Campfire tips for camping in Australia: how to build, cook, and stay legal

There's nothing quite like sitting around a campfire after a long day outdoors. The crackle, the warmth, the smoke that follows you no matter where you sit. But good campfire tips for camping in Australia go beyond "light a match." Get the rules wrong and you're looking at fines up to $110,000 in some states, or worse, starting a bushfire.

This guide covers the practical side: how to build a good campfire, cook over coals, and handle wet weather, plus the Australian-specific rules that every camper needs to know. Whether you're a first-timer nervously lighting your first match or a seasoned bush camper, there's something here for you.

Check fire bans before you do anything else#

This is the single most important campfire tip in Australia: check if fires are even allowed before you leave home.

Every state and territory has a fire danger rating system. During Total Fire Ban (TOBAN) days, all open fires are prohibited, and in most states that includes gas stoves and solid fuel BBQs too. During Catastrophic fire danger, entire forests and parks may close.

How to check by state:

• NSW: Fires Near Me app or NSW RFS fire danger ratings
• VIC: CFA fire danger ratings
• QLD: Queensland Fire and Emergency
• WA: DFES total fire bans
• SA: CFS fire ban status
• TAS: Tasmania Fire Service
• NT: Bushfires NT
• ACT: ACT ESA

Pro tip: Check the morning of your trip, not just when you plan. Conditions change quickly. A clear forecast on Monday can become a Total Fire Ban by Wednesday.

Campfire rules by state: the quick version#

Rules vary between states, between national parks and state forests, and sometimes between individual campgrounds. Here's the baseline:

NSW: Fires only in provided fireplaces or fire rings. Prohibited during Total Fire Bans. In national parks, you can only use fires where NSW Parks has installed a fire pit.

VIC: Similar rules. Fires in designated areas only. No fires on days of Total Fire Ban. In many Parks Victoria campgrounds, campfires are banned year-round, even outside fire season.

QLD: Varies by park. Many Queensland national parks prohibit campfires entirely, allowing only gas or liquid fuel stoves.

WA: State forests generally permit campfires in fire rings. National parks vary. Restricted Fire Season runs roughly October to March.

SA, TAS, NT, ACT: Each has its own fire danger season and restrictions. Always check the specific campground's rules on the relevant park authority website before you go.

Key rule everywhere: If a campground has a designated fire ring or pit, use it. Never build a new fire ring. If there's no fire ring, fires are almost certainly not permitted.

How to build a campfire that actually works#

Gather your materials first#

You need three types of fuel, and most beginners don't collect enough of each:

• Tinder (lights easily, burns fast): dry leaves, eucalyptus bark strips, dry grass, newspaper. Experienced campers swear by dryer lint stuffed into toilet paper rolls as a DIY fire starter.
• Kindling (catches from tinder, sustains the flame): small sticks and twigs, roughly pencil-thickness. Eucalyptus twigs are excellent because of their natural oils.
• Fuel wood (the logs that keep it burning): forearm-thick pieces of hardwood. The drier the better.

Triple your tinder and kindling estimate. Everyone underestimates how much they need. Collect three times what you think is enough, then set aside a dry reserve pile under a tarp or in a bag.

The tepee method#

The most reliable structure for getting a campfire started:

1. Place a loose ball of tinder in the centre of the fire ring
2. Lean kindling sticks against each other around the tinder in a cone shape, leaving gaps for airflow
3. Light the tinder from the upwind side
4. As the kindling catches, gradually add larger sticks, maintaining the tepee shape
5. Once you have a solid flame, add your fuel wood

Airflow is everything. The most common mistake is packing the fire too tight. Fire needs oxygen. Leave gaps between sticks and resist the urge to smother it with logs too early.

Choosing the right firewood#

Australian hardwoods burn significantly differently from softwoods. Experienced bush campers have strong opinions:

• River Red Gum (NSW, VIC, SA): slow, clean burn with maximum heat. The gold standard for campfires.
• Ironbark and Box (QLD): burns 6-8 hours with minimal smoke. Excellent for overnight fires.
• Jarrah and Wandoo (WA): dense hardwoods that throw good heat.
• Yellow Box: a favourite for campfire cooking due to its steady, hot burn.

Avoid: Green (unseasoned) eucalyptus is one of the worst things you can burn. The combination of oil and water content produces thick, acrid smoke that gets in your eyes, your clothes, and your tent. If the wood feels heavy for its size and doesn't snap cleanly, it's too green.

Can you collect firewood?#

Rules vary, but the general principle in most state forests:

• You can collect fallen timber from the ground
• Wood must not have lichen, moss, or fungi growing on it (that's habitat)
• Never cut standing trees, dead or alive
• Many national park campgrounds prohibit all firewood collection

The most practical advice from experienced Australian campers: buy a bag or two from a servo on the way. Popular campgrounds get picked clean of fallen timber, especially near the fire rings. A $12 bag of split hardwood from the petrol station is cheap insurance against a frustrating evening.

