‘Ghost camping’: Tourist fury as sites all booked out at popular half-empty campgrounds including Corringle Foreshore

A major problem has emerged with Victoria’s free camping offer this summer – and a new term has been coined to describe the problem.

Booking headaches are plaguing Victoria’s free camping initiative this summer, prompting calls for the program to be overhauled.

Known as “ghost camping”, sites are left empty at bookable campgrounds after people book online but do not turn up, forget to cancel, double book other areas or even leave tents unattended for days on end.

Even though sites are left vacant for several days, campers cannot be rebook because they are listed as unavailable.

Gippsland East Nationals MP Tim Bull said the state government’s attempt to get more people out to enjoy the state’s parks had resulted in fewer people visiting.

“Many camp sites are being left vacant over the busiest time of the year as families were denied, and local communities who rely on campers to boost the local economy were impacted,’’ Mr Bull said.

Gippsland East MP Tim Bull said families were missing out because of ghost camping. Picture: Supplied

Mr Bull said he had visited many campgrounds in his electorate over the holiday period.

“I have seen first hand many campsites listed as booked out online but were vacant for the full week.’’

As many as 10 of the 24 sites at Corringle Foreshore Campground, at the mouth of the Snowy River near Marlo, were unoccupied this month despite being booked out.

But Environment Minister Steve Dimopoulos said improvements to the system had already been introduced.

Free camping was introduced to get more Victorian families to holiday in the regions and put money back in their pockets, he said.

“Tim Bull and the Liberal-National Coalition are against this,” he said.

“We’ve put in place a range of measures to stop no shows including reminders being sent out a week before the booking, then again 48 hours out, regular ranger patrols and booking limits.”

Regular camper Andrew Gascoigne, of Bairnsdale, said he was furious when he found a half-empty, but booked-out, campground at Corringle.

Empty sites at Corringle Foreshore campground despite being booked out.

“What they’ve done is actually made it harder to go camping. And less people are going.’’

Parks Victoria’s acting executive director of visitor experience Jenny Hunter said bookings had increased by 93 per cent compared to last year.

“We’ve introduced a range of new measures to encourage people to cancel their booking if they decide not to go camping. As soon as someone cancels, the site is made available for others to book.”

Parks Victoria limited bookings to two campsites in a single transaction, and an email was sent seven days out, and then another email and SMS message were sent 48 hours from the arrival date.

Premier Jacinta Allan and Environment Minister Steve Dimopoulos announced in October that all 131 of Parks Victoria’s paid campgrounds would be free from December 1 to June 30 this year.

Fines or a deposit system were suggest as possible remedies. In Queensland, campers cop a $322 fine if they don’t use their booked site.

The sign at Corringle Foreshore campground urges people to book.

But Heatley Gilmore from Camps Australia Wide said communication would help ensure campers use or cancel their booking.

“At the moment there is no penalty if they don’t turn up and they don’t lose money,’’ he said.

“Sure, people forget or can’t be bothered to cancel, so be proactive and communicate with customers regularly to keep the bookings up to date. A lot of it us just common sense.’

Corringle Foreshore. The free camping offer was announced last year. Picture: Parks Victoria.

The Parks Victoria site showing the Corringle site booked out.

'The reality of a booked site left empty at Corringle Foreshore.

As well as the state’s 131 bookable campgrounds, more than 1000 free camping areas operate on a first-come-first-served basis.

Mr Bull said that camping rates may have increased outside the peak period but many families missed out over the festive break because of ghost sites.

Mr Dimopoulos said free camping was introduced to get more Victorian families to holiday in the regions and put money back in their pockets.

“Tim Bull and the Liberal-National Coalition are against this,” he said.

“We’ve put in place a range of measures to stop no shows including reminders being sent out a week before the booking, then again 48 hours out, regular ranger patrols and booking limits.”

The problem of “ghost camping” comes as concerns were raised about the amount of rubbish left behind by holiday-makers at the Coopers Creek campground near Walhalla in Gippsland.