Freedom Camping in Southland 2026: Where You Can Stay

What the 2015 bylaw says

The Freedom Camping Bylaw 2015 came into force on 12 December 2015. It says any person may freedom camp in any local authority area unless it is restricted or prohibited, and its first schedule prohibits camping in urban zones, council-controlled car parks and boating areas, playgrounds, sports grounds, cemeteries, walking tracks and signposted lookouts. The council's page says most towns have designated sites for self-contained camping, and that some towns have sites that permit all types of camping.

The bylaw's general limit is a maximum of seven nights in any 30-day period unless the schedule sets another period, and it says you must not freedom camp in any local authority area for more than one month in any three months. The 2015 text defines a self-contained vehicle by the older NZS 5465:2001 warrant, and the council's page says a current self-contained warrant must be displayed in the window. The national rule has changed since: a blue warrant stopped counting on 7 June 2026, so a green warrant is the one to carry.

Te Anau, Manapouri, Riverton and Tuatapere

The council's camping locations list has no page for any of the four towns that visitors most often ask about, and the bylaw's township maps for Te Anau, Manapouri, Riverton and Tuatapere show them shaded as camping prohibited. The council's map does list toilets and dump stations in those towns, but those are facilities rather than camping sites. If you are heading for Milford Sound, the practical options near Te Anau are the town's campgrounds and holiday parks and DOC's Fiordland campsites.

These maps are image files in the bylaw, so the council's interactive map is the place to confirm a boundary. DOC's freedom camping notices cover conservation land in the same area: KiwiCamping's DOC data (11 August 2026) holds 24 current notices in the Te Anau district, all of them prohibiting camping, including Patience Bay on the Milford Road, and the hub for the district lists them.

The designated sites and their rules

The council's location pages give a rule and a stay for each site, summarised in the table. Most sites accept certified self-contained vehicles only, and the council says camping in tents, cars, and vehicles or caravans that are not certified self-contained is not allowed at those sites. Dunsdale, Monkey Island at Orepuki and Thornbury allow non-self-contained camping, and Haldane, Lumsden and the Otautau Arboretum are shown as green areas.

The stays vary widely: seven days in any 30 at Winton, Dipton and Riversdale, two days in any 30 at Colac Bay and one night at Waikawa and Mandeville. Dunsdale closes for winter from late April until late September or October depending on ground conditions, and the Fortrose blue site is open to self-contained vehicles only from 1 August to 30 November. Curio Bay is a camping ground rather than a freedom camping site, and the council's page says it was temporarily closed for maintenance when read.

Generators, fires, dogs and consent

The council's page asks you to limit generator use to between 8am and 9pm, says open fires are prohibited except in a safe fire facility the council provides, and says dogs must be on a leash. The council's location list names dump stations at Edendale, Otautau and Manapouri. The council's bylaw lets you apply for prior consent to camp where it is otherwise restricted, at least 10 days in advance.

Penalties are those in the national regulations: $400 for most breaches, such as camping in a prohibited area or in a vehicle that is not self-contained where it is required, $200 for failing to display a warrant card, and $800 for damaging the area or depositing waste. The page lists no fee to stay at the sites and no freedom camping phone number, so the council's email address, sdc@southlanddc.govt.nz, is the contact it publishes.

DOC campsites and the Fiordland side

Most of what travellers come to Southland for is on DOC land, which the bylaw does not cover. KiwiCamping's DOC data (11 August 2026) lists 13 DOC campsites in Fiordland, 10 of them bookable online through DOC, with adult nightly rates listed from $10 to $42 and Cascade Creek Campsite the largest, and 5 in Southland, all bookable online, with rates from $6 to $28 and Mavora Lakes Campsite the largest.

The Kepler and Milford Great Walks are in Fiordland National Park, the Routeburn runs into it, and the Rakiura Track is on Stewart Island, so the Great Walks guide has the huts, campsites and booking rules. The Fiordland road trip guide covers the drive between Te Anau and Milford, and the holiday parks guide covers the paid options in town.

Using KiwiCamping in Southland

KiwiCamping shows Fiordland and Southland's DOC campsites and huts with their fees and facilities, plus holiday parks and tours you can book in the app. The council's site list is not in it, so use the council's map and the sign at Winton, Dipton or any other council site. The phone keeps place details, saved places and guides for use offline, while map tiles, routing, weather and photos depend on reception.

Save a DOC campsite or a Te Anau holiday park for each night you hope to spend near the mountains, order them in a trip with dates, and check the forecast on each leg. Free to download, with in-app purchases.

Places along the way