Photo by Vince Fedoroff
COSTS TO RISE – The Tarfu Lake Campground is seen in July 2021. A variety of fee increases will kick in for the 2022 camping season, the Yukon government said recently.
Camping fees set to increase this year
As part of the implementation of the Yukon Parks Strategy, campground fees are going up in 2022 for the first time in 20 years.
As part of the implementation of the Yukon Parks Strategy, campground fees are going up in 2022 for the first time in 20 years.
A camper will have to pay $20 a day for a site, up from $12, while seniors 65 and older will pay $10. Until now, seniors had enjoyed free camping.
An annual permit will rise from $50 to $100 ($50 for seniors).
“The new fees will contribute to the maintenance and sustainability of the Yukon’s world-class system of parks and campgrounds so that users can continue to have access to quality, affordable camping experiences now and in the future,” the government said in a statement last Thursday.
Camping fees will continue to include firewood.
Starting this year, campers will be able to pay online for a daily campground permit, using the same website they currently use to buy annual campground permits and fishing licences.
Yukoners and visitors will also continue to enjoy no fees for day use, parking, vehicle access, boat launch use and interpretive programming.
“Our territorial parks are beloved by Yukoners and visitors alike,” said Environment Minister Nils Clarke.
“Park fees in the Yukon have not been updated since 2002 and, even with these new fees, the Yukon will continue to have the lowest camping fees in the country.
“These new fees will help support the expansion of our park network in the future, build a financially sustainable park system and properly maintain parks for Yukoners now and for generations to come.”
Updating park fees was included in one of the 10 strategic actions outlined in the Yukon Parks Strategy.
Camping fees only recover about 10 per cent of the costs of services provided at campgrounds. The new fees will lead to a 20 per cent recovery of costs.
The 2022 serviced camping season will run from April 29 to Oct. 2.
There will be no fee for unserved camping during the off-season.
In 2021, the Yukon camping season was extended to open May 1, marking the earliest Yukon campgrounds had ever opened.
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Comments (32)
Up 4 Down 2
Charlie's Aunt on Jan 8, 2022 at 10:26 pm
@ Bingo; educate yourself! I was referring to portable generators, some are very loud but one well known brand is extremely quiet, so much so it can barely be heard 12 ft away.
Up 12 Down 6
atom on Jan 8, 2022 at 1:49 pm
It's 50 bucks....my God Yukoners whine.
Up 14 Down 3
Bingo on Jan 7, 2022 at 8:38 pm
Never could understand why a person who rolls in with a big diesel muncher and 34 foot fifth wheel needs a gen set running for 10 hrs? You can make toast on the fire and coffee on the stove, there is no such thing as a silent generator btw.
Up 13 Down 0
Anie on Jan 7, 2022 at 3:12 pm
Charlie's Aunt, I think my post may have not been clear. Sorry about that. My point was only that I would happily pay more to camp where generators are not permitted. I have not had the experience of camping near a silent generator so can't comment on that.
Up 22 Down 11
Yukon Entitlement on Jan 6, 2022 at 9:22 pm
@ @Ibrian
So you are saying that people from the east think we should pay for our lifestyle up here, while BnR Yukoners believe that everything here should be subsidized or free, right down to firewood at a campsite. Courtesy of all the other taxpayers in the provinces.
What ever happened to the concept of Yukoners being self-reliant and tough? Maybe that was always just a myth. Maybe our existence here is only possible because the government of Canada wants to have a population base in the north and is willing to coddle us with all sorts of tax breaks and subsidies? I would say it has resulted in people who have lived here for a long time becoming a generation of babies.
Don't increase my hunting fees!
Don't make me pay for my own firewood!
Don't increase my camping fees!
Make sure my side street is plowed immediately but don't you dare increase my property taxes to pay for an increased plowing schedule!
Rent is too high so subsidize my rent or cap it!
Bring more nurses and doctors here but don't increase my taxes to pay for them!
Bring more teachers and bus drivers here but don't increase my taxes to pay for them!
Make the buses run more often but don't increase my taxes!
Build more bike trails, ski trails and hockey arenas, but don't increase my taxes!
And I could keep going with this list all day.
Here is the truth, when you DON'T pay the full cost of something, someone else in Canada is paying it for you.
We have it better than anywhere in Canada I can think of, yet you would never know it by reading the comment section here or on social media in general. I've never seen anything like it.
Up 9 Down 6
Charlies Aunt on Jan 6, 2022 at 1:54 pm
$100 a year for those who camp often isn't bad, but increase of $0 - $50 for seniors is a stretch. Possibly younger retired seniors camp all summer but they could have a lower fee for those 75+.
For those of you who think firewood should be paid for, consider BC campsites where wood has to be purchased from an agent who sells you an armload. Often a high price to pay for what amounts to about 8 split pieces. Yes price of a cord has increased big time this year, but who do you think is going to pay wages for an agent selling wood in a campsite? There is more than cost of wood to think about if you want people to buy it.
