FOR half a century, Lorraine Golightly, owner of BIG4 Beacon Resort Queenscliff, has welcomed thousands of holidaymakers through the gates. For the first time in two months, they returned this long weekend.
\nExecutive director of Tourism Geelong and The Bellarine Brett Ince said as restrictions lifted, Victorians hit the roads.
\n\u201cWe understand a number of accommodation providers, particularly holiday parks have seen strong bookings over the long weekend. There were still some availabilities in our hotel accommodation across the region (which might\u2019ve attracted last minute bookings).
\n\u201cPart of that, coming out of isolation there was potentially going to be a lot of camping and caravanning holidays in the first instance.\u201d
\nMr Ince said people were wanting to get out of the house and the long weekend was the first weekend they could do so.
\n\u201cThis was the first weekend they could connect with others, they\u2019re also considering the region from a nature and recreation point of view; our natural assets like beaches and in the broader region, the You Yangs.\u201d
\nWith the ramifications of coronavirus still affecting where people could go, Mr Ince said the Geelong and Bellarine was a great option for a \u201cpost-isolation trip\u201d.
\n\u201cThere\u2019s a level of safety people feel being close to home, particularly the Melbourne market who can come down here and are still only an hour away.\u201d
\nAs businesses did their best to re-open adhering to the imposed guidelines, he said it was important customers and visitors booked ahead and showed understanding.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s important, as people begin taking road trips and mini-breaks, they book ahead at restaurants or cafes and make sure they consider the new guidelines and are respectful to business owners.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s not an easy time and it\u2019s a different time for businesses to be operating. There\u2019s a higher demand on eateries who are unable to take several large bookings at once.\u201d
\nFor Ms Golightly, Beacon Resort was fortunate enough with the help of government assistance to keep staff on during the lockdown.
\n\u201cWe did a lot of landscaping and maintenance and the operations side has been huge; changing everything to contactless, making sure we have declarations for guests to sign \u2013 there\u2019s been a lot to do.
\n\u201cI\u2019ve been running Beacon for 50 years and I\u2019ve never experienced anything like this, I don\u2019t think anyone has. Normally you can control your own destiny but this was completely out of our control. It\u2019s been horrible to not have people staying here.
\n\u201cSince the restrictions lifted, the phone hasn\u2019t stopped ringing and we\u2019re finding the average length of stay has almost doubled. People can\u2019t go on their overseas trips, so they\u2019re staying longer.\u201d
\nMr Ince said now was an important time to support local business and the tourism industry by inviting family and friends down to the region.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s too hard to tell at the minute the extent of the impact corona has had on the industry, but once the government assistance stops, it will be clearer.
\n\u201cWithout the large-scale events happening in the region or international visitors, it\u2019s important we transition to different markets including domestic short breaks, visiting family and friends or inviting them down to recharge and reconnect.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
FOR half a century, Lorraine Golightly, owner of BIG4 Beacon Resort Queenscliff, has welcomed thousands of holidaymakers through the gates. For the first time in two months, they returned this long weekend. Executive director of Tourism Geelong and The Bellarine Brett Ince said as restrictions lifted, Victorians hit the roads. \u201cWe understand a number of […]<\/p>\n