Tag Archives: camping

Camp for free along the Bruce Highway from Brisbane to Townsville

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Clairview rest area

Clairview rest area, Paul Smedley

The sun isn’t the only good reason to head north for winter – there’s also excellent free camping along the Bruce Highway. Sure, these rest areas might not exactly be Hayman Island, but if you’re driving north and want to save a buck or two, you won’t find a better guide than Paul Smedley’s (author of Budget Rest Areas around Australia (2nd edition) list of free overnight stops!

Landsborough park area 

Around 500m off the highway, about 95km south of Gympie, Landsborough park area ticks all the boxes. It’s free, dog friendly, doesn’t require an advanced booking, has toilets and drinking water, and is in an attractive setting. The only downside is that it’s not suitable for big caravans or motorhomes.

Browns Creek camping area 

If you have a motorhome, keep driving to this rest area 3km north of Yandina, via the Old Bruce Highway. This campsite is nestled in the forest and has a good range of facilities.

Six Mile Creek rest area 

This shady rest area just off the highway, 6km south of Gympie, is suitable for motorhomes and has a good range of facilities, including a dump point.

Chatsworth rest area 

On the other side of Gympie is Chatsworth rest area, which isn’t suitable for big caravans and motorhomes, but it does have accessible facilities and is dog friendly.

Gunalda rest area 

Gunalda rest area is only a hop, skip and a jump from Chatsworth rest area, 29km north of Gympie, with good facilities, shade and a picnic table. Oh, and it’s dog friendly!

Petrie rest area 

This secluded rest area is on the banks of the Mary River, 1km from the highway. It’s dog friendly, has barbecues and toilets. It’s also a really pleasant place to fish. And sometimes, you don’t need anything else.

Apple Tree Creek rest area 

In town at Apple Tree Creek, this dog-friendly site is suitable for big caravans and motorhomes, has good facilities, and – bonus! – a playground.

 

Wallum rest area

Wallum rest area, Paul Smedley

Wallum rest area 

Around 30km south of Bundaberg, this dog-friendly rest area is shady and has good facilities.

Gin Gin rest area 

With good facilities and shade, this dog-friendly rest area is a good place to stop, 2km north of Gin Gin.

Granite Creek rest area 

Around 60km north of Gin Gin, pull up under the impressively large trees, light a campfire and enjoy the good facilities of this dog-friendly site.

Boyne River rest area 

Situated on a riverbank, this rest area is just off the highway and has good facilities.

 

Calliope rest area

Calliope rest area, Paul Smedley

Calliope rest area 

This rest area is as spacious as you’d ever need it to be, situated 30km south of Mount Larcom.

Yaamba rest area 

Located in the town of Yaamba, next to the roadhouse, this rest area is a good option for an overnight stay and has good facilities, and, of course, easy access to the town.

Waverley Creek rest area 

A shady, spacious rest area with good facilities, just off the highway, 66km north of Marlborough.

Clairview rest area 

This is an absolutely charming site on the foreshore, in the north of Clairview. We highly recommend it!

Bloomsbury park area

Bloomsbury park area, Paul Smedley

Bloomsbury park area 

This basic site is a large open area next to the roadhouse in Bloomsbury.

Guthalungra rest area 

In Guthalungra, opposite the roadhouse, this rest area has basically no facilities, but you can stay overnight for free, so no complaints from us!

Home Hill rest area 

Just off the main street, this rest area has all the facilities you won’t find at Guthalungra, including showers and toilets.

Sandy Corner rest area 

This dog-friendly site, 8km north of Ayr, has toilets, drinking water and is suitable for big caravans and motorhomes.

Saunders Beach camping area 

This small camping area on the foreshore is around 7km west of the highway, but is well worth the extra drive for its good facilities, including a playground, and great location.

Find more free rest areas in Budget Rest Areas around Australia (2nd edition) by Paul Smedley.

 

 

 

 

     

Best free campsites in Tasmania.

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Cockle Creek camping area, Kerryn Burgess

Cockle Creek camping area, Kerryn Burgess

Tasmania, Australia’s smallest state, punches above its weight when it comes to good camping and especially free camping. You can camp everywhere from national parks to beaches to forests – and all for free free free!

Apsley Waterhole camping area, Douglas–Apsley National Park

As you swim in the Apsley River swimming hole near your free campsite in Douglas–Apsley National Park, you’ll ask yourself: does life get any better than this?

Boltons Green camping area, Southwest National Park

Boltons Green is the end of the road in Southwest National Park – from here it’s all walking tracks and endless ocean vistas. You need to get a permit for this camping area.

Dago Point camping area, Lake Sorrell

Set on the shaded banks of Lake Sorrell, camping doesn’t get much better than this. And since fishing is banned, it doesn’t get as crowded as you’d expect.

