Three caravan parks, one shire and three completely different financial stories. Carrathool Shire Council received a detailed operational report on its three caravan park facilities at the February ordinary meeting, and the picture it paints illustrates just how variable the economics of remote community tourism infrastructure can be. 

The Hillston Caravan Park is the clear standout. 

With 30 powered grass sites and 24 cabins on site, the park has become one of the shire's most productive assets. 

By the end of December 2025, the halfway point of the financial year, the park had already recorded a surplus of $78,949. 

With cabin income running ahead of the previous year's pace and a consistent pattern of strong occupancy, the park is on track to deliver a full-year surplus of approximately $160,000, a result that would marginally exceed the $157,150 surplus recorded in 2024/25. The park's success is not incidental. 

Cabin accommodation in particular is in constant demand, and the report to council was candid that the facility is currently unable to accommodate the full extent of that demand. That is both a compliment to the park's reputation and a prompt for action. 

Council has secured $493,000 in grant funding which, combined with other available funding, creates a total upgrade budget of $763,000. 

Works are scheduled to commence this financial year and will include a new sprinkler system, public WiFi installation and renovations to long-term cabin accommodation. 

The upgrade is a sound investment in an asset that is clearly earning its keep. 

The picture at Goolgowi is more modest. 

The Goolgowi Caravan Park generates income primarily from fees and charges, which ran at $20,290 for the six months to December 2025 against expenditure of $28,486, producing a deficit of $8,196 for the period. 

The full-year deficit is expected to land in the range of $5,000 to $8,000, consistent with the previous two years. 

The park covers its day-to-day operational costs reasonably closely but maintenance and repair expenses have consistently pushed it into the red. Rankins Springs presents the most significant financial challenge of the three. 

Income for the six months to December 2025 sat at $12,688 against expenditure of $42,119, producing a deficit of $29,431 for the period alone. 

The full-year deficit is anticipated to reach around $70,000, continuing a trend that has seen the park lose $57,992 in 2023/24 and $63,242 in 2024/25. 

The primary driver of the deficit is maintenance and repair costs, which have run at $66,653, $70,685 and $34,705 for the three consecutive reporting periods. 

A park generating $16,000 to $18,000 in annual fee income while spending three to four times that on maintenance is a structural challenge that will require either a reduction in costs, an increase in revenue or a strategic decision about the park's future role. 

For the wider regional community, the contrasting performance of these three parks reflects a broader truth about rural tourism infrastructure. 

Proximity to a population centre, highway traffic and the availability of quality accommodation all drive occupancy. 

Hillston's location and the quality of its cabin offering have made it a genuine destination. 

Rankins Springs and Goolgowi serve smaller and more dispersed communities with fewer passing travellers to draw on. 

The upcoming upgrade to the Hillston Park should further cement its position, and the question for council in the years ahead will be what role the other two parks can realistically play in the shire's tourism economy.