Visit Sunshine Coast welcomes partial opening of Queensland borders

With measures to reduce the risk of Coronavirus having had a devastating impact on tourism, Visit Sunshine Coast Chair, David Ryan has welcomed the Queensland Government’s announcement that it will partially reopen the state’s borders as of 10th July.

In a statement following Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s announcement today that the state will open its borders to all except Victorians, Ryan advised “this is an encouraging and positive decision by the Premier, and the opening of the border to all States other than Victoria will offer a tremendous boost to the Sunshine Coast tourism sector.

“We fully understand the decision regarding Victoria and appreciate how hard a decision it must have been for the Premier and her Government, but with the necessary precautions in place, we are confident that the travel situation can be managed effectively. Eventually we would like to see the Victorian market opened up, but only when it is safe to do so.

“The decision to open the border with NSW will be really welcomed by the local industry because the situation was looking rather grim for many operators after the school holidays. This is when we normally receive considerable long-stay business - sometimes for up to a month or more - from interstate and New Zealand visitors, and while that will be difficult to reactivate in the short-term, the border announcement send the right signals for airlines to re-introduce direct flights to the Sunshine Coast, and for travellers to start making plans.

“This positive development should not obscure the fact that this has been one of the worst periods for Sunshine Coast tourism in recent decades and even with borders re-opened, recovery will be slow.

“To accelerate the process we have put together a new community initiative that we will announce tomorrow that will highlight why the Sunshine Coast should be the first choice for domestic travellers.

“We also have the new Alliance Cairns-Sunshine Coast air route that launches in mid-July, and opens up a new market for the Sunshine Coast.

“We would also congratulate the Premier on her Government’s decision to increase capacity for weddings, concerts, restaurant and other venues. It reflects how hard the Queensland community has worked to reduce the threat of COVID.”

Images: Paddle boardersat Pumicestone Passage on the Sunshine Coast (top) and Visit Sunshine Coast Chair, David Ryan (below).