Save Clean New Zealand

30/07/2026

BEACON POINT NEEDS YOUR VOICE

The future of Beacon Point is now in the community's hands.

The Queenstown Lakes District Council is seeking public feedback on proposed changes to the Freedom Camping Bylaw.

https://letstalk.qldc.govt.nz/proposed-amendments-fc-bylaw-2025

Consultation has begun on a proposal to amend the Freedom Camping Bylaw 2025. The proposed changes would:

1️⃣ Permanently prohibit freedom camping at the Allenby Place carpark;

2️⃣ Prohibit freedom camping at the Beacon Point Road carpark during December, January, and February each year; and

3️⃣ Increase designated freedom camping spaces at the Wānaka Recreation Centre carpark from 18 to 21.

This consultation relates only to the existing restricted freedom camping areas at Beacon Point Road carpark, Allenby Place carpark, and Wānaka Recreation Centre carpark.

People are welcome to provide feedback on the bylaw more generally or on other locations across the district. While this feedback will be considered by Council, it falls outside the scope of the current consultation and will not result in additional changes through this consultation process – any broader feedback received will be provided to Council for consideration and may inform future work.

Public feedback is open until Monday 31 August, with oral submissions to be heard by a Council hearing panel on Tuesday 27 October.

📸 Image: Signage at Beacon Point carpark.

02/02/2026

Freedom camping is supposed to mean self-contained. The two new portaloos at the Wanaka Rec Centre say otherwise.

Response from the QLDC regarding this is that they made a decision based on the "immediate realities of the site" which translates to people using the car park as a toilet!

The system isn’t working and locals are paying the price.
If ratepayers are funding toilets, what’s next?

01/02/2026

Freedom camping isn’t “free” it’s being paid for by Wānaka ratepayers who are left to deal with human waste, rubbish and environmental damage.

We’re not against freedom camping, but it must be kept in designated areas with proper facilities like toilets, not on the edge of our lake and walking tracks. Beacon Point is the wrong place for this, and our community shouldn’t be carrying the cost of a broken system.

26/01/2026

In March 2021, QLDC formally recommended Beacon Point Road was not suitable for freedom camping due to risks including human waste contaminating our waterways.
Fast forward to 2025… QLDC approved this site.
So what changed?
The risk hasn’t gone away.... it has become reality. No one should have to deal with human waste in public spaces. Designated camping areas with proper facilities prevent this. We’re not anti-camping, we’re pro doing it right.

23/01/2026

Tourism 2011 vs 2025 - freedom camping was very different back then.

The Freedom Camping Act 2011 was designed around the idea of responsible, self-contained camping, people who could look after their own waste and leave no trace.

It was not designed for what we see today:
- A huge volume of international visitors
- Thousands of cheap converted vans with minimal facilities
- High-density use of lakefronts, reserves, and residential areas
- Pressure far beyond what small councils can realistically enforce

Campervan tourism has exploded, especially in the Queenstown Lakes District.

22/01/2026

I wonder where they will all go now to camp for free? Queenstown Lakes District Council has allocated a total of 15 sites across the region (141 parking spaces). There were 50-60+ vehicles parked every night at Mt Iron carpark & this site was not one of them. This region can not handle the volume of people wanting to camp free. There are several camp grounds in Wanaka & Queenstown, with facilities like toilets to stop people sh****ng in bushes.

Sadly not all campers are responisble.

Queenstown Lakes District Council has taken over management of the public conservation land at Mount Iron in Wānaka. This land was previously managed by the Department of Conservation (DOC).

This is in addition to the approximately 100ha of Mount Iron Recreation Reserve already managed by QLDC.

Now that the SH84 Mount Iron carpark is recreation reserve, Freedom Camping will be prohibited at the site following a period of education for visitors.

QLDC’s Freedom Camping Bylaw 2025 doesn’t apply to reserve land, which instead is managed under the Reserves Act 1977. This means that overnight camping will not be permitted at the Mount Iron reserve and anyone found staying overnight in campervans, vehicles, or tents will be subject to a fine of $800.

Summer ambassadors will be advising campers of this change and delivering flyers to vehicles at this location over the coming week before enforcement starts. Signage will be installed at the site and there will be online communication and changes made to the QLDC website.

QLDC and DOC will also be contacting all community groups and concession holders to advise of the change and plan to host a community morning tea onsite in the coming month. Further details will be made available soon.

Full story in comments below.

22/01/2026

Beacon Point Road is one of Wānaka’s most loved and heavily used community spaces. Locals and visitors alike use the area daily to walk, cycle, swim, paddle, picnic, and enjoy safe access to Lake Wānaka. It is also a residential area, with families living alongside this shared public space.

Since Beacon Point was included in the recently implemented Freedom Camping Bylaw, a number of concerning issues have emerged that deserve wider community attention.

Environmental and sanitation concerns are already evident. Used toilet paper has been found in bushes along Beacon Point Road, raising serious questions about human waste disposal in an area with no public toilet facilities.

Enforcement is another major issue. There are increasing reports of non-compliance with the basic rules of the bylaw, including campers arriving before the permitted 6:00pm start time and remaining well after the required 8:00am departure.

Under the current rules, campers are allowed to use the area between 8:00am and 6:00pm in the same way as any other member of the public.

Council enforcement officers are unable to intervene during the hours 8am-6pm hours, even when behaviour appears inappropriate.

These issues are not about blaming campers as individuals. Many people travel responsibly and want to do the right thing. The concern lies with a system that places freedom camping into locations that lack infrastructure, clarity, and practical enforceability and then leaves residents, visitors, and the environment to absorb the consequences.

https://www.change.org/savebeaconpoint