By Rohan Aldous
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COVID-19 has not only cost Echuca-Moama’s tourist operators millions of dollars, it has also robbed the region of its number one status among Victoria’s tourism destinations.
And Murray Regional Tourism chief executive officer Mark Francis expects it to take up to three years before the twin towns are again operating at 100 per cent.
“It’s a highly competitive industry (tourism); we were ranked number one among the 11 regional Victorian tourism areas and it is going to take a while before we get back to operating at the same level,” Mr Francis said.
Speaking from his offices within Echuca Visitor Information Centre, Mr Francis has been at the pointy end of the charge to protect the future of the border tourism towns.
“We have been impacted more than any of those regions because of our unique status on the river and the complications of dealing with two state governments.
“It is not just Echuca and Moama which are suffering, every town along the region has been severely impacted,” he said.
Mr Francis’ organisation is responsible for servicing the tourism requirements of every riverside town (on both sides of the border) from Mildura to Albury.
He was back in the office for the first time in several months on Wednesday, his entire team having been forced to operate remotely as a result of COVID-19 pandemic regulations.
Last week’s Melbourne Cup long weekend was further evidence of the border’s unique nature as Melburnians could travel freely to Echuca, but could not cross the border into NSW without having to serve isolation periods.
“If people can’t travel freely across the border between Echuca and Moama, they won’t come at all,” he said.
“It has shown in the figures. Whereas most of regional Victoria has experienced a 25 per cent downfall in visitation, Echuca-Moama — the entire region for that matter — was down 50 per cent.”
A time frame has been put in place by the organisation to address the slide, with several innovative marketing programs already targeting the audience that the area has lost during the past 18 months.
“By June 2022 we have a goal to be back to 60 per cent of where we were pre-COVID,” Mr Francis said.
“During 2023 we would like to be able to claw back another 30 per cent of the business we have lost, then by early 2024 I can see us being back to 100 per cent.
“At least, that is our strategic plan.”
Murray Regional Tourism itself is putting all the pieces of the jigsaw back together in preparation to launch the recovery plan.
“Not being able to travel has impacted everyone. I have an admin assistant, Naomi, that came on board in August and has hardly been in the office at all,” Mr Francis said.
“Another of our key staff, Maureen Bennett, came on board during COVID and has only worked remotely. Our digital artist Jake Morris, who is from here, has also been working from home and our strategic marketing officer Rochelle is based in Melbourne.”
It will make for some interesting introductions at the office Christmas party as many of the team meet for the first time, aside from Zoom calls.
Mr Francis said the tourism board hadn’t met in person since February.
The Murray region is made up of 13 local government areas, represented on the board by one representative from a NSW council and one from a Victorian LGA.
Swan Hill, Wodonga, Yarrawonga and Rutherglen all have members on the board, along with two Melbourne-based board members.
“The board is skills-based, not geographical, and we all have a lot of work to do going forward,” Mr Francis said.
He explained the December 17 re-opening of Queensland also presented a challenge to the riverside tourism industry.
“Our research indicates the amount of traffic on search engines for flights and accommodation in Queensland is enormous.
“That is the kind of competition the border towns are facing over the Christmas and New Year period.”
Mr Francis said the return of airlines to the border region would help, with multiple flights and carriers returning to Mildura and Albury airports.
“People just don’t want to sit and drive, so this was an important part of getting back to the pre-COVID levels,” he said.
There is expected to be a surge in visitation between now and Christmas as tourism data suggests Victorians, in certain instances, have increased their savings, reduced their debt and accrued annual leave during the pandemic.
“Travel confidence is huge; from the data we have collected, the desire to get away is very high and getting COVID ranked very low.
“That combined to make travel an appealing option for people,” Mr Francis said.
Essential workers who have been unable to holiday during COVID, government workers, health workers and those in other associated fields, are expected to travel in the next two months.
“There will not be a lot of international travel available to people, which makes regions like ours more attractive,” Mr Francis said.
“We have just launched two programs, Made in the Murray and another with Tripadvisor.
“Our Made in the Murray launch focuses on wineries, farm gate dining, distilleries and the like where we connect producers to visitors.
“Through Tripadvisor we can tap into the search engines to attract more people to the region.”
The big focus in the next stage will be filling the region full of tourists in January.
“We expect high visitation until Christmas and through the new year, but we need to fill the month of January,” Mr Francis said.
“A lot of people seem to be taking self-proclaimed long weekends. It is a market we need to tap into, along with mid-week stays.
“Whether accommodation and tourism operators incentivise mid-week stays or another approach is taken, it’s an area which can make a big difference to the region.”
And, as if there wasn’t enough on his plate, Mr Francis said the tourism body was also focusing on increasing visitation and spending in the region by 10 per cent during the traditionally quiet autumn and winter period.
“We will be marketing, looking at events and encouraging people to take road trips. We have set our goals on getting back to where we were pre-COVID in the next couple of years.”