Domestic tourism boom as Victorians head to the regions
Regional Victorian tourism operators have noticed an influx of visitors as Australians look to holiday locally during the pandemic.
BY NATASHA SCHAPOVA
Since the beginning of the pandemic, and with international flights largely grounded, holidaying Victorians have increasingly opted to spend their leisure time and tourism dollars on campsites and caravan parks in regional Victoria.
According to Tourism Research Australia, Australians spent almost double the money in regional areas compared to capital cities in April 2021.
Self-drive holidays reigned as the most popular form of domestic tourism, with a 31 per cent increase in spending in regional Victoria compared to in 2019.
Owner of Grampians-based Halls Gap Lakeside Tourist Park Josephine McDonald said that her camping ground was nearly at full capacity at the start of the year.
“If you compare the first two weeks of January this year compared to the year before when we weren’t in lockdown we went from 87 per cent to 96 per cent,” she said.
Ms McDonald said the travel restrictions allowed Victorians to explore regional areas and believes more people will visit the Grampians post-pandemic.
“I have absolute trust that we will be supported the minute that we open again,” she said.
Camper Michael Compagnino frequents Northern Victoria twice a month every camping season but he camped five weekends in a row following the 111-day lockdown last year.
Mr Compagnino said although it was “good to get away from the house and into nature”, the increased domestic tourism was noticeable both regionally and in the camping vehicle market.
“It was very obvious that there were an increased number of campers in easy-access campsites and even the amount of four-wheel drives (4WD) and caravans around small towns,” he said.
“I’ve seen increased prices on some models of large 4WDs and huge delays on caravan manufacturing and aftermarket 4WD parts.”
For Ms McDonald, the boom in domestic tourism is a welcome silver lining after she suffered over $800,000 in losses last year from travel restrictions.
“Victorians have been so supportive, we’re really lucky,” she said.
