Freedom Camping Bylaw to support responsible camping

Queenstown Lakes District Council's (QLDC) Freedom Camping Bylaw 2025 / Ture –Rohe mä te Noho Puni Korehere 2025 will come into effect on 1 December 2025.

QLDC Community Services General Manager Ken Bailey said the new bylaw aims to balance community concerns about freedom camping while staying within the requirements of the Freedom Camping Act.

"This new bylaw strengthens our ability to manage freedom camping activities across the district to ensure areas remain safe, protected and accessible to everyone," said Mr Bailey.

"Having a bylaw in place over summer, along with a team of ambassadors to help visitors understand and comply with the new rules, is key to ensuring visitors continue to enjoy the freedom camping experience responsibly with respect for our communities and our environment."

The following rules will apply under the 2025 bylaw:

• Freedom camping is prohibited in urban areas. That means no camping in on‑road parking spaces such as parallel or angle parks.
• Freedom camping in certified self‑contained vehicles is allowed in 15 designated carpark sites across the district (which contain a total of 141 spaces). Camping in these areas is only permitted if the specific conditions for each site are followed.
• Camping in certified self‑contained vehicles is permitted on rural roads such as off‑road laybys, however, a range of specific bylaw conditions must be met – including how close a vehicle can park to the road.

There are further restrictions for QLDC reserves and private land outside of the bylaw:

• Most Council reserves are prohibited for camping under the Reserves Act. Freedom camping at the Luggate Red Bridge Reserve will continue to be allowed, subject to conditions set out on signage located at the reserve.
• The bylaw does not manage freedom camping on private roads and does not regulate freedom camping on any private land.

QLDC's summer ambassadors will be visiting freedom camping spots across the district from December to share information on the new rules and how to camp sustainably. They'll also be promoting local serviced holiday parks and Department of Conservation campsites and encouraging campers to make the Tiaki promise to care for Aotearoa New Zealand.

QLDC officers are now rolling out a comprehensive communications and education programme for the 2025/26 summer period to raise awareness of the new bylaw and where and how freedom camping will be permitted across the district.

Mr Bailey encouraged campers to check the interactive Responsible Camping Map to understand the rules at each location.

There is new signage at these locations with QR codes that allow campers to check‑in to the designated spaces. Also available is a dashboard that shows freedom camping site availability to allow campers to plan ahead, he said.

We know most of our visitors want to do the right thing and will camp with care. In saying this we do acknowledge the range of concerns that came through community feedback, and we'd like to reassure residents that we'll be monitoring sites, acting on poor behaviour and using enforcement when necessary.

Urgent issues can be phoned into the Council 24/7 on 03 441 0499 (Queenstown) and 03 443 0024 (Wānaka). Less urgent issues can be reported to services@qldc.govt.nz or via the Snap Send Solve app.