Anie, not all generators are noisy and there is usually a noise cut off time in YT campgrounds. If some don't abide by it, you have the option of complaining to a person checking permits.
Up 18 Down 11
@iBrian on Jan 6, 2022 at 1:10 pm
Those that want $500 hunting license are most likely granola muncher transplants from back east.
Up 20 Down 10
iBrian on Jan 6, 2022 at 10:00 am
@ yukoner on Jan 5, 2022 at 6:07 am
Hunting license to $500
Get stuffed
Up 10 Down 2
Chuck Farley on Jan 5, 2022 at 8:29 pm
John on Jan 5, wrong, I am retired nice try though.
Up 7 Down 19
Simply - WTF!?!? on Jan 5, 2022 at 4:46 pm
And the commons were removed from the people… Like a return to the fiefdoms of those long ago feudal days… Not so long ago perhaps… A tax upon you that you may have the privilege of your existence should you have the ability to pay for it!
Yes my liege… 30 pieces of Silver to liberally enjoy those Sandy beaches… See how well the green revolution pays - You are burning biomass fuel technologies with your campfires… Very green, very efficient - What do you mean that deforestation is a significant contributor to climate change?
Yes - People who burn wood should not only pay for the ‘privilege’ but they should be taxed heavily for doing so… Similar to tobacco and oil and gas taxes - Make them pay for these destructive activities!
Up 25 Down 12
GetOverIt on Jan 5, 2022 at 3:51 pm
For those few who whine tend to whine about everything and then put some sort of political spin on these articles. There is still considerable value in a seasonal permit.
Up 13 Down 7
John on Jan 5, 2022 at 3:24 pm
@ Dude
Well Dude, you seem to have gone off on a tangent. A big one. Now you are trying to compare Federal Parks to our parks. I made no inference about Federal Parks other than to note to Woodpecker that user fees were brought in by PET in 77 in answer to his shoveling the blame on Mulroney.
By the way the days of $3/day in at any Canada Parks to camp is long gone - like nearly 50 years.
Up 17 Down 12
Woodcutter on Jan 5, 2022 at 3:04 pm
Get a grip John, you are crybaby about user fees, which the conservatives once upon a time spoke it like a mantra . Now you telling me that the conservatives just copied the concept from the liberals?
I can believe it cause we seen the Yukon Party mimic the liberal platform in the last election.
The fee for camping in the beautiful site is cheap even after the increase. To all those complaining about the government workers perceived great jobs, go get educated and sign up for one of those great jobs, just be careful what you wish for, myself I shudder at the thought of working somewhere where there is no reward for initiative.
Up 15 Down 4
moe on Jan 5, 2022 at 2:50 pm
If the true cost of running one campsite for one night is $100, as the article states, we need to do an audit of where the money is going. If a campground has 40 sites, that suggests that it costs $4000 a day to run that campground! This is astronomical, given that there is usually nobody even posted at the campsite. A couple of service people might show up for an hour a day to restock the firewood and check that people paid.
I could be wrong about how the calculations go, because likely 50% of the sites aren't occupied at any time, but I'd like to see the breakdown of costs.
Next item, people who are not residents of the Yukon should be paying the full cost of their site. If that means they pay $100 a night, so be it. At the very least, they should be paying what they would pay in a private campsite, plus 5 bucks, so the government is not putting private people at a disadvantage.
Up 19 Down 2
Dude on Jan 5, 2022 at 2:11 pm
@John
If you think the $3 we paid to camp in a federal park that, in some cases are MASSIVE (Wood Buffalo is 44,807 km²) covers the cost of operations you are seriously deluded.
The fed parks have all the infrastructure that Yukon parks do but they also have dozens of staff doing everything from running the front gate to putting on locally relevant and interactive displays and hands on learning experiences.
If you were paying the full cost to use the park it would likely be in the thousands of dollars/day
Up 11 Down 4
Pierre on Jan 5, 2022 at 1:42 pm
I don't think Yukoners care about the increase in general...I do think YG need to explore a MOU with BC for areas like Morley Lake and Tutshi Lake.
Up 27 Down 17
Vlad PETRLAK on Jan 5, 2022 at 10:53 am
Not everybody is on the government payroll. To increase seniors fees is sick, as far as I am concerned.
Up 15 Down 15
John on Jan 5, 2022 at 10:37 am
@Chuck Farley
Perhaps you are in a great position to afford "all" these increases that your buddies, the liberals are "chucking' out there. Some of us are not as well off; but then it is obvious you don't give a rat's ass.
Up 20 Down 8
John on Jan 5, 2022 at 10:34 am
@Woodcutter
Perhaps if you did a quick historical check you will find that the first user pays introduced with Parks Canada was in January 1977 under none-other than Trudeau. It was his administration that put user fees on the railroad tracks.
