LABOUR GAINS

Geelong prepares for long weekend tourist boom with multiple events, including the Coastal Jam music festival headlined by DJ Anna Lunoe (right).

GEELONG is on the path to normality, with the region’s largest suite of events since early 2020 expected to attract a flurry of tourists this weekend.

Tourism operators are preparing for one of the busiest weekends since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, as visitors flock to Geelong for the Rone exhibition, the Coastal Jam, the arts trail and light projections for Pako Festa and the Oceania regional seniors tennis tournament.

Tourism Greater Geelong and the Bellarine chief executive Brett Ince said accommodation providers had seen strong bookings ahead of Monday’s Labour Day public holiday.

“This long weekend is one of the first weekends where we are seeing multiple events in one weekend,” Mr Ince said.

“That shows a renewed focus (on attracting visitors) that we hope we will continue to see with multiple events across peak weekends.”

He said the strength in bookings highlighted growing consumer confidence in the wake of extended lockdowns.

The authority’s 2019-20 annual report showed coronavirus wiped more than $430m from Greater Geelong and the Bellarine Peninsula’s tourism economy in just six months, with accommodation and food services losing $127m in the June quarter.

Mr Ince said while the past year had been extremely challenging, a positive outcome was that more Victorians were choosing to travel to and stay in Geelong.

“We have heaps of new visitors connecting with Geelong and considering Geelong as a destination,” he said.

“Those visitors may have previously considered interstate or international trips and are now taking extra days around a long weekend to stay in this region.”

But Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism general manager Liz Price said tourist hot spots such as the Twelve Apostles continued to feel the impact of border closures.

Ms Price said international tourists stayed one million nights and made 800,000 daytrips to the region per year before the pandemic.

Of 145 accommodation providers surveyed recently, 52 per cent still had availability for the Labour Day holiday, with bookings across Easter and the school holidays even weaker.

Ms Price said while there was a “bit of optimism”, operators were still reeling from the losses sustained during February’s five-day snap lockdown.

“There is a loss of confidence about booking in advance,” she said.

Ms Price said she hoped the continued rollout of the coronavirus vaccine would continue to drive confidence and increase bookings later in the year.