Australian snow tourists bringing own meals, tents and BBQs to cut cost of ski trips

Australia Broadcast Center

a day ago

Thinking of taking a trip to the snow this winter, but the cost of staying in a resort town and hitting the slopes is giving you chills?
You're not alone.
Here's how others have found ways to enjoy holidaying in the Australian Alps on a budget.
High school mates Dylan Oakroot and Alex Marychurch sit under the pull-out awning of their SUV in a free campground and watch the rain pour down.
Every so often, one of the pair stands up to push the growing pool of water off their canvas roof.
There's a pool forming, too, in the corner of the barbecue, where some of the cheapest sausages the boys could buy are slowly cooking in the rain.
It's snow season 2024, and what some might consider a dour situation is one of pure joy for the 23-year-olds from Brisbane.
They knew doing it on the cheap was the only way they were ever going to fulfil their dream of visiting the snow.
"It's our first time seeing snow. We've been dreaming about it for a long time. It's a bucket-list item," Mr Oakroot said.
The boys will miss the 2025 winter season because of life circumstances, but Mr Oakroot said they would "definitely" make the trip again.
"We plan to return next year, and maybe with some more people too," he said.
Snow sports, and even just a day trip to see the snow up close, are becoming too expensive for many people.
Mr Oakshot and Mr Marychurch are staying in a campground near Jindabyne, in the Snowy Mountains, rated one of the least-affordable towns in Australia in the 2023 Rental Affordability Index.
House prices here have risen almost 150 per cent over five years, with locals being priced out of the town they grew up in as homes are transformed into short-term rentals.
The population of around 5,000 quadruples to more than 20,000 during peak snow season as tourists head to the ski fields of Perisher, Thredbo and Charlotte Pass, which are all just a 30-minute drive away.
Every night in winter, Jindabyne is lit up with fluorescent lights, as almost every store selling food or renting snow gear desperately tries to capitalise on the tourist boom.
But most evenings, ravenous crowds descend on the only major supermarket in town, eager to feed themselves as cheaply as possible.
And during the day, when one Instagrammer reported that a hot chocolate on the slopes can cost up to $17, many budget-conscious holiday-makers resort to bringing a packed lunch.
One of the biggest expenses for Mr Oakroot and Mr Marychurch was the cost of fuel to get them from Brisbane to Jindabyne.
But, Mr Oakroot said, some costs were unavoidable.
Day passes to go skiing in Australia start from about $150, with membership deals pushing tourists to spend more on a seasonal pass.
The mates are curbing costs by sleeping in a swag and a rooftop tent, eating a diet of sausages, eggs, cheese, bread and cheap steaks cooked in the drizzle, and relying on lighting a fire or simply rugging up to stay warm.
"You've got more challenges you've got to overcome. You make more memories. It's a lot better."
At another Snowy Mountains campsite, Wollongong's Judy Chang is playing with her young daughter, Skye, outside their teepee tent.
"There's not really any other way to save money. You have to pay for a lift pass, so this is how we're doing it."
Ms Chang was able to keep some costs down by raiding second-hand markets and op-shops, managing to pick up a second-hand ski jacket and snowboard for Skye.
"They grow so quickly, and the second-hand market offers pretty new things," she said.
Ms Chang also recommended purchasing a two-year car pass from National Parks because it was cheaper in the long run than the annual alternative.
Her dream of having a yearly family snow trip was only feasible by cutting costs as much as possible, she said.
"It's hard. Not everyone is into camping, and winter camping is tough, but it is super nice," she said.
But tension is brewing in the town.
Many locals are frustrated by the growing trend of BYO food and accommodation, with local cafes and traders feeling they're missing out on tourism dollars as visitors cut costs.
Comments on the local Facebook noticeboard criticise visitors to the region who don't give back — those who don't buy a ski pass at the resorts, who bring their own lunch, who take up valuable car parks without spending in local shops.
"80 per cent of the non-skiiers [sic] come up with a slow cooker full of rice and don't spend a penny on the resort or other food outlets up there. Sooner or later those businesses are going to go belly up," one comment says.
"They need to stop all [visitors] taking a packed lunch up there in a full van taking a parking spot away from skiers whilst contributing nothing but park entry to the economy. Ban snow play and toboggans," another said.
However, Jindabyne Chamber of Commerce president Olivier Kapetanakos said tourists trying to visit the snow cheaply was nothing new and was often a way for people to try out the snow before committing to a more expensive visit in the future.
He said many such tourists returned in future years or even moved to the area long term.
"Tourism is what it is," he said.
"We have to take them as they are.
Mr Kapetanakos said local businesses had learnt that three-or-so months of tourism could not sustain a year-round income and many had pivoted to new markets, such as hiking and mountain-biking.
For Matt Boggas from the Sunshine Coast, a trip to the snow looks like snowboarding during the day, then sleeping in his car at night, cooking his own food, waking himself up with a swim in Jindabyne Lake, and trying not to drink too much.
And if he didn't sleep in his car?
"It would be ridiculous. It would be a lot of money – definitely unaffordable for most people our age [25]," he said.
The local brewery sells 300mL beers from $9, while many choose to purchase alcohol to be consumed at home.
BWS Jindabyne is the liquor store chain's top-performing store nationally during the winter months.
When he's not on the slopes, Mr Boggas is dropping in at the local skate-bowl, just off the main street, which becomes a magnet for would-be snowboarders after the lifts have closed for the day, or in bad weather.
As young people carve around on scooters and skateboards with music pumping, Mr Boggas says these people — many friends of his from the Sunshine Coast who make the pilgrimage to the snow annually — contribute something to the snow experience.
It's what he comes back for each year.
"The cost makes it super inaccessible. It sucks," he said.