Hipcamp is a good way to book a night on a farm, a vineyard or a patch of private bush, and many travellers use it for exactly that. The usual reasons to look further are wanting a national park campground, a free camp or a holiday park, which Hipcamp is not built around. AussieCamps is our app, so it opens the list; each entry below says what it does better than Hipcamp and where Hipcamp still wins. We checked every price, rating and feature here on 20 October 2026.
What Hipcamp is, and why people look elsewhere
Hipcamp lists camping, glamping and caravan sites that landowners host on farms, stations, vineyards and bushland acreage across Australia, with photos and reviews from guests. The app is free, rated 4.8 from 22,592 Australian ratings, and you pay per booking, with a service fee shown at checkout.
It is built around bookable private land. If your trip is mostly national parks, state forests, free camps along the highway or holiday parks in town, other apps cover those better.
- Private-land stays
- Pay per booking
- Not built for public campgrounds
The alternatives at a glance
Many travellers end up with one app for public campgrounds and free camps and use the booking sites for the nights they need to reserve.
| App or site | Price (AUD) | What it covers | Booking | Choose it over Hipcamp if |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AussieCamps | Free to download, with in-app purchases | Park agency campgrounds, national parks, rest areas, plus farm stays and holiday parks from BookEasy | Farm stays, holiday parks and tours in the app | You want public campgrounds and bookable stays in one iPhone app |
| State park booking | Free to use; camping fees apply | National park and state forest campgrounds | Direct with the agency | You want a national park site at the official price |
| WikiCamps Australia | A$9.99 once per platform | Campgrounds, free camps and caravan parks from users | 4,000+ bookable sites and experiences | You want traveller reviews of every kind of site |
| CAMPS Australia Wide | 7-day trial, then A$14.99 a year | Low-cost sites checked by its own team | Some sites bookable | You want checked budget sites |
| CamperMate | Free, no in-app purchases | Free camps, holiday parks and facilities | Partner bookings and deals | You want to pay nothing for the app |
| G'day Parks | Free | Its own network of holiday parks | In the app | You want a powered site with showers |
1. AussieCamps: public campgrounds and farm stays in one app
Where Hipcamp starts from private land, AussieCamps starts from the agencies that run public camping. It lists 1,838 campgrounds and 745 national parks from state park agencies, plus 5,552 rest areas from road authorities, with each place's facilities, fees and rules as the agency publishes them, and you can filter by cost, including free sites. Place details are stored on the phone, so they stay readable out of signal; the map, directions and weather need a connection.
For nights you want to book, AussieCamps also lists farm and station stays, holiday parks, B&Bs and tours from BookEasy, bookable in the app, so a trip can mix a national park campground with a night on a working property.
AussieCamps runs on iPhone only and has no guest reviews, and it does not list the private hosted sites that make Hipcamp distinctive.
- Official campground and park data
- Farm stays and holiday parks to book
- No private hosted sites; iPhone only
2. State park booking: the national parks themselves
Every state and territory runs its own booking for national park campgrounds, and booking direct means the official price and the agency's own rules. NSW has a free National Parks app, rated 4.6 from 2,746 Australian ratings, covering more than 225 parks, with maps you can download before you lose reception and links to book. The other states book through their park agency websites.
Rules differ: in Queensland, every camp in a national park, state forest or recreation area needs a permit booked before you arrive. Check the agency for each site, even when an app found it for you.
| State or territory | Official source for bookings and rules |
|---|---|
| New South Wales | NSW National Parks website and app |
| Victoria | Parks Victoria |
| Queensland | Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service camping permits |
| South Australia | National Parks and Wildlife Service SA |
| Western Australia | Explore Parks WA |
| Tasmania | Parks and Wildlife Service Tasmania |
| Northern Territory | NT Parks booking system |
- Official prices and rules
- Free NSW National Parks app
- Queensland camps need a permit first
3. WikiCamps Australia: reviews of every kind of site
WikiCamps costs A$9.99 once per platform and lists more than 65,000 sites by its own count, from free camps and national park campgrounds to caravan parks, with 1.3 million reviews written by users. More than 4,000 sites and experiences can be booked through it, with bookings handled by BookEasy. It is rated 4.5 from 16,663 Australian ratings.
