Tourism businesses along the Murray under threat as summer bookings plummet

Tourism and visitor economy operators are warning that businesses may not be able to withstand the drastic fall in forward bookings, following devastating floods that have decimated communities along the Murray and Central Goulburn regions. 

During the peak Christmas/New Year period the Murray region normally welcomes 1.87 million visitors.

 The Murray Regional Tourism Board’s (MRTB) Rapid Impact Survey found more than half of the region’s tourism businesses have lost at least 40 per cent of their bookings for this high season. 

MRTB Acting Chief Executive Will Flamsteed said almost 80 per cent of the 174 accommodation and tourism businesses surveyed had lost at least 40 per cent of their revenue over a three-week period.

 “Tourism businesses no longer have the financial buffers to withstand and recover from this disaster alone and one in five have been forced to stand down their staff,” he said. “As many as two-thirds of tourism businesses in the region have only minor infrastructure damage or were not directly inundated by floodwaters. But they are severely impacted by the lack of visitors and summer booking cancellations – resulting in an estimated $128 million in lost income.” 

The Victorian Government has announced low interest loans of up to $250,000 for operators who have suffered significant damage to their assets or up to $100,000 for those who have had significant loss of income as a direct result of the flood crisis. 

MRTB and the Victoria Tourism Industry Council (VTIC) welcomed the activation of disaster recovery arrangements, but called for additional support in the Murray and Central Goulburn, including: 

1. Immediate and direct business support 

• Grants of $75,000 for accommodation and tourism businesses to help cover loss of income and cancellations 

• Increased limit of concessional loans of up to $500,000 • Support for event organisers, hosts, and suppliers to help cover the costs of cancelled public events 

2. Events-led recovery for 2023 

• $1 million for business development and reactivation activities, including local event development and promotion, new tourism products, and professional industry support 

• Major Events attraction - $1 million to attract high-profile concerts and events to impacted regions in 2023 to drive more visitation 

3. Marketing 

• $1 million campaign, led by MRTB in conjunction with Visit Victoria, to roll out multichannel marketing for flood-affected areas as the Central Goulburn region and Murray River progressively opens over the coming weeks and months. 

Victoria Tourism Industry Council (VTIC) CEO, Felicia Mariani, said this was the third year in a row with no peak season for tourism businesses in the region, hampering efforts to recover lost territory. 

“While the flood disaster has affected many areas in Victoria, operators along the Murray and through the Central Goulburn area have been at the epicentre of the devastation. If we want a tourism industry along the Murray next Easter, we need to step up and support these businesses.