Tourism boom
Tourism is booming in Gippsland with the region attracting more than seven million visitors for the first time and the Baw Baw region recorded the second highest visitation rate.
Latest figures released by Tourism Research Australia for the year ending March 2019 show an extra 721,000 people visited the region, taking the total number to 7.06 million.
Total visitation to Gippsland increased 11.4 per cent for the 12 month period.
Baw Baw Shire recorded the second greatest percentage increase, with 27.1 per cent more visitors for the period.
East Gippsland attracted the most visitors with 1496 people while Baw Baw recorded 1252, up from 985 the previous year. Wellington was close behind with a total 1132 visitors for the year.
It was the first time the Gippsland region recorded more than seven million visitors in a year.
In the same period, visitor nights increased by 7.7 per cent, or an extra 554,000 bed nights, to 7.7million which also was the highest ever recorded for the region.
Baw Baw’s strongest appeal is for day visitors, with 988 domestic visitors, up 32.4 per cent on the previous year.
Domestic overnight stays in the region increased 10.8 per cent with 257 people recording an overnight stay.
The total number of visitors to Baw Baw (1252) was a significant increase compared to the past four years where visitor numbers had remained steady between 922 in 2015 and 985 in 2018.
Regional tourism board Destination Gippsland is rolling out a new brand campaign ‘Gippsland – all kinds of wonder’ in Melbourne and further afield.
A new consumer-facing website is also being created to better promote Gippsland’s tourism assets and assist visitors in finding accommodation, tours, food, wine and outdoor activities in the region.
This is the first time Gippsland has had an independent consumer-facing website, relying up until now on content on the Visit Victoria website. The visitgippsland.com.au site will be launched in September.
Destination Gippsland is working to manage the visitor experience and plan for growth, releasing a 10-year Destination Management Plan (DMP) in August.
The DMP identifies the importance of tourism to Gippsland, and how the region’s unique offerings can be leveraged to strengthen our positioning and facilitate economic growth and employment.
The Gippsland visitor economy currently generates over $1.1billion in expenditure annually and employs 10,330 people.
Destination Gippsland chief executive officer Terry Robinson said continued visitation growth will see more jobs created across the region
“We are really encouraged by the latest figures, an 11.4 per cent increase in visitation is something that our industry should be very proud of and it shows that Gippsland is on the radar for people visiting regional Victoria.
“There is huge potential for tourism in Gippsland and I think that our Destination Management Plan, and the work we are undertaking with the new brand and website, will take us to the next level,” he said.