Its listings come from users, so check a site's details with the land manager before you rely on them.
- A$9.99 once per platform
- Reviews of public and private sites
- User-contributed listings
4. CAMPS Australia Wide: budget sites its team has checked
CAMPS lists more than 16,000 sites that its team says it has checked in person, with no paid listings, and it leans towards low-cost camping. It is free for 7 days and then A$14.99 a year, with maps and site information you can download before you lose signal. It is rated 4.4 from 3,476 Australian ratings.
It is a subscription with no free tier after the trial, which suits regular campers more than a one-off weekend.
- Sites checked in person
- A$14.99 a year after the trial
- No free tier
5. CamperMate: free, with partner bookings
CamperMate is free with no in-app purchases on the Australian App Store and lists free camps, holiday parks, dump stations and toilets across Australia and New Zealand, with bookings and deals from partner parks. It is rated 4.4 from 1,543 Australian ratings.
Many of its listings and updates come from travellers, so read the reviews and the sign at the site.
- Free, no in-app purchases
- Partner park bookings
- Traveller-contributed listings
6. G'day Parks: holiday parks to book
If Hipcamp's appeal is a guaranteed spot, a holiday park gives you that, usually with powered sites and showers. G'day Parks books its own network of more than 350 parks, with filters for pets, beach access and family facilities, and real-time availability. The app is free but has only 60 Australian ratings so far.
It books its own network of parks only.
- 350+ holiday parks
- Real-time availability
- Its own network only
When Hipcamp is still the better choice
For a night on a working farm, a vineyard or a private block of bush, especially a short drive from a city, Hipcamp is the app built for it, and its guest photos and reviews help you see what you are booking.
Airbnb and Stayz also list rural cabins and farm stays, and Camplify hires out campervans and motorhomes from their owners if you need the vehicle as well as the site. We left out Anycamp, which had not been updated since April 2024 when we checked.
- Private land and glamping
- Guest photos and reviews
- Airbnb and Stayz for cabins
How we compared them
Each app's price, in-app purchases, rating and features were checked on the Australian App Store and the developer's own pages on 20 October 2026, and booking rules on the park agencies' pages. We judged each one on what a Hipcamp user usually wants instead: public campgrounds, free sites or a reliable booking.
We built AussieCamps and it opens the list for that reason; no other developer here paid to be included. If a price or feature has changed, tell us on the support page.
- Checked on 20 October 2026
- Booking rules from park agencies
- No paid placements
Places along the way
Check before you go
Rules and conditions change. Recheck the official source and the page for your exact park or campground before departure.
Common questions
What is like Hipcamp in Australia?+
For bookable stays, AussieCamps lists farm and station stays and holiday parks from BookEasy, and G'day Parks books its own holiday parks. For public camping, AussieCamps, WikiCamps, CAMPS and CamperMate cover national park campgrounds and free camps, and each state's park agency takes bookings directly.
How do I book a national park campsite in Australia?+
Through the park agency for that state or territory, such as NSW National Parks, Parks Victoria or Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service. In Queensland, every camp in a national park, state forest or recreation area needs a permit booked before you arrive.
Is there a free alternative to Hipcamp?+
CamperMate is free with no in-app purchases and lists free camps and holiday parks. Many state forest and some national park campgrounds charge nothing to camp, though some still need booking, so check the land manager first.
Where else can I find farm stays in Australia?+
AussieCamps lists bookable farm and station stays from BookEasy, and Airbnb and Stayz list rural cabins and farm stays too. Hipcamp remains the app built specifically around private-land camping.
Take it on the road
Save the stops. Plan the whole trip.
Build an ordered route from saved places, calculate the distance and keep dates, notes and to-dos attached.
