Mystery Bay Campgrounds is smack-bang on the ocean and one of the few remaining natural campgrounds on the NSW South Coast. Head to Tilba Market to pick up some provisions before choosing the world’s most perfect picnic spot near to your tent pitched under the shade of a towering spotted gum. Follow the paths that have been trodden for generations through groves of acacias and banksias that lead to spectacular cliffs and headlands and some of NSW’s secret beaches. Mystery Bay is located between Narooma and Central Tilba and bookended by Eurobodalla National Park.

This peaceful Discovery Parks campground is in the heart of Lane Cove National Park, just 10 clicks from the Sydney CBD. You could choose to battle valiantly with the can opener to prise open that tin of beef in black bean sauce. Or you could pop into Via Napoli en route for a metre-long pizza to feed the troupes. There’s no judgement from us. Consider camping in this park an introduction to the joys of dossing in the great outdoors. A luxurious superior safari tent might help smooth the way for the reluctant campers in the group. After a day of exploring the park, you can cool off in the pool, then kick back under the stars.

Those who have been coming to Diamond Head Campground on the Mid North Coast of NSW for decades will pass by the same trees on the same path they walked along as kids. The beachside campground at Diamond Head is in Crowdy Bay National Park. And, if you’re fond of sand dunes and salty air… as the Groove Armada song goes, this is the place to peg out your tent. The campground is all about laidback coastal vibes. Fire up the free barbies, picnic under a shady shelter, then don your Tevas for a hike with knockout ocean views. Diamond Head is popular with surfers and anyone who associates camping with watching the sun rise over the sea.

Okay, so you want to take the kids camping but you’re afraid things will go pear-shaped when you’re miles away from home? We’ve got you. Sure you can stay at a fancy hotel if you absolutely want to nail a Sydney staycation. But glamping on Cockatoo Island is the bougie equivalent of camping minus the roughing-it part. Did we mention those iconic Sydney Harbour views? Sit with the kids toasting marshmallows around the campfire while the daytrippers depart and you have the island to yourself. Whether you’re a tourist or a local, staying on Cockatoo Island is one of the best experiences Sydney has to offer. Explore the skeletal ruins of the penal settlement. Enjoy lunch at the Marine Cafe & Bar. And bunker down after the annual Mode music festival.

No matter that you’re down to your last can of baked beans. You’re not bivouacking in the Dolomites doll. One of the bonuses of camping less than a K from Hill End is that you can take a leisurely stroll into the town from Village Campground for last-minute needs that range from loo roll to fresh milk. Van lifers whose Thermalites have started to stick to them can also wash and dry their clothes at the onsite laundry. Fancy, fancy. Village Campground has a mix of powered and unpowered campsites and is a great base for a family weekend spent discovering the living history of the gold mining town of Hill End. Wannabee survivalists need not apply.

The Basin Campground is the only place you can camp in Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park on Sydney’s northern beaches. Watch Sydney roll past in a blur before pulling off the highway to this secret gem overlooking the Pittwater. The campground looks like an advertisement for Kathmandu equipment, with camping newbies road-testing their new gear. Burrow as deep into the bush as you can to secure a shady spot where you can spot the local swamp wallabies and kookaburras while kicking back on your Monstabed. Punctuate your day with bike rides and swims in the Pittwater.

There are just six secluded camping sites at Tallow Beach Campground. Instead of being crammed in like sardines with other campers, you’ve got space to wander around in the quiet. Tallow Beach Campground has all the things a camping trip promises. Listen to the croak of a frog. Go for a sublime, early-morning swim. Or try to catch a fish for dinner. The only reason you will rush here, is when you’re hurrying to wriggle into your wetsuit so you can see the sun rise from the ocean, when it’s like a square of blue corduroy. Carve out some time to follow the Flannel Flower walking track, which leads to Lobster Beach and offers views across a silvery stretch of water to Woy Woy.

The prospect of camping at Sheepstation Creek Campground in NSW’s Northern Rivers region is thrilling. Position your tent on a flat spot of ground so you have plenty of space between your site and the next. Arrive here late in the day and you’ll find teenagers clambering up trees. Young families playing French cricket. And trailing greenery all around the campground in the heart of World-heritage listed Border Ranges National Park. Some pockets of the park have been declared Assets of Intergenerational Significance due to the fact it’s a refuge for many threatened species, many of which you will spot from your tent. Little legs will enjoy the Palm Forest track, while Rosewood loop and Booyong tracks are for longer day walks. BYO firewood. If the weather is gloomy, you can brighten your day with a jaunt into nearby Byron Bay.

