Remember when????  - you could pack up your family and take a last minute trip to any BC Park within the province?  Well that is becoming harder and harder to do these days as BC Parks increases campsite reservation capacity and reduces “first come, first serve” sites for travellers (you will most likely be parking on a side road – and making the best of it). 

Last year (2018 camping season), Golden Ears increased the amount of “reserved sites, and reduced the “first come first serve by approximately 50%).  We have now been informed that the plan for 2019 camping season is for Golden Ears to be 100% online reservable.  This limits who can actually register for a campsite as may be competing for sites similar to Ticketmaster selling sites to travel excursion companies.  It also limits the opportunity for younger individuals who may not have credit card and the lack of inclusion of older individuals who are not computer savy.  Camping fees continue to go up, now add the mandatory reservation fees each booking which camping is even more expensive than potentially grabbing a hotel room – and therefore changing the target market for BC campers.  Golden Ears Provincial Parks has the largest camping capacity within British Columbia and is closest to the Metro Vancouver population.  We would like to see First Come First Serve re-instated to 2017 Summer levels.

As many of us are seasoned campers (and have been going there their our entire lives), we feel that this decision is arbitrary and deserves public consultation from British Columbia residents.  The attached petition is available for your signature.