The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) is making plans to simplify its camping fees and booking system to make it fairer and more straightforward — and put an end to ‘ghost bookings’.
Public input is being sought on proposed changes that would see a more consistent and simplified state-wide pricing and booking structure rolled out across NSW national parks and reserves.
One of the main goals is to reduce the persistent number of ‘ghost bookings’, where campers reserve more sites than they need without cancelling them or don’t show up at all, leaving others unable to book in. This long-running issue has worsened as park visitation continues to grow. In 2023–2024 alone, 1.8 million overnight stays were recorded across 365 campgrounds in NSW.
A major part of the proposal is a new tiered camping fee system across NSW campgrounds with a sliding scale based on campground facilities and services — such as barbecues, hot showers and similar —and seasonal demand. The changes would also simplify the process by eliminating booking fees and charges for extra people.
The NPWS also plans to offer refunds of up to 80 per cent to encourage cancellation when plans change.
The proposed system and improvements have been developed following extensive consultation and feedback from more than 200,000 campers and national park visitors, making it the most significant update to national park camping arrangements since 2017.
To view the proposal or provide feedback (open until Sunday 25 May 2025), head here.
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NPWS has proposed a massive camping overhaul in NSW