute bookings
Just another money grabbing exercise
They don’t really want people in Nat. Parks, or the fewer the better.
Feral animals running free all through the parks causing heaps of damage to flora and fauna.
I will never book online and mostly steer clear of all the National Feral Animal Refuges.
I think there should be no refunds if canceling within 7 days. This should give time for others to book the site that’s being canceled. Ghost camping should be taken seriously by authorities. It is totally selfish and arrogant. Campers that know of incidents of ghost camping should report it. If authorities are satisfied that it has occurred, those ghost campers are notified that they’ll incur penalties if they repeat the offense. Penalties could be a permanent 10% surcharge on all future bookings. Next offense cops a 25% ongoing surcharge. Next offense cops a total ban from camping. Weed these mongrels out.
National parks should be free to visit and camp at, Australia wide. First in best dressed policy. We pay enough tax.
Rangers don’t actually do alot of hands on stuff, speaking from experience. Get them to do patrols to ensure cleanliness of campsites.
Regularly visit NPs in NSW but notice empty prebooked sites constantly. These are remote, no phone areas. Rarely see a ranger, no one checks your booking, no bins, very few amenities, surging camp fees, often deteriorating access roads, 4WD access only. Message loud and clear guys. These are management strategies to decrease visitation. Quite sure the petition was tabled then filed.