How to book Thurra River Campground in Croajingolong: peak-season minimum stays, when it sells out, and how to snap up a cancelled site near Point Hicks.
About
Thurra River Campground is on the wild Croajingolong coast in far East Gippsland, near Point Hicks and its lightstation. The river meets the sea right by camp, there are big dunes to explore, and from August to October you can watch whales migrating along the coast. It's a long drive from anywhere, which keeps it peaceful outside the holidays.
It's also had a rough few years. The 2022 floods destroyed the Thurra River bridge, and the new bridge opened in September 2025. The campground reopened to campers for the 2026 Easter holidays.
The sites
Parks Victoria says more than 30 campsites at the main campground are open for booking. New toilets are in, including an all-abilities accessible toilet opposite site 39, and barbecues, picnic tables and fire pits are due to be finished soon. Fires are only allowed in designated fireplaces and never on Total Fire Ban days. Bring your own drinking water.
Just across the river, Thurra North Camping Area has four non-powered sites and a day visitor area. There are no toilets there, so it's best suited to vans with their own.
Parks Victoria doesn't publish a set operating season for Thurra River, so check the campground page and the park's conditions before you go. Croajingolong closes on Catastrophic Fire Danger Rating days, and several tracks and jetties in the park are currently closed.
How booking works
Both Thurra River and Thurra North are booked through Parks Victoria's online booking system (bookings.parks.vic.gov.au), run on Bookeasy. You pay in full when you book, and you can book up to three sites in the same campground per transaction.
Parks Victoria releases bookings four times a year, roughly six to nine months ahead. Each release opens at 10am, staggered over three days: Tidal River first, roofed accommodation second, and all other bookable campgrounds, Thurra River included, on the third day. The September 2026 release ran from 28 to 30 September and opened stays through to 30 June 2027. A "Lobby" holding page opens before 10am when big demand is expected.
There's no ballot. Peak periods are handled through the normal releases, with minimum stays. For 2026–27, the rules for Thurra, Thurra North and Croajingolong's other bookable campgrounds are:
- Summer peak: 7-day minimum and 14-day maximum between Saturday 19 December 2026 and Saturday 23 January 2027, arriving and leaving on a Saturday.
- Labour Day weekend: 3-night minimum, Friday arrival.
- Easter: 4-night minimum, Thursday arrival.
- Melbourne Cup 2027: 4-night minimum, Friday arrival.
Check the ballots and peak season page each year, because these dates shift.
When it sells out
Summer holidays are the crunch. With only a few dozen sites and week-long minimum bookings over the peak, the Christmas to late-January window can be gone soon after release. Easter and the long weekends are next, and this coming summer may be busier than usual, as it's the first full one since the campground reopened.
Thurra North, with only four sites, can fill quickly even outside peak times.
How to get a cancellation
Plenty of people book a week on the far East Gippsland coast and then find it doesn't fit. Parks Victoria's refund rules nudge them to cancel early: a full refund at 30 or more days before the first night, 50% at 8 to 29 days, and nothing inside 8 days. So sites tend to reappear around a month out, and again in the last few weeks.
Watch Thurra River on Aussie Camp Alerts and we'll email you when a sold-out night comes free. The free plan covers one live watch, with alerts 15 minutes after we detect the opening. The Summer pass (A$29 once, 12 months) gives you up to 10 watches and instant alerts by email, Telegram or web push, which helps if you're also watching other campgrounds.
When an alert comes through, book straight away and keep the Saturday-to-Saturday peak rule in mind.
Getting there
Thurra River is about seven hours' drive east of Melbourne. Take the Princes Highway to Cann River, turn south onto Tamboon Road, then left onto Point Hicks Road. The campground is just over the Thurra River bridge.
Check the Croajingolong park page for current track closures before you go.
Nearby alternatives
Back along the coast towards Orbost, Banksia Bluff at Cape Conran is the other big East Gippsland campground, with dog-friendly loops. Across the NSW border, Depot Beach is another bush-and-beach camp. For a coastal hike instead of a car camp, Sealers Cove at Wilsons Promontory is a classic overnight walk-in.