Incredible Australia Day scene shows 'insane' beach holiday trend: 'How awful'

Hordes of drivers packed the popular beach on Australia Day amid a sometimes contentious rise in 4WD tourism along our coastline.

A packed beach in South Australia full of cars parked on the sand on Sunday has divided opinion.
While the 'insane' scenes have divided locals, the mayor said authorities were 'really pleased' with visitor behaviour. Source: TikTok

As millions of Australians celebrated the increasingly contentious public holiday yesterday, plenty were keen to spend the day at the beach in style. And one spot in particular showed Aussies enjoying one of their favourite activities – showing why authorities were quick to issue warnings ahead of the long weekend

Thousands of 4WD vehicles flocked to South Australia's Adlinga Beach on Australia Day with drone footage flying over the popular tourist spot showing cars parked along the sand, stretching for kilometres along the coastline.

The SA government describes the beach as "a little patch of seaside bliss less than an hour from Adelaide" and it's even described as "quiet" online. However it was anything but yesterday.

And not everyone was thrilled to see the rather incredible scene. A photo shared by local newspaper the Adelaide Advertiser on Sunday evening drew a fierce response from some locals when it was shared on social media.

ADVERTISEMENT

"That is way too many cars. Why wasn't a limit imposed?" one person wondered. "I used to live 5 minutes away and I'd never go to that beach on Australia Day because people have too much to drink and often drive like maniacs".

"How awful to see a beach full of cars. Would be so good to just see people enjoying the beach and the day," another said.

A crowded beach packed with 4WDs on Australia Day in South Australia on Sunday.
The 'insane' scene captured on Sunday has divided Aussies. Source: The Advertiser/Facebook/Brett Hartwig

"Beautiful. Next year I'm going to Marion Shopping Center carpark," another person mocked.

"I hate cars on the beach. It’s just sitting in a sandy car park. Not an enjoyable experience," another said.

While some cheered on the scenes, which are typical of the spot on Australia Day, some admitted they'd never seen so many vehicles at the beach, labelling it "insane".

Speaking to Yahoo News Australia, Mayor Moira Were said authorities were "really pleased" with crowds on the drive-on beaches and said authorities had been preparing for Australia Day celebrations since September as it's one of the busiest days of the year.

ADVERTISEMENT

"Although it wasn't our busiest Australia Day, all our beaches were busy, and overall behaviour was fantastic," she said.

"There’s no specific capacity limit for vehicles on our beaches, and ramp closures depend on how much sand is available for parking due to tides on the day, the beach’s condition, and how vehicles are spaced."

She told Yahoo that extra patrols were deployed on Sunday with council rangers monitoring the 31-kilometre stretch of coastline.

"If there are concerns about safety or crowd numbers, we assess the situation and work with SAPOL [police], who have the authority to close the beach. We didn’t need to do this yesterday because there was ample room on the beach and the vehicles were well spaced out."

From Tuesday, rangers will undertake hand collection of rubbish and debris left along the area's drive-on beaches.

The council recently increased fees to access the beach from $8 to $12 with authorities projecting they would collect $375,000 over the summer from Aldinga Beach along with Moana, Sellicks and Silver Sands beaches. A majority of the money goes towards maintaining the environment and keeping the area safe.

ADVERTISEMENT

"The current fee reflects increasing costs to maintain our foreshore environment and manage safe use where vehicles are permitted," the governing City of Onkaparinga Council previously told Yahoo News.

Council said vehicle access has been regulated on parts of its foreshore since 1975, including imposing conditions such as setting vehicle speed limits on entrance ramps and on the foreshore. It also regulates access hours and exclusion areas over or along any sand dunes.

Drivers with a current Onkaparinga council vehicle beach access permit are exempt from paying the fee but those who travel on the beach without a pass will cop a $187 penalty.

Aldinga Beach in South Australia packed full of cars on the sand.
Visotirs shared the Aldinga Beach scene on social media yesterday. Source: Facebook

At the end of last year, officials from South Australia's Department for Environment and Water took to the skies to hunt drivers doing the wrong thing on the state's beaches.

ADVERTISEMENT

Authorities used a helicopter, long-range camera and radio communication with rangers to set up roadblocks "to corral offenders" not complying with the rules, the department told Yahoo News last month.

The operation was focused on tackling concerns about degradation due to high traffic and focused on motorists – some in unregistered vehicles – heading off the designated tracks and potentially harming wildlife.

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.