{"id":278319,"date":"2020-09-24T19:25:30","date_gmt":"2020-09-24T09:25:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=278319"},"modified":"2020-09-25T19:25:05","modified_gmt":"2020-09-25T09:25:05","slug":"tourism-numbers-boom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2020\/09\/24\/tourism-numbers-boom\/","title":{"rendered":"Tourism Numbers Boom"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Accommodation bookings in the South Burnett during August were 32 per cent higher than last year, according to new research by Southern Queensland Country Tourism (Photo: Kingaroy Country Motel)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

September 24, 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n

A new tourism partnership between the South Burnett Regional Council and the Visit South Burnett (VSB) local tourism organisation already appears to be bearing fruit.<\/p>\n

According to data gathered by Toowoomba’s Southern Queensland Country Tourism (SQCT) from Booking.Com, Air Bnb, Trip Advisor and VRBO, the South Burnett’s tourism operators enjoyed a 68 per cent occupancy rate in August – 32 per cent higher than the same month last year.<\/p>\n

This was the highest occupancy rate of any region measured by SQCT, beating rises that occurred in Toowoomba, the Lockyer Valley, Goondiwindi, Southern Downs and Western Downs.<\/p>\n

SQCT also reported that during August, visitors increased their average daily spend in the South Burnett by 22 per cent, injecting welcome extra dollars into the local economy.<\/p>\n

And if the region’s roads seemed busier than usual at certain times last month, it was no illusion.<\/p>\n

SQCT reported that during the Ekka long weekend, the Bunya Mountains received two to three times its normal visitor numbers – a figure repeated in other parts of the region as well.<\/p>\n

The SQCT figures have been backed up by the South Burnett Regional Council.<\/strong><\/p>\n

At its September meeting, Councillors heard that bookings at Yallakool and Lake Boondooma both increased significantly after the two tourist parks reopened for overnight visitors on August 1.<\/p>\n

This year the two dams recorded a combined occupancy number of 1981.<\/p>\n

This was a 53 per cent increase on the 1294 visitors they hosted during the same period last year.<\/p>\n

The South Burnett Rail Trail Users Association (SBRTUA) also reported big spikes in traffic during August.<\/strong><\/p>\n

SBRTUA secretary Jason Wyeth told southburnett.com.au<\/strong> his group had counted 640 caravanners using the freestay parks at Wooroolin and Wondai last month.<\/p>\n

The group have been conducting daily “head counts” at both freestays over the past 18 months in an effort to measure grey nomad tourism.<\/p>\n

He said this year’s figures were higher than they were 12 months ago.<\/p>\n

Freestay occupancy was also matched by a growth in rail trail user traffic, with counters recording more than 810 trail users in August.<\/p>\n

This was a 46 per cent lift on April’s monthly traffic figures during the height of the COVID lockdown.<\/p>\n

At that time, tourism effectively ground to a halt and rail trail usage was restricted solely to South Burnett residents.<\/p>\n

With borders closed due to COVID-19, Tourism and Events Queensland has been promoting holidays within the State to Queenslanders as part of its economic recovery initiatives.<\/strong><\/p>\n

It’s “Good To Go Queensland” TV campaign (see video, below<\/em>) encouraged Queenslanders to holiday in their home state.<\/p>\n

VSB believes the campaign had a big part to play in the August traffic spike.<\/p>\n

However, the South Burnett’s outstanding results were also due to local industry operators working together and co-operatively marketing one another.<\/p>\n

Visit South Burnett president Jason Kinsella said he was convinced this industry-led approach was the key to the region out-performing its near neighbours.
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“The August results were a tribute to both VSB members and the Council, who worked in partnership to promote the South Burnett as a drive destination,” Jason said.<\/p>\n

“August was a real ‘build it and they will come’ moment for our region.<\/p>\n

“But thanks to strong partnership action between Visit South Burnett and the Council, we’ve seen outstanding early results already with the promise of more to come.”<\/p>\n

VSB are now advertising for a Tourism Development Officer<\/strong><\/a> to work full-time for the organisation.<\/p>\n

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