Up 31 Down 2
YukonMax on Jan 5, 2022 at 6:34 am
I for one, generally use the seasonal camp permit when I have to get out of the community and go for medical/mechanic/shopping etc. However, the last couple of years, I regreted it, since there are NEVER any spots available in any of the gov. campgrounds 100 kilometers radius of Whitehorse. Last year, I ended up at one of the private near Wolf Creek campground and I was pleasantly surprised by the availability, cleanliness, services provided and even the price that included power hook up in treed lots. Got my propane filled up on the spot. I will pay daily for gov. campground uses whenever available, but I will never again buy a seasonal. I will certainly use the private again though.
Up 30 Down 29
yukoner on Jan 5, 2022 at 6:07 am
Get over it there was a survey done last year I for one voted for the increase.
I don't work for YTG you get free wood I also voted to make hunting license's $500.00.
Up 17 Down 6
Chuck Farley on Jan 4, 2022 at 9:21 pm
John on Jan 4; should have been done a long time ago; deal with it.
Up 14 Down 6
Bingo on Jan 4, 2022 at 4:25 pm
@yukoner32…I don’t think people are complaining at all. It’s been like this forever hence the expectation also our springs, summers and falls are not plus 30 so I think if you don’t like it, the Alaska highway south is in good shape.
Up 20 Down 7
Groucho d'North on Jan 4, 2022 at 4:00 pm
So perhaps now there will sufficient budget to contract campground hosts to manage the day to day and night to night operations similar to how BC and other provinces do it.
Up 40 Down 13
woodcutter on Jan 4, 2022 at 3:33 pm
@John I remember in Mullroney days the conservative mantra was "user Pays". Now that it's the new normal, your giving the liberals flak, for keeping an idea that the conservatives implemented, how the worm has turned.
I agree the entire concept of free firewood is crazy, even tho one year I did the contract for several camp sites and boy could the campers go through the wood. The fee is not so large, considering that in many cases folks have a $150,000 worth of camping / truck on site for their weekend get away, not to mention the beverages consumed.
The real issue, as I see it, is the amount of commercial plates that are on these vehicles and we know that the honest small business is keeping records of their costs to ensure they are not trying to skip out on their taxes.
Up 47 Down 6
Anie on Jan 4, 2022 at 3:09 pm
Still a good deal. I just wish govt would build campgrounds that accommodate today's larger rigs. And a generator-free campground would be such a treat - I'd gladly pay more. For those who like the comforts provided by a generator, solar panels are an excellent alternative.
Up 17 Down 32
Irene on Jan 4, 2022 at 3:07 pm
@ Yukoner32
Of course it is easy for you to be magnanimous with our money - you likely draw your subsistence monies from the government as a pay cheque. Then there are the real working stiffs - I know, I know - screw them.
Up 28 Down 47
Henry on Jan 4, 2022 at 3:04 pm
I think calling these facilities "Government of Yukon Campgrounds" meets with the overall objective of the Liberals. It is priced right for only those that can afford to stay there - government employees!
Up 50 Down 12
Vern Schlimbesser on Jan 4, 2022 at 2:32 pm
So...Nils...you say this money is going directly to the Parks and Campgrounds and NOT to General Revenue?
Excellent!
(Why don't I believe you?)
Up 39 Down 54
John on Jan 4, 2022 at 2:13 pm
What can one say but thank you Liberals, for another increase in taxes. User fees are simply another form of taxation - just sounds more warm and fuzzy.
I am so appreciative of your grubby fingers once again in my pocket. Never look at the hard choices - too many staff, inefficient and/or worthless programs, spending out of control. All expenditures proposed need to be put under a microscope. Identify savings then divert those funds that are being wasted to building infrastructure, like campgrounds, so that we, the slovenly citizens, may enjoy.
Remember - not all of us are working for the government making BIG BUCKS! In fact for many of us this is one of the few recreational activities we can truly enjoy without have to have an ATM at every campground. I tire every time I hear - it is only a small amount of money. That is how the pyramids got built - one block at time until viola a pyramid.
Up 47 Down 12
Matthew on Jan 4, 2022 at 1:21 pm
Still a fantastic deal! I'm sure many would be content paying $250/season. People can burn that in 1 weekend camping ha! I just wish they had more spots, make a goal to somehow get 5-10 spots each campground
Up 49 Down 42
Yukoner32 on Jan 4, 2022 at 12:57 pm
It's about time, our entitlement to cheap or free everything up here is getting ridiculous. I think the Liberals made a mistake with keeping firewood free as well. No other place does this that I'm aware of. Those of us who don't go camping every weekend should not have to pay for the firewood for those that do. People need to stop expecting the government to pay for everything.
You don't get free hockey gear to play hockey at local arenas, you don't get a free swimsuit and goggles when you use the pool etc etc.