Campfire cooking basics#

Coals, not flames#

The single most repeated piece of campfire cooking advice across every Australian camping community: cook over coals, not flames.

Build your fire 30 minutes before you want to cook. Let it burn down to a thick bed of glowing coals. Coals give steady, even heat. Flames give you burnt-on-the-outside, raw-on-the-inside food.

If you need more heat, push the coals together. Less heat, spread them out. It's the simplest and most effective temperature control you'll ever use.

Camp oven tips#

The camp oven is an Australian bush cooking icon. Here's what the community has learned through decades of trial and error:

Heat distribution formula: Use double the number of briquettes (or coals) as the oven's diameter in inches. For a 12-inch camp oven, that's roughly 24 coals. Split them 60% underneath, 40% on the lid.

Don't put coals on the lid for the first 10 minutes. Let the bottom heat establish first, then add lid coals for even browning.

Rotate every 15-20 minutes: Turn the oven one way and the lid the other to prevent hot spots.

The lid mistake: Never place the lid on the ground while checking food. Dirt and grit stick to the underside and end up in your dinner. Rest the lid on two clean sticks placed beside the fire.

Welder's gloves, not BBQ gloves. Every experienced camp oven cook recommends welder's gloves for handling cast iron around a campfire. They're cheap, heat-resistant, and available from any hardware store.

Quick campfire cooking wins#

• Foil packets: Wrap veggies, sausages, or fish in heavy-duty foil with butter and herbs. Bury in coals for 15-20 minutes.
• Damper: Three cups of flour, a stubbie of beer, a tablespoon of sugar, and a teaspoon of salt. Mix, shape into a round, wrap in foil, and cook in coals until it sounds hollow when tapped.
• Toasted sandwiches: A jaffle iron over coals makes the best toasted sandwiches you'll ever eat. Tinned spaghetti and cheese is the classic.

Starting a fire in wet weather#

Rain doesn't have to end your campfire plans. It just requires more preparation.

Before the rain:

• Collect extra firewood and store it under a tarp, in your car, or inside a dry bag
• Stash a handful of dry tinder in a zip-lock bag

Finding dry fuel in the wet:

• Look for dead branches still attached to trees (off the ground = drier)
• Split wet logs open. The inside is usually dry even after heavy rain.
• Dry bark from the underside of fallen logs
• Standing dead wood is drier than anything on the ground

Building the fire:

1. Create a platform of two thick logs laid parallel, elevated from the wet ground
2. Build your tinder and kindling on top of the platform
3. Use a fire lighter or weatherproof matches (regular matches and lighters struggle in wind and rain)
4. Shield the young fire from wind with your body or a makeshift windbreak
5. Feed it carefully. Add wood slowly and don't smother the flame.

The patience factor: Wet weather fires take longer to establish. Give it 15-20 minutes of careful tending before adding fuel wood. Rushing it is the most common reason wet weather fires fail.

Campfire safety essentials#

Kids around campfires#

• Create a clear boundary at least 2 metres around the fire ring. Use rocks, sticks, or chairs as a visual marker.
• No running near the fire. Period.
• Teach kids to approach from the side, not to reach over flames
• Keep a bucket of water within arm's reach at all times
• Thongs and bare feet are a bad idea near fires. Hot coals can hide under ash for hours.

Extinguishing properly#

A campfire is not out until you can hold your hand on the ash. The standard method:

1. Let the fire burn down to ash
2. Pour water over the coals. Use more than you think you need.
3. Stir the ash with a stick to expose hidden coals
4. Pour more water
5. Feel the ash with the back of your hand (carefully). If it's warm, repeat.

Never leave a campfire unattended. Not even "just for a minute" to grab something from the tent. Wind can change direction and send sparks into dry grass before you get back.

What to do when fires aren't allowed#

Total Fire Ban days and fire-free campgrounds don't have to mean cold dinners. Alternatives:

• Gas stoves: Allowed in most states during fire bans (but NOT during Total Fire Bans in some states, check the specific rules). Camp stoves with a shut-off valve are generally the safest option.
• Electric camping stoves: Battery-powered or 12V stoves are always permitted since they don't involve combustion.
• No-cook meals: Wraps, sandwiches, cheese boards, pre-made salads, cold pasta. Plan at least two days of no-cook meals for every camping trip, just in case a fire ban is declared mid-trip.

For more tips on meal planning without a fire, check our guide to easy camping meals for families.

The campfire is the best part of camping. Respect it.#

A good campfire turns a camping trip into a memory. It's where the stories happen, where the kids roast marshmallows, where you sit with a beer and watch the sparks drift upward.

But in Australia, fire is not something to take lightly. Check the rules, collect your wood responsibly, build it well, cook something good, and put it out properly. The bush will be there for the next camper if we all do our part.