August 28, 2014
The Maidenwell Observatory plans to close its doors at the end of the year and relocate to a new site at Kingaroy Airport.
Observatory director James Barclay told fellow members of the South Burnett Tourism Association at a meeting held at Cranes Winery on Tuesday night that he hoped the new Observatory would be open by March next year.
Mr Barclay said over the last decade the Maidenwell Observatory had accommodated 16,000 visitors.
About 90 per cent of these weren’t locals and he thought the lack of adequate accommodation facilities in the area was holding the business back.
He said the new Observatory would be located on Geoff Raph Drive, near the South Burnett Vintage Machinery Club’s site.
He thanked SBRC Economic Development Manager Phil Harding for his assistance with the move.
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There has been a change in the way tourists book accommodation in the area this year, SBTA members heard.
Three different accommodation operators told members that bookings “were down” over the last year, and there seemed to be an increase in short-notice bookings.
Southern Queensland Country Tourism CEO Mary-Clare Power said that other accommodation operators in the SQCT area had reported a similar trend.
But whether this indicates a sea change in the way tourists book accommodation or is just a temporary blip remains to be seen.
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Bunya Mountains tourism operators have just released a new Bunya Mountains Guide for 2014-15.
Eleanor Kratzmann, from The Bunyas, told fellow members that tourism operators in the area had collaborated to produce the booklet.
It provides a history of the area and its attractions; maps; and a full guide to all rental cabin and chalet accommodation in the Bunya Mountains, along with current prices.
She said the new guide had been produced without any government or council funding, and would be available from Bunya Mountains tourist operators and South Burnett and Darling Downs Visitor Information Centres in the near future.
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The South Burnett seemed to have greater “brand recognition” with crowds at this year’s Brisbane Ekka than it did amongst visitors to the annual Regional Flavours Expo at South Bank, SBRC Economic Development Manager Phil Harding told SBTA members.
While both Council stands were very successful in raising awareness about the region as an attractive destination to visit, Mr Harding said that volunteers on the stands found awareness of the South Burnett was much higher at the Ekka than at South Bank.
He attributed this to the agricultural nature of the Brisbane Exhibition.
“Many people either had relatives up here, or had travelled through here, or knew of the South Burnett through rural industry connections,” he said.
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Reaction to a new free overnight caravan park at Murgon has been very positive, Mr Harding said.
Since the Council upgraded the Murgon Caravan Park, usage levels had increased.
A new, free short-term parking area for caravans and RVs would open in Wondai shortly.
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The SBTA’s “Tourism Ambassador” program should be rolled out in Nanango in December this year, SBTA President Bernie Cooper told members.
The SBTA recently held a joint meeting with the Nanango Tourism and Development Association (NaTDA) to explain the concept, which teaches front-of-office staff how to be better ambassadors for their town and local area.
The half-day training course was trialled in Wondai last December and received a very positive response from participants.
The SBTA will discuss a similar program for Kingaroy with the Kingaroy Chamber Of Commerce and Industry in the near future.
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The new “Australia’s Country Way” signage is causing problems at the Nanango Visitor Information Centre, SBTA members were told.
A new sign at the Drayton Street lights directs tourists following the Country Way trail to travel along the D’Aguilar Highway to Kingaroy.
But it’s leaving some tourists who want to bypass the South Burnett by taking the Burnett Highway to Goomeri confused.
Nanango VIC manager Mary Green told SBTA members that since the sign went up, a number of tourists had dropped into her centre to ask for directions.
She suggested that a better approach might be to erect a second sign near the corner which indicated that the Burnett Highway as an alternate “country way” route.
The SBTA executive agreed to look into the matter to see if the situation could be improved.
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The new DestinationQ tourism plan has been finalised, Southern Queensland Country Tourism CEO Mary-Clare Power informed members.
Copies will be able to be downloaded from SQCT’s website when the document is published.
DestinationQ is the State Government’s plan to grow the Queensland tourism industry by increasing overnight visitor expenditure to $30 billion per annum by 2020.
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The SBTA’s next meeting will be held in November at a venue yet to be decided.