You can forget about hitting the snooze button when you’re camping at Saltwater Creek Campground. You’ll wake to the orchestra of magpies, currawongs, king parrots and cockatoos tuning up each morning when camping at this secluded coastal spot. That’s your signal to brew up a Thermos of tea and wander down to the pristine beach to watch dawn turn up the dimmer switch and paint the sky in buttery light.. Turn off your phone; this peaceful, crowd-free camping spot feels like rewinding time. Look for abundant wildlife and wander along sections of the Light to Light walking track, where the rocks are splotched in lichen the colour of rust.

Keep driving until the grey of the city’s fringes turns to green, then turn off the highway toward Killcare on NSW’s Central Coast. Putty Beach Campground is the largest campground in Bouddi National Park and is popular with families who want to encourage their kids to get off screens and into the great outdoors. Apart from being just steps from the sand, the great thing about Putty Beach Campground is that, if the wheels fall off, you’re not that far from home. Run out of tins of baked beans? Just unhook the trailer and nose your headlights into one of the nearby Central Coast villages, where there are a lot of great places to eat and drink.

Pebbly Beach and Pretty Beach Campgrounds are so much more than just dots on the fold of a map. In fact, staying at these holiday hotspots on the NSW South Coast has long been a rite of passage for both Canberrans and Sydneysiders. For starters, there’s the iconic experience of waking to the call of currawongs and watching kangaroos and wallabies graze on the grass outside your tent. The campgrounds are located in Murramarang National Park, where surfers chase uncrowded waves at Pebbly Beach, Pretty Beach and beyond to Bawley Point and Broulee. The native birdlife doesn’t get their food from bins here. See sea eagles soaring above and sooty oysters wading on the shoreline.

Newnes Campground is tucked away in Lithgow in the Central Tablelands of NSW. Backdropped by the Blue Mountains, the scenic riverside campground sits at the base of soaring sandstone cliffs blanketed in bushland. The campground feels properly wild. Not Alone wild. More like Bear Grylls wild. Remote, yet accessible, it’s a 10-kilometre walk to reach the campground from Glen Davis via the Pipeline track. Explore the hauntingly beautiful ruins of an old shale oil refinery, or head out through iridescently beautiful bush tracks lined with eucalyptus trees. This secluded location is ideal for nature lovers and hikers. Bring a lilo (not a hot pink flamingo one, puhlease) to better blend into the khaki surrounds of the Wolgan River.

The pint-sized but perfectly formed Little Beach Campground is the go-to in Gosford. It offers beachfront camping that is ideal for surfers and the perfect environment for a bit of quiet contemplation. The campground, which is equipped with toilets, is tucked into a pretty cove and surrounded by littoral rainforest. And there are signs directing you from one scenic hike to the next, such as the lovely Bouddi Coastal Walk. Little Beach is popular with salty-haired surfers who get up at dawn to make the most of the offshore conditions. It also features free, sheltered barbecues where you can cook up a few snags and share stories about your day.

Camping at Honeymoon Bay is managed through a booking system that opens a fortnight prior to your arrival, with special release dates for the NSW summer school holidays. It’s particularly popular for its striking sandstone cliffs and tranquil waters surrounded by vast swathes of green. On weekends, when other people are heading back to their cars, you’ll be going back into your bubble (tent). The campsite is located within the Beecroft Weapons Range on the Beecroft Peninsula about 10 kilometres from the edge of Currarong. If you’re tired of tinned salmon and rehydrated potato powder, you’ll find plenty of places to drink and dine on the Shoalhaven, like Bangalay Dining, Milk HAUS and Cupitt’s Estate.

This grassy, landscaped campground is set in the heart of Munmorah State Conservation Area and surrounded by a rumpled blanket of bushland on NSW’s Central Coast. On a blazing spring day, Freeman’s Campground shimmers in a heat haze: it’s the very picture of nostalgia. There’s ample space for caravans and trailers as well as designated spots for tents. Just a short walk from the campground is the long, sandy stretch of Birdie Beach. Start the day with a leisurely walk along the beach staring out at the sea, dazzling like tin foil. Fantastic fishing and surfing spots abound as well as bushwalks. BYO zinc and mozzie spray. And listen out for the Mr Whippy van.