When the stars align and a weekend or public holiday arrives hand in hand with blissfully warm weather, the region’s patrolled beaches can really draw a crowd.

What better place to while away a few lazy hours, swimming in the surf or kicking back on the sand.

But Illawarra residents don’t have exclusive rights when it comes to enjoying the surf.

A large number of visitors make the southward trek down from Sydney each weekend, many from the western suburbs, to escape the rat race and take a dip, and who could blame them.

But there are now calls for out-of-town beachgoers to help cover the cost of maintaining our northern suburbs beaches with funds collected from parking meters.

Under the plan, Wollongong City Council residents would be exempt from paying for parking and identification tags issued.

Opponents of the idea say it would be expensive to enforce and effectively punished tourists for visiting the region.

But the Northern Illawarra Chamber of Commerce says it’s about time visitors contributed to keeping our beaches clean. After all, they help make the mess.