Budget Campsites for Your Next Aussie Road Trip
Hitting the road doesn’t have to break the bank, especially if you’re savvy with your campsite choices. Australia has a great network of free campsites, and CMCA’s 16 parks around the country offer overnight stays for as little as $5 a night. Lakeside or with views over the Red Centre, in wine country or just off the major highways; read on for five great campsites under a fiver.
CMCA RV Park, Railton, Tasmania
This pet-friendly RV park in topiary-obsessed Railton is just a 25-minute drive from the port of Spirit of Tasmania. The grassy, tree-lined CMCA site includes a dump point and drinking water, an on-site custodian and a picnic shelter, close to the town’s main street. Open to self-contained vehicles only, dogs on leads are welcome. While tents and rooftop campers are not permitted here, there’s paid camping behind the heritage Railton Hotel, a minute away, and a cycling rail trail takes you on a spin to Sheffield, 12 kilometres away. $5/members, plus $2 per additional person, 15 Esplanade, Railton, Tasmania.
NT Neil Hargrave Lookout, Northern Territory
Driving through the West MacDonnell Ranges, 110 kilometres west of Alice Springs, this lookout is one of the best sunset spots in the Red Centre and best of all, it’s free to camp. Keep an eye out for the turnoff on Namatjira Drive, between Serpentine Gorge and the Ochre Pits, before you reach Glen Helen. One-night stays are permitted at the lookout, which has toilets and picnic tables, and even phone reception if you’re lucky. Bring your own water and expect plenty of red dust and cool nights – the views are absolutely worth it. A word of advice: keep your food packed away from opportunistic dingoes. The many scenic gorges nearby have facilities and even a few cafes and, of course, freshwater swimming holes to cool down in.
Sea Lake, Victoria
Central Victoria is home to several pink lakes; the largest is Lake Tyrrell, near the town of Sea Lake. This free site has fabulous views of the 12,000-year-old salt lake, whose reflections at sunrise and sunset turn everyone into keen photographers. Close to the dramatic viewing platform, the site is best suited for self-contained travellers, as the nearest public showers and toilets are back in town. The spot is also a great overnighter if you’re exploring Victoria’s Silo Trail, billed as Australia’s biggest outdoor gallery. Sea Lake’s GrainCorp silos feature the colourful work of artists Joel Fergie and Travis Vinson. Free, Baileys Rd, Sea Lake, Victoria.
CMCA RV Park, Penola, South Australia
Pets are welcome at this RV park on the edge of historic Penola on the South Australia-Victoria border. The main town for the Coonawarra wine region, the park is in the McCorquindale Sports Grounds, and RV drivers will appreciate its grey-water dump point and the on-site manager. The site is open only to fully self-contained vehicles (so no tents or rooftop campers) and has a 14-night limit. While the park doesn’t have a black-water dump point, there’s one nearby, in the town. CMCA members $5/night plus $2 per each additional person, non-members $15/night, John Street, Penola, South Australia.
Barbour Park rest area, Gunning, New South Wales
Situated on the banks of Meadow Creek in the NSW Southern Tablelands, this campsite is free for stays of up to two nights, with barbeques and picnic tables, a shaded playground, hot showers and toilets. It’s a couple of minutes’ walk to the local swimming pool and Gunning’s main street, where you can stock up on food, cold drinks and grab a coffee. The historic little town is an hour from Canberra and an hour from Goulburn, and 30 minutes to Yass, the ideal stopover for those on the Melbourne-Sydney inland run via the Hume Highway. Free, Yass St, Gunning, New South Wales.
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