Camping on Lady Musgrave in 2027

How does the new booking-season model work?

Queensland Parks releases each block of camping dates at once, at 10am AEST on a set Tuesday, and you cannot book before that.

The aim, Queensland Parks says, is a better booking experience, along the lines of the models popular campgrounds use in other states. Once a block opens it stays on sale until the end of that block, so a release date is when the scramble starts, not a deadline.

There is no waitlist. Cancelled permits go straight back on sale, so a sold-out week can open up again. Your booking only counts once you finish the payment page and click finalise, and Queensland Parks penalises "ghost bookings" by people who neither camp nor cancel. Have backup dates ready: no date is guaranteed.

When do 2027 Lady Musgrave camping permits go on sale?

The first two 2027 blocks opened in June and September 2026. The next opens on Tuesday 1 December 2026 and the last on Tuesday 2 March 2027.

The 2027 season opens with the Queensland Easter school holidays on 26 March 2027. The September to November block is the one to watch now: whale season runs to October and the first turtles nest from late October. December to January covers the summer school holidays, so set a reminder for 2 March.

How many people can camp, for how long, and when is it closed?

Up to 40 people at a time, for up to 21 nights, from the Easter school holidays until the day after the Australia Day weekend.

The camping area is one open stretch of sand with no marked sites; you pitch inland of the rope barriers. It is tent camping only. Check-in is after 2pm and check-out by 11am. Education groups are capped at 25, and the 2022 Great Barrier Reef Marine Park zoning map notes a maximum group size of 6 for camping permits in Capricornia Cays National Park.

Between late January and Easter the campground is closed every year. That covers the peak hatching months, and it means the current season ends on Wednesday 27 January 2027, the day after the Australia Day public holiday, with the next one starting on 26 March. Day trips run all year, so the island is still open to visit.

What does a camping permit cost?

A$7.75 a person a night, or A$31 a family a night, since 1 July 2026.

Two adults for five nights pay A$77.50 in permits. A family pays A$155 for the same stay. Some operator pages still quote an older permit fee, so go by the Queensland Parks rate when you budget.

The permit is the small part of the bill. The transfer out and back, with your water and gear, costs far more, and both operators set their own prices. For day trip fares and the 2027 rises, see Lady Musgrave prices 2026-27.

How do campers get to the island, and what must they bring?

By camper transfer from Bundaberg or Town of 1770, by charter boat or by seaplane, carrying all food and at least 5 litres of water a person a day.

Charter boats drop campers and gear on the beach at high tide, and wheelbarrows are there for the haul up. Lady Musgrave Experience runs camper transfers from Bundaberg Port Marina daily, about 3 hours each way, with a third of a cubic metre of gear allowed. 1770 Reef prices its transfers on request, with different on-peak and off-peak rates. Seair flies campers in from the Gold Coast, Brisbane (Redcliffe), Hervey Bay or Bundaberg, and Gladstone Region's visitor site lists barge hire from Gladstone Marina.

1770 Reef has strict gear rules: you carry everything on in one go, one backpack plus one container of up to 60 litres and up to two water cans. Kayaks, paddleboards, dinghies, solar panels, fridges, batteries, generators, gazebos and swags stay on the mainland.

On the island you get toilets and nothing else. Bring:

• All food and drinking water, at least 5 litres a person a day.
• A tent, and a gas or liquid-fuel stove: no fires of any kind, no generators.
• A marine VHF radio or satellite phone, as mobile coverage is unreliable. An emergency VHF radio is in the toilet block.
• Reef shoes for the coral rubble, a lycra suit in stinger season, and a dim torch for turtle nights.

Is there an alternative to camping on Lady Musgrave?

Yes: a bed on the Lady Musgrave HQ pontoon in the lagoon, from A$950 a night for a single glamping bed.

Lady Musgrave Experience runs the three-level pontoon, which is wind and solar powered and moored in the lagoon. It has eight queen glamping beds on the upper deck, for one or two, and 20 bunks in the underwater observatory for groups of ten or more. Meals, snorkel gear, the glass-bottom boat, the island walk and a lounge upgrade on the transfers are included.

It is not a tent on the sand, and it is not cheap. For most people the realistic choice is between a permit, if the dates work, and a full day trip. The day cruise from 1770 is from $225 on GetYourGuide and cancels free up to 24 hours before, which makes it an easy fallback while you wait for a permit block.

No permit needed: a full day on Lady Musgrave with snorkelling, the glass-bottom boat and a guided island walk.

★ 4.3 · 9 hours · from $225

Explore the Lady Musgrave Island day cruise → Tour details

Frequently asked questions