qdts-camping-options-toolkit

Summary of issues
Managing future growth
• The growth of self-contained vehicles is likely to
continue at or above its current rate as the baby
boomers start taking longer drive holidays. They will
seek a wide range of accommodation options.
• Consumers of the caravan and camping lifestyle are
generally demanding better facilities and a higher
standard of accommodation, whether it be in park
cabins or in their own caravans or motorhomes.
• Consumers are becoming more environmentally
conscious, trending towards more nature-based
experiences. They wish to be able to experience
non-degraded natural and constructed landscapes.
• The shift in the supply of lower cost camping options
towards cabins will exacerbate seasonal peak
demand for this style of accommodation, although
periods of ‘full’ demand will continue to be rare.
Planning issues
• Local government planning requirements of
caravan park operators, for example the conditional
prerequisites surrounding the supply of toilet and
ablution facilities, are much greater than those
of non-commercial sites such as camping reserves.
Finding a way to manage the expectations of
low-cost travellers is vital to Queensland achieving
its growth target.
• Illegal camping activities present an issue for local
government in terms of both public liability and the
impact on local businesses. There is the potential for
liability surrounding the risk areas of fire, health and
sanitisation, personal security and vehicle incidents
arising from the overcrowding of public areas. Also,
illegal camping in key tourism areas deprives local
businesses of parking spaces for paying customers.
Environmental and public disturbance
• The overcrowding of rest areas from both overnight
campers and the overstaying of campers creates the
issue of publicly available facilities being rendered
unavailable to visitors who possess a genuine need
for them.
• While some campers abide by the ‘leave no trace’
policy, there are still inconsiderate travellers who
create noise, environmental and visual pollution.
This affects the overall visitor experience of other
tourists and upsets local residents, who have to
deal with the dumping of blackwater.
Camping site management
• The management and maintenance of designated
non-commercial camping areas is costly for local
governments and ratepayers. Costs include
removing waste, adhering to compliance standards,
performing regulation patrols and supplying services
(such as electricity, water and toilet amenities).
• Management of overflow facilities will be an
increasing challenge for some regions as the
cost of capital and the lower rates of return make
investment in new parks for visitors (as opposed to
permanent residents) less frequent.
‘Provision of facilities to capture the potential of the
drive tourism market is needed but there must be a
balance to protect the investment of existing park
operators.’
Goondiwindi Regional Council
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