Green Point camping area, Marrawah

Water, water everywhere at Green Point camping area. This unprotected camping area (bring a strong tent!) overlooks the wild and beautiful Southern Ocean.

Hastings Forest Picnic Area camping area, Southern Forests

You might expect a free camping area to be ugly, with bad facilities and nothing to do. Well, may we introduce you to Hastings Forest Picnic Area camping area, which is nestled beside Esperance River on soft, mossy ground with toilets and all the activities you could want nearby?

Lake Barrington West camping area, Lake Barrington

Come here for the angling (permits required) and stay for the views and peace and quiet.

 

 

 

     

The best free campsites in New South Wales.

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Ingar Waterhole camping area, Kerryn Burgess

Ingar Waterhole camping area, Kerryn Burgess

If you want to camp for free, don’t look past New South Wales. New South Wales now has more free campsites than any other state … and more than that, these campsites are good.

Bendeela Recreation Area, Kangaroo Valley

This campsite in the Kangaroo Valley is a hidden and picturesque gem! The sites are on a large, shady area next to the river.

Big River camping area, Goulburn River National Par

This campsite rocks. Set among rocks above the Goulburn River, you’re only a hop, skip and a leap away from some great swimming holes.

Blackbird Flat Reserve camping area, Macleay River Public Recreation Reserve

Free, dog-friendly, spacious camping next to a river in summer? Count us in.

Bodalla Forest Park, Bodalla State Forest

The perfect stop off the Princes Highway, this picnic spot also doubles as a shady and spacious camping area.

Coachwood camping area, Chichester State Forest

We like Coachwood camping area so much we almost don’t want to tell you about it. This pretty-as-a-picture campsite is next to a river in Chichester State Forest, which neighbours the magical Barrington Tops National Park.

Daisy Plains Huts, Carrai National Park

These remote huts are left unlocked for campers to use. It might not be ‘proper’ camping with a roof over your head, but as you wake up to the black cockatoos squawking in the eucalypts, you won’t care so much about those pesky details.

Frying Pan Creek camping area, Chichester State Forest

On the other side of the Telegherry River to Coachwood camping area, this picturesque campsite is justifiably popular.

Glen Davis camping area, Glen Davis

It’s a campsite with a view – and then some! This free camping area overlooks the beautiful Capertee Valley in the Blue Mountains.

Ingar Campground, Blue Mountains National Park

What makes Ingar camping area so good? It’s near Wentworth Falls AND a swimming hole, has toilets and easily accessible walking tracks. There are only eight sites though, so if you snooze on the morning you’re meant to leave, you may lose out on a spot.

Jacob’s River camping area, Kosciuszko National Park

Only a short drive from Jindabyne, Jacob’s River camping area gives you more than enough reasons to visit the alpine area in summer. It’s an attractive camping area set next to Jacob’s River. While away the time swimming and fishing.

Manning River camping area, Barrington Tops State Forest

Cool down by camping on the banks of the Manning River under the temperate rainforest. The fishing’s not bad, either.

Newtons Crossing camping area, Yambulla State Forest

There are only five sites, but chances are people will overlook this lovely inland spot in favour of a place on the beach. Their loss – situated next to the river in the midst of the forest, Newtons Crossing camping area is a winner.

Paddys River Flats camping area, Tumbarumba

You’ll fall in love with this simple camping area near Paddys Falls, where you can swim, fish or go bushwalking.

Pindari Dam camping area, Pindari Dam

You don’t have to pay to camp here, but you’ll probably enjoy this small, casual camping area with its view over the dam so much you’ll be happy dropping a few coins into the donation box.

The Pines camping area, Olney State Forest

Give us a campsite among the pine trees at Olney State Forest, with good facilities and lots of shade.

Rocky River Fossicking Area camping area, Uralla

You’ll strike gold at this free campsite – maybe even literally! You can hire fossicking equipment at the visitors centre. Otherwise you can just relax at the shaded campsite and cool down in the swimming holes in the river.

 

 

     

Camp like an explorer at these camping areas.

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Dig Tree camping area, Paul Smedley

Dig Tree camping area, Paul Smedley

These are the campsites in Australia where you can camp like an explorer, but with more amenities and less danger, from a caravan park in Mitchell in Queensland to the original Dig Tree where Burke met his unfortunate end.

Thomas Boyd Trackhead, Hume and Hovell Track, New South Wales

The Hume and Hovell Track follows the path that explorers Hamilton Hume and William Hovell took in 1824 as they forged a path from Sydney to Melbourne (hence the aptly named Hume Highway). You don’t have to be quite so adventurous to reach Thomas Boyd Trackhead camping area – you can now drive in with your dog and camper trailer and expect a campsite with quality amenities.

