Thomas Burns Street Carpark, Dunedin
Overnight Campervan Parking
3.8 36 reviews
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Thomas Burns Street Carpark, Dunedin
**closed to all vehicles from 5pm Friday, 20 February 2026 – 10:30pm Saturday, 21 February 2026 for Chinese New Year celebrations.**
The maximum stay for freedom campers at any one location is two consecutive nights (departure by 8.30am).
Please respect the sites. They are public spaces so please consider other users.
Dispose of all waste in facilities provided, or take it with you.
Refrain from toileting on the ground, or in the bush or forest.
Discharge black water (sewage) and grey water (sink and hand basin water) at designated wastewater dump stations only (most local holiday parks and some petrol stations have dump stations for customer use). See the Where can I camp in Dunedin brochure further down this page.
Place litter in rubbish bins or take it with you if the bins are full. Do not leave it on the ground beside the bin if it is full.
Refrain from using waterways and toilets for bathing, washing clothes, or dishes.
Use the amenities provided wherever you camp, where available.
No fires.
Park in a legal manner in formed parking areas without obstructing footpaths or access.
Self-contained vehicles must clearly display NZS5465:2001 certification.
Gated reserves are locked at night and are not available for freedom camping.
Campers not complying with the rules may be issued with a fine up to $800.
Details
| Feature | Value | Info |
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Organisation |
Dunedin City CouncilCouncil organisation |
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Location |
South Island ▷ Coastal Otago ▷ Dunedin |
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Categories |
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Operating Season And Hours |
Closed to all vehicles from 5pm Friday, 20 February 2026 – 10:30pm Saturday, 21 February 2026 for Chinese New Year celebrations. |
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Directions To Coordinates |
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Coordinates |
Freedom Camping
Google Maps
Nearby
Reviews
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Great central location -
Free overnight parking
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Basic facilities provided
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Safe environment with other campers
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Very noisy from trains -
Dirty toilets
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Limited facilities
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Free from 6pm to 8am.
Audrey -
Good spot extremely close to the city!
Rebecca -
No toilets or water when I visited in July.
Aaron -
Worst night sleep of our 5 week trip.
Charlotte F -
Great location, easy walk to explore Dunedin.
FC
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Worst night sleep of our 5 week trip.
Reviews made it sound fine but the trains were non stop all night (Monday night) and not just a slight rumble background noise - extremely loud, metal grinding, shake the van, wake you with a shock kinda noise. We went somewhere else for our 2nd night in Dunedin after this place left us completely sleep deprived. Toilets are 2 portaloos, pretty dirty but there is sink access and bins. Would really not recommend despite the convenience in the city centre.
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So much noise between the road and the trains ...
Hard to sleep. The van was vibrating with trains ...
Good things : toilet, sink and near the city.
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We stayed here on Sunday, so it was totally free until monday morning 9 AM.
We arrived around 17h30 and saw the large places were occupied by 17h50 (although smaller vehicles were also in the large places). Exactly as promised: free, drop toilets, sink with water and litter bin. If you want a flush toilet, you can go to clean public toilets on the other side of the station. You do hear some noise from the street and rail, but this is normal.
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Endroit parfait pour les fan de train.
Très brouillant et les toilettes les plus proches sont à 5 min à pied. C’est ok pour passer une nuit mais pas plus
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Great central location, however have to move you can out by 9am as it turns into a paid parking spot.
Couldn't find the water source to wash dishes so it might have been removed. It gets quite noisy as the trains run almost all night long and it's beside a main road.
Would recommend if you're in an urgent need of a place to sleep within central Dunedin.
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Handy location but terrible for noise .
The trains work late into the night and traffic noise is bad .
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Good location and did the job for a single night stay.
There was some noise of trains during the night and it was well lit so could disturb sleep. Thankfully we were so tired it didn't bother us. There were a few other campers in the car park which was good as I probably wouldn't have felt safe there alone. The campervan parking area was clearly marked, bins provided and public toilets across the rail bridge but we just used our own during the night
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Basic as it says, car park with clearly marked camper bays.
Was 3 others there when we arrived. Didnt hear much from the trains until the morning.
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Close to main shopping.
Toilet is located over the walk bridge near the train station. Rubbish bins to use. No water
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Awesome location, and lots of room.
Is just a parking lot sandwiched between a main road and train tracks, and yes can be noisy, but the location more than makes up for it. Easy walk across the bridge to decent flushing toilets and many Dunedin attractions- the old railway station and settlers museum were great! There were always other campers there, so felt safe as a solo traveller.
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Great location.
Nice and close to city. Very noisy with both cars and trains 7am to about midnight. I wore earplugs.
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Stayed near St Clairs Beach following DCC freedom camping map and was very handy place for the night
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Great spot, 5 min away from the CBD.
Little bit noisy, specially with the train, 30 mts from the railroads. Nice bathrooms and a place to do the dishes and tap of water.
