Dreaming of having a campground all to yourself might sound ideal, but new photos from Jamieson Creek Campground in Victoria show a more troubling reality: a popular site completely deserted despite being listed as fully booked.
According to an article by Yahoo News, the situation is yet another sign of Australia’s growing ghost camping problem, frustrating campers and locking people out of opportunities to explore the outdoors.
Image by Ross Edwards via Yahoo News
Ross Edwards, who visited Jamieson Creek along the Great Ocean Road on Good Friday, was taken aback by the scene. “It was really strange as I was expecting it to be full… the only resident there was a wallaby in a fire pit eating someone’s leftovers,” he told Yahoo News.
Edwards posted photos online to highlight his disappointment, showing empty campsites and facilities, despite a supposed full booking through Parks Victoria.
Ghost camping — where people book sites and don’t turn up — continues to plague campgrounds nationwide, especially where online booking systems have replaced the traditional first-come, first-served model.
Image by Ross Edwards via Yahoo News
The issue in Victoria has worsened this year after the government introduced free camping at all state-run campgrounds without implementing strong measures to prevent no-shows. This free camping program is scheduled to conclude in June.
However, the story at Jamieson Creek over Easter weekend may not be entirely straightforward.
Another camper, who also visited the site, told Yahoo News that the campground was “actually full” by around 4 pm Friday, suggesting the photos might have been taken before the 2 pm check-in time. “Traffic was pretty horrendous getting there… There were many cars that were arriving who hadn’t booked too and had to leave because there was no available sites,” they said.
“Maybe this photo was taken early in the day before the recommended check-in time?” They added, “I think the scheme to offer free camping is fantastic.”
Despite these mixed experiences, Parks Victoria continues to place faith in campers doing the right thing rather than introducing harsher penalties or checks.
When asked about the lack of enforcement, Minister for Environment Steve Dimopoulos responded, “Victorians want to do the right thing”. He rejected claims that free camping encourages system abuse, saying, “The Liberal Party thinks Victorians wake up in the morning to abuse the system — I don’t buy that, Victorians want to do the right thing.”
He noted that Parks Victoria now sends “two reminders to people to cancel if they can’t make their booking” — one email seven days before the booking, and a second email and text message 48 hours in advance.
Dimopoulos defended the free camping initiative, explaining, “We introduced free camping to get more Victorian families out having holidays in the regions and putting money back in their pockets.”
“We want more Victorians to explore the great outdoors on Easter weekend, in addition to the 131 bookable campgrounds, Victorians can also stay at one of the 1,000 free camping areas that are first-come-first-served across the state,” Dimopoulos added.
Yet not everyone agrees that reminders alone are enough. Mike Atkinson, widely known as Outback Mike, has been vocal about his concerns over booking systems at campgrounds.
Initially introduced during the COVID pandemic for social distancing purposes, these systems have, according to Mike, continued to create issues ever since.
“There’s three different states all trying to attack it in three different ways, and neither state is working. And that’s because the problem is the booking system,” he told Yahoo News.
Different states have approached the issue differently — Queensland plans to fine ghost campers, and New South Wales is considering a tiered camping fee based on amenities.
But Mike fears these approaches only worsen inequality. “By raising fees, they have just blocked out probably the poorest people in Australia from accessing national parks. It’s the one thing they should have access to,” he said.
He also questioned why Victoria, which currently allows free camping, has not acted more decisively, suggesting it’s about making “heaps of money.”
Mike’s solution is simple: “If they got rid of the booking system, it would just be on a first come, first serve basis, the way it was before COVID… It wasn’t an enormous problem then. No one was crying out before the booking system was introduced,” he said.
The ghost camping phenomenon poses significant challenges for campgrounds. Empty sites mean fewer campers contributing to the local economy, reduced opportunities for families hoping to experience nature, and a general erosion of trust in government-managed outdoor spaces.