Dig Tree camping area, Queensland

The bad news about Dig Tree camping area is that the explorer Burke, back from his trek to the Gulf of Carpentaria with Wills, died underneath Dig Tree. The good news is that since that event, this area has been developed into an appealing camping area next to Cooper Creek.

Halligan Point camping area, Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre National Park, South Australia

Halligan Point camping area is the only lakeside camping area on Lake Eyre, and it’s just as desolate as it was when Edward John Eyre ran smack bang into its dry expanses trying to explore north. Out of all the campsites on this list, Halligan Point feels most like an exploration. But don’t do a Burke and Wills – make sure you are well prepared before you camp here (you also need a permit).

Major Mitchell Caravan Park, Mitchell, Queensland

Major Mitchell certainly wouldn’t have enjoyed a similar level of luxury on his four expeditions to that you’ll find at the caravan park that bears his name in Mitchell in Queensland. This friendly caravan park on the banks of a river is well worth a stay if, like Mitchell, you’re venturing into the outback.

Camp Beadell, Gunbarrel Highway

Travelling along the Gunbarrel Highway from the Red Centre into Western Australia’s interior still feels like an adventure today – which is fair enough, considering Len Beadell only made the track in the 50s. There’s water here, and space. A lot of space. Oh, and one of the best sunsets you’ll ever see.

     

These are the best ten campsites in Australia.

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Camping at Freycinet National Park, Kerryn Burgess

Camping at Freycinet National Park, Kerryn Burgess

These are Australia’s ten best camping areas. Don’t trust us? Ask the camping expert.

Kerryn Burgess has the enviable job title of camping expert, which basically means she gets to camp around Australia for work. Her latest book, Australia’s Best Camping, reveals her pick of the top 100 camping spots around Australia. But even an expert has to have favourites, and here are Kerryn’s picks.

  The Whitsundays, Queensland

The best, most memorable camping in Australia (and therefore the world) can be found in the Whitsundays. And that’s no exaggeration. With white-sand beaches, warm azure water, lazy snorkelling and tiny campgrounds for just a handful of campers at a time, this really is paradise found. You can take your pick from campsites including Whitehaven Beach, Crayfish Beach, Maureens Cove, Planton Island, Denman Island, Sawmill Beach and Paddle Bay.

Leliyn (Edith Falls) camping area, Nitmiluk National Park, Northern Territory

If the Edith River flowed with cold beer and water nymphs provided free massages, Leliyn might be a better campground than it is – but only just. It’s the Top End campground of your fantasies, with a freshwater pool and great facilities.

Freycinet camping area, Freycinet National Park, Tasmania

Superb bushwalking and views you’ll remember for life at the best campground on Tasmania’s east coast. Every campsite has been designed for maximum view impact. Once you’ve soaked in the view, take one of the many walks.

Tulki Beach camping area, Cape Range National Park, Western Australia

Australia’s wildest, most rugged, most exhilarated coastal camping – and a close community of campers to swap stories with around the campfire. It’s a camping experience you’ll never forget.

Tidal River camping area, Wilsons Promontory National Park, Victoria

Tidal River is the biggest and the best national park campground in Victoria, with superb walking tracks and activities to rival Wet’n’Wild. With its hot showers, supermarket and coffee, Tidal River is closer to a camping town than a regular campsite. But with a spectacular wilderness at your tent flap, you don’t need the campsite to be wild too.

Rocky River camping area, Flinders Chase National Park, Kangaroo Island, South Australia

These gorgeous, private, bushy campsites have easier access to more native wildlife than any zoo, with wallabies at the campground and seals and sea lions not far away.

Dales camping area or Karijini Eco Retreat, Karijini National Park, Western Australia

Vast, remote gorges and dramatic landscapes in the heart of the Pilbara make for the camping experience of a lifetime – one the author found more valuable than a share in Gina Rinehart’s Pilbara operation.

The Basin, Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park, New South Wales

The Basin is a huge, grassy, shaded area that has access to all the coves, beaches, headlands and views that make the coast north of Sydney so special.

Green Patch camping area, Booderee National Park, Jervis Bay Territory

You’ll find a sparkling beach backed by bushland and birdlife at Green Patch, plus whales if you’re lucky. The campsite itself is also kind of sparkling, with tall trees, secluded areas, private corners – oh, and that extraordinary white sand beach.

Bald Rock Creek camping area, Girraween National Park, Queensland

Bald Rock Creek camping area is a beautiful and sympathetic blend of natural elements and functional campsites with access to one of the best collections of day walks in the region.

NOTE: Girraween National Park is currently closed due to fire danger.

Start planning your summer camping adventures with Kerryn’s book, Australia’s Best Camping.