Doc personal checking daily, lots of places to park, more than 20. Nice to cook outside if the wind/rain allows that or just go and grab something in town. No sandflies, jan 2021. Parking prices: whole day $5, from 8 to 18, night is FREE (if you arrive after 18pm) per hour is $2.
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Good spot extremely close to the city!
There was even a sink and drinking water. A lovely woman from DOC came and informed us that self contained vehicles are allowed to stay ANYWHERE in the city that is council land (not on grass). There was a few small areas she pointed out as not allowed, but we stayed at the Vauxhall yacht club last night which has toilets and a beautiful view across the water at the city. Worth heading into the iSite and asking them for more information :)
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Free spot in the city centre!
A bit noisy but I slept good. Public toilets at 100m crossing the rails using the bridge. Just make sure you park at the campervan designated area and bare in mind that from 8am it’s a day parking and you’ll have to pay.
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Literally just in a car park right next to a railway line, so it’s quite noisy until late.
Only portaloos. Fine for one night.
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It's was the first time for us that we stay on a car park.
The place are okay but it is busy and you stand to each other. But... You are nearly in the beautiful center of Dunedin. Toilets are okay and it's a little bit noisy from the way next the car park. We liked it and a tip to do in Dunedin,
Look for the street art in the place, it was great!
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Worst night sleep of our 5 week trip.
Reviews made it sound fine but the trains were non stop all night (Monday night) and not just a slight rumble background noise - extremely loud, metal grinding, shake the van, wake you with a shock kinda noise. We went somewhere else for our 2nd night in Dunedin after this place left us completely sleep deprived. Toilets are 2 portaloos, pretty dirty but there is sink access and bins. Would really not recommend despite the convenience in the city centre.
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So much noise between the road and the trains ...
Hard to sleep. The van was vibrating with trains ...
Good things : toilet, sink and near the city.
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We stayed here on Sunday, so it was totally free until monday morning 9 AM.
We arrived around 17h30 and saw the large places were occupied by 17h50 (although smaller vehicles were also in the large places). Exactly as promised: free, drop toilets, sink with water and litter bin. If you want a flush toilet, you can go to clean public toilets on the other side of the station. You do hear some noise from the street and rail, but this is normal.
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Endroit parfait pour les fan de train.
Très brouillant et les toilettes les plus proches sont à 5 min à pied. C’est ok pour passer une nuit mais pas plus
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Great central location, however have to move you can out by 9am as it turns into a paid parking spot.
Couldn't find the water source to wash dishes so it might have been removed. It gets quite noisy as the trains run almost all night long and it's beside a main road.
Would recommend if you're in an urgent need of a place to sleep within central Dunedin.
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Handy location but terrible for noise .
The trains work late into the night and traffic noise is bad .
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Good location and did the job for a single night stay.
There was some noise of trains during the night and it was well lit so could disturb sleep. Thankfully we were so tired it didn't bother us. There were a few other campers in the car park which was good as I probably wouldn't have felt safe there alone. The campervan parking area was clearly marked, bins provided and public toilets across the rail bridge but we just used our own during the night
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Good central location, but it’s also located next to an active rail station.
Got woken up 3 or so times by trains in the middle of the night and didn’t get much sleep. It’s also very exposed and hard to hide from the wind there too. Free parking after 6 PM and until 8 or 9 the next morning. 8$ to park for the day at the lot.
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Basic as it says, car park with clearly marked camper bays.
Was 3 others there when we arrived. Didnt hear much from the trains until the morning.
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Close to main shopping.
Toilet is located over the walk bridge near the train station. Rubbish bins to use. No water
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Awesome location, and lots of room.
Is just a parking lot sandwiched between a main road and train tracks, and yes can be noisy, but the location more than makes up for it. Easy walk across the bridge to decent flushing toilets and many Dunedin attractions- the old railway station and settlers museum were great! There were always other campers there, so felt safe as a solo traveller.
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Great location.
Nice and close to city. Very noisy with both cars and trains 7am to about midnight. I wore earplugs.
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Stayed near St Clairs Beach following DCC freedom camping map and was very handy place for the night
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I didn't see toilets or water and the place is between a busy road and the trains..
Impossible to sleep I o but nice parking spot.
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Great location if that's important, but not for sleeping.
Busy, loud road so be prepared. I'd recommended the extra 20 min drive to Brighton Freedom spot. Had spent a couple of nights there, fantastic spot and great for beach walks.
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Good location but found the traffic too noisy.
If you want a good sleep don’t stay here otherwise alright for 1 night.
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Great spot, 5 min away from the CBD.
Little bit noisy, specially with the train, 30 mts from the railroads. Nice bathrooms and a place to do the dishes and tap of water.
Doc personal checking daily, lots of places to park, more than 20. Nice to cook outside if the wind/rain allows that or just go and grab something in town. No sandflies, jan 2021. Parking prices: whole day $5, from 8 to 18, night is FREE (if you arrive after 18pm) per hour is $2.