A YOUNG man who at age 18 was told he could not walk around a NSW caravan park at night without his parents has won his battle for compensation.

Ryan Johnson, now aged 20, has been awarded $7500 for age discrimination and victimisation during his holiday at the award-winning 3.5-star Ocean Beach Holiday Park on the state's central coast.

The NSW Administrative Decisions Tribunal decided he had been treated "disrespectfully" and discriminated against on the ground of his age, causing him to feel embarrassed and humiliated.

It also found Mr Johnson was victimised because his family's confirmed holiday for the following year was cancelled by FreeSpirit management after it was told a complaint was being lodged with the Anti-Discrimination Board.

Mr Johnson, who was paying an adult price at the park, said he was stopped by the manager at around 9pm while on his way to the beach with his girlfriend and told he could not move around the park after 9pm because there had been problems with teenage behaviour.

He claimed he was told no teenager was allowed to walk around at night without their parents.

The incident had happened because he "looked like a teenager" and that the same restrictions were not applied to adults, he added.

The manager, Mr Phillip Fordyce, said he did not "target" Mr Johnson but spoke with him because he was part of a larger group which he was informing of the curfew, thus ensuring that "quiet time" was observed for the benefit of everyone at the park.

In recently announcing the damages, the tribunal said that at the hearing much had been made of the noise curfew.

"It was submitted that the noise curfew applied to everyone at the park, whether they be young or old," it said.

"The tribunal accepts this evidence but is of the view that it is irrelevant. The real issue is whether Mr Johnson was restricted in his movements because he appeared to be a teenager. The tribunal is satisfied that Mr Johnson has established that he was discriminated against on the ground of his age."

The tribunal said the "coincidence" between the sending of the letter indicating there would be a complaint to the Anti-Discrimination Board and the subsequent cancellation of the following year's reservation was "too strong to ignore".

A spokesperson for FreeSpirit told Caravanning News: "FreeSpirit is disappointed with the result and is now reviewing the tribunal’s report into its findings."

The 249-site park is owned by NRMA Motoring and Services and was voted number one in last year's Holidays with Kids Top 10 Family Friendly Holiday Park awards.