Apostles top draw

Overnight stays push

LUCRATIVE overnight stays along the Great Ocean Road are up on last year, according to government figures.

More Chinese tourists are venturing to the region to see the Twelve Apostles with a boost in American numbers as well, although British visitor figures have declined.

Tourism Geelong and The Bellarine chief executive Roger Grant said a spike in Chinese visitor numbers over the past 12 months to March showed signs of continuing.

“We hosted a familiarisation with a Chinese group through Avalon recently and they were highly complimentary about the region,” Mr Grant said.

“They loved the seafood, restaurants, Flying Brick Cider, Little Creatures Brewery, the city’s historic buildings — it all adds up to strengthening our international reputation.”

He said more work was needed to ensure the large number of international tourists visiting the Twelve Apostles on coach day trips spent more time and money in the Geelong region.

“That high volume, low yield demographic remains an issue,” he said.

Visit Victoria chief executive Peter Bingeman said the Great Ocean Road experienced the third-highest growth in overseas visitor numbers, following the Macedon Ranges and the Yarra Valley.

Mr Bingeman said $7.3 billion was spent by international visitors in the 12 months to March.

“Every time a visitor stays one more night, enjoys one more dining experience or orders one more cup of coffee that means more jobs and more investment in the visitor economy,” he said.

Meanwhile, work will start on Tuesday to repair the stone stairs at Teddy’s Lookout near Lorne.