Hopetoun on WA's south coast will stop free camping, citing rubbish complaints
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A West Australian town will close its only free caravan and campervan campsite after complaints of visitors leaving rubbish and human waste behind.
Hopetoun sits about 50 kilometres off Highway One, or South Coast Highway, on the state's south coast and is 555km south-east of Perth.
The Shire of Ravensthorpe voted last week to close a free RV campsite in the town and instead work with a local caravan park to offer discounted $15 a night sites.
The move, which follows similar changes in other towns across Australia, has been met with a mixed response with some fearing it will turn tourists away.
Concern over free camping site
Shire President Tom Major said the council wanted to move the existing 48-hour free site to next to one of the town's caravan parks as it was a better location.
"We want to keep our RV-friendly status for the town, so we need a free, or low-cost option … there will be a low-cost option, but it may not necessarily be free," he said.
Cr Major said the community had raised concerns about the location of the free camping area on a road joining the main street.
Issues raised included safety with its proximity to traffic and rubbish dumping, including toilet paper and human waste left in the surrounding bushland.
He said there was a risk the town might lose some visitors by removing Hopetoun's free campsite, but the council wanted to grow the number of visitors from low-cost budget travellers to higher-yielding visitors.
"We have to strike a balance," Cr Major said.
"I think this policy does the best to strike a balance between offering good options to travellers, supporting local businesses, and making it amenable for residents."
The closest town is Ravensthorpe, 46km away, which will retain its free RV camping site.
Caravaners may not stop
Grey Nomad Awards founding director Liz Rivers said in the case of other free camp closures, visitors had typically chosen to visit another area.
"You might find that Ravensthorpe becomes more popular as a free camp, and therefore there'll be more benefit back to the local businesses [in Ravensthorpe]," Ms Rivers said.
"Grey nomads want to be able to give back to the communities in which they stay, and so they tend to make sure they're spending money everywhere they stay.
"When they're staying at a free camp, they'll go in and they'll go and have a coffee or they'll go and do a visitor experience, a guided tour, or something else in the area."
When ABC posted information on social media about the Shire of Raventhorpe's decision, it was shared on multiple caravan and backpacker pages within hours.
Businesses mixed on closure
Simon Flick runs a cafe and grocer in Hopetoun and said he was worried about the closure deterring tourists from visiting.
"We do get a lot of people coming in saying they came off the main road to get free camping," he said.
"They're happy to spend money in shops in town as they don't have to pay for parking a van."
Mr Flick said he was concerned some travellers would bypass the town if there were no free camping sites.
"A lot of caravaners are on Wikicamps, which promotes local businesses that look after caravaners and campers," he said.
Hopetoun Beachside Caravan Park will operate the discount camping site next to its property.
Coordinator Rachel Small said the fee of $15 a night would attract visitors.
Ms Small said some visitors were using the existing free site poorly with human waste left in nearby bushland a common complaint.
"I think $15 a night is a very small amount to ask people to contribute to cover the cost of their stay in town," she said.
"And the caravan park makes a huge effort to make sure that we refer travellers on to all of our local businesses and share the love around a little bit.
"It's not only for our benefit, but for the benefit of all of our local businesses and residents as well."
The free camping site will close once the new site is open in the coming months.
Written by Emily JB Smith, Peter Barr and Samantha Goerling, ABC News.
Hopetoun sits about 50 kilometres off Highway One, or South Coast Highway, on the state's south coast and is 555km south-east of Perth.
The Shire of Ravensthorpe voted last week to close a free RV campsite in the town and instead work with a local caravan park to offer discounted $15 a night sites.
Hopetoun is not the first town to close its free campsite. (ABC Esperance: Hayden Smith)
The move, which follows similar changes in other towns across Australia, has been met with a mixed response with some fearing it will turn tourists away.
Concern over free camping site
Shire President Tom Major said the council wanted to move the existing 48-hour free site to next to one of the town's caravan parks as it was a better location.
"We want to keep our RV-friendly status for the town, so we need a free, or low-cost option … there will be a low-cost option, but it may not necessarily be free," he said.
Tom Major says the decision is not entirely unexpected. (ABC Esperance: Hayden Smith)
Cr Major said the community had raised concerns about the location of the free camping area on a road joining the main street.
Issues raised included safety with its proximity to traffic and rubbish dumping, including toilet paper and human waste left in the surrounding bushland.
He said there was a risk the town might lose some visitors by removing Hopetoun's free campsite, but the council wanted to grow the number of visitors from low-cost budget travellers to higher-yielding visitors.
Hopetoun sits off the South Coast Highway, which links the tourist hotspots of Esperance and Albany. (ABC Great Southern: John Dobson)
"We have to strike a balance," Cr Major said.
"I think this policy does the best to strike a balance between offering good options to travellers, supporting local businesses, and making it amenable for residents."
The closest town is Ravensthorpe, 46km away, which will retain its free RV camping site.
Grey Nomad Awards founding director Liz Rivers said in the case of other free camp closures, visitors had typically chosen to visit another area.
"You might find that Ravensthorpe becomes more popular as a free camp, and therefore there'll be more benefit back to the local businesses [in Ravensthorpe]," Ms Rivers said.
A grey nomad group says visitors are more likely to spend money in towns with free campsites. (ABC Esperance: Emily Smith)
"Grey nomads want to be able to give back to the communities in which they stay, and so they tend to make sure they're spending money everywhere they stay.
"When they're staying at a free camp, they'll go in and they'll go and have a coffee or they'll go and do a visitor experience, a guided tour, or something else in the area."
When ABC posted information on social media about the Shire of Raventhorpe's decision, it was shared on multiple caravan and backpacker pages within hours.
Simon Flick runs a cafe and grocer in Hopetoun and said he was worried about the closure deterring tourists from visiting.
"We do get a lot of people coming in saying they came off the main road to get free camping," he said.
"They're happy to spend money in shops in town as they don't have to pay for parking a van."
Mr Flick said he was concerned some travellers would bypass the town if there were no free camping sites.
A trio of caravans drive past the recently closed Marbelup rest area on the South Coast Highway. (ABC Great Southern: Andrew Chounding)
"A lot of caravaners are on Wikicamps, which promotes local businesses that look after caravaners and campers," he said.
Hopetoun Beachside Caravan Park will operate the discount camping site next to its property.
Coordinator Rachel Small said the fee of $15 a night would attract visitors.
Hopetoun Beachside Caravan Park owners Rachel Small and Travis Daw with son, Sam. (Supplied)
Ms Small said some visitors were using the existing free site poorly with human waste left in nearby bushland a common complaint.
"I think $15 a night is a very small amount to ask people to contribute to cover the cost of their stay in town," she said.
"And the caravan park makes a huge effort to make sure that we refer travellers on to all of our local businesses and share the love around a little bit.
"It's not only for our benefit, but for the benefit of all of our local businesses and residents as well."
The free camping site will close once the new site is open in the coming months.
Written by Emily JB Smith, Peter Barr and Samantha Goerling, ABC News.
