'A spanner in the works': travel plans for Easter and beyond in limbo due to fuel prices

The campground at Corrimal Beach Tourist Park on the South Coast of NSW looks sparse a week out from the Easter long weekend.

Bookings are sold out online later in the week for the tourist park, and other council-run parks in Windang and Bulli, but on Monday, March 30, less than half the lots are taken up in the 25-space block.

James Auld, a retiree from Dapto, has set up at the tourist park and had planned to start living the grey nomad lifestyle after moving out of the house he rented, before the fuel rises changed the plan.

"As soon as we moved out, the fuel went double in price, and it has certainly put a spanner in the works," he said.

"We're not sure exactly which way to go now, so we're sort of hanging a bit closer to home at the moment.

"I've been on Facebook, and just looking at people's comments, it's looking like it's going to affect a lot of people, and it's not just travel, it's the towns where we go.

"We spend a lot of money as we travel around Australia, we spend some good money, so these towns are going to miss us I think."

Originally, Mr Auld and his wife were going to travel to South Australia and Tasmania, now the pair won't travel more than three hours away from Wollongong.

"You just can't do any long trips with the cost of fuel. It's just a killer," he said.

"Maybe it's best to leave it for the truckies."

One of the benefits for Mr Auld of the fuel prices has been the sudden availability of campground openings, something noticed by full-time traveller, Paul Saba.

"We were booked in after Easter at Canton Beach (on the Central Coast) and we cancelled it. Not due to fuel, but they were saying they had phone calls all day of people cancelling," he said.

"We were trying to get into Bulli a few weeks ago, and we'd ring every couple of days, and they would be booked out.

"The other day, we rang up just to see what's going on, and they had space on short notice. So people have been cancelling."

A spokesperson for Wollongong City Tourist Parks said there had not been any "significant changes" in cancellations this year.

"The current bookings rates in our three parks at Bulli, Corrimal and Windang are comparable with what we experienced in 2025," they said.

"The parks offer a mix of caravan sites, camping sites and cabins.

"We do have some park vacancies over the Easter and ANZAC long weekends, as well as over the school holidays."

The decision to travel on whether or not to travel during Easter will be on many people's minds, and was part of the reasoning behind the move to cut the tax excise on fuel according to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

"One of the things that we're determined to do is make sure that we do keep Australia moving as the national fuel security plan says," he said.

"We want that to occur, people should enjoy their Easter, and it's important as well that we keep the economy going.

"Easter is an important time for tourism destinations, for jobs that rely upon that, and I wish those people of faith as well, a holy Easter."

The federal government will cut the fuel excise from the start of April, saving motorists 26.3 cents a litre.

Sadly for a group from Thirroul Women's Bowling Club, the measures had come in too late, having to make the tough decision to cancel a trip to Forster for a competition.