Positive vibe at Bega Valley tourism industry briefing but cruises still on hold

Merimbula Tourism manager Chris Nicolls said foot traffic into the Visitor Information Centre had already started picking up.

"From now to late January, Merimbula is very heavily booked with a lot of people coming into town," Mr Nicholls said.

The news follows on from a tourism industry briefing organised by Sapphire Coast Destination Marketing and attended by 130 industry representatives at the Bega Civic Centre on Wednesday, December 8.

The meeting heard from Dominic Mehling of Tourism Australia about how the organisation was encouraging Aussies to travel like overseas visitors and take longer trips.

Both Mr Mehling and Kathryn Illy of Destination NSW spoke about the work they are doing to encourage international visitors to return to Australia. Ms Illy said Destination NSW was focused on drawing international visitors not only to Sydney but also to the regions with a promotional campaign based around "a collision of vibrant culture and diverse natural wonders".

Anthony Osborne from Sapphire Coast Destination Marketing told attendees that they had received $300,000 through the Bushfire Local Economic Recovery (BLER) fund for tourism promotion which would start in the autumn. There was also a further $300,000 funding over 15 months for development of tourism skills which would start next year.

While the visitation numbers are looking good, the cruise industry must wait until at least February 17 to hear when it will restart.

There had been anticipation that the current cruise ban would be lifted on December 17 but Health Minister Greg Hunt announced an extension of the human biosecurity emergency period under the Biosecurity Act 2015 for a further two months.

This places restrictions on the entry of cruise vessels within Australian territory although Mr Hunt said the government would review, on a monthly basis, whether the current restrictions on cruise ships could be safely lifted or amended.

The Cruise Lines Industry Association (CLIA) said it was a "devastating blow for thousdands of Australian workers".

Speaking at the tourism briefing, cruise development manager at the Port Authority of NSW, Natalie Godward said it took 12 weeks to mobilise a cruise ship. The latest ban means Eden is unlikely to see cruise ships before the start of the next season in October 2022.

Ms Godward said the 2019/20 cruise season represented $7m in economic value to Eden with a spend of $50,000 from a single cruise ship visit.

She said a lot of work had taken place in preparation for the resumption of the cruise business.

"We're re ready - we just need it to come back," Ms Godward said.

Stan Soroka, president of the Eden Mountain Bike Club spoke about the Eden Trails Mountain Bike project for which construction is due to start in March 2022.

Mr Soroka said as one of the fastest growing recreational activities globally, mountain biking could be a major economic driver for the area. He said he knew of people who were keen mountain bikers and had bought a holiday home because of the project plans.

John Polasty, Core Asset Development group advisor spoke about the company's investment in the Hotel Australasia saying it would be a boutique destination with eight high-end rooms and a restaurant for 5-60 people. The company is currently looking at CV's from chefs from around the world, Mr Polasty said.

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"I am creating a destination point and I'm promoting the community; my product is Eden," he said.

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