Trip intention form
Are you planning a bushwalk, going somewhere remote or where the weather is extreme? It's important to tell other people about your trip. They can contact NSW Police if you don't return on time.
Read more about Trip intention form
NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service and NSW Police have an online trip intention form. Don't let your wilderness adventure become unforgettable for the wrong reasons.
Fill in a trip intention form now
Completing a trip intention form does not guarantee an automatic search and rescue operation. It's your responsibility to ensure that your emergency contact (friend or family) can notify NSW Police if you don't return on time.
Types of trip intentions
You can fill in a trip intention form for any type of activity in NSW national parks where your safety might be at risk. For example:
- Bushwalking
- Visits to places that are remote like Outback NSW and wilderness areas.
- Visits to places that have extreme weather, snow or mountains.
- Long road trips through many national parks.
- Adventure sports like canyoning, mountain biking or horse riding.
- Water activities like boating and kayaking.
- Remote or backpack camping trips.
- Rock fishing.
Filling in a trip intention form is highly recommended for remote or backpack camping in all NSW national parks. This means camping away from bookable campgrounds. Filling in a trip intention form is not a campsite booking.
To complete the form you need
- Name, email address and phone number of your emergency contact.
- Details of all members in your group, including any known medical conditions.
- Start and finish times, dates and locations.
- Details of vehicles at your start and finish points, including registration numbers.
- Trip location, route/s, camping spots, key features or deviations from standard routes.
- The hex or UIN number of your Personal Locator Beacon (PLB).
- Details of the equipment you'll be carrying.
Choose your emergency contact
Your emergency contact should be someone responsible who you trust, like a family member or friend. You can't put NSW Police or NPWS as your contact. You can include up to 2 emergency contacts on the form.
Your emergency contact can live anywhere in the world. They need to be able to contact NSW Police in case of emergency.
What happens after you submit the form
You'll get an email with your trip intention form number and a summary of your trip details. The summary of your trip details will be emailed to:
- You or the person in your group who completed the trip intention form.
- Your emergency contacts.
Your information may also be shared with NSW Police, NSW Health and NPWS. If you or your group don't return on time and are uncontactable, your emergency contact should use the trip summary email they received to contact NSW Police. Police will use the information in your trip intention form to assess and plan a search response.
Are you going to hire a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB)?
At the visitor centre ask the NPWS staff member to add the PLB hex number of your hired PLB to your trip intention form. See more information about PLB hire.
What happens if a Personal Locator Beacon (PLB) is activated
If a PLB is activated, NSW Police will receive the PLB details and may cross reference the trip intention form to improve their search.
Before you go
- Check if there are any park alerts.
- Check the weather forecast.
- Contact the local NPWS office if you have any questions about the park you're going to visit.
- Download the Emergency Plus app and NSW National Parks app.
- Learn more about how to protect your safety.