September boom for the Capricorn Coast Visitor Information Centre
Posted on October 13th, 2020
As the Capricorn Coast rapidly rebuilds momentum in the tourism space following the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic, a total of 2071 holiday makers (an increase of 667 compared to the same period in 2019 which welcomed 1404 visitors) checked in at the Capricorn Coast Visitor Information Centre during September to find out more about what’s on offer across our destination.
With an average number of 69 enquiries per day, 1524 visitors arrived from throughout Queensland, while 229 locals discovered even more about their own backyard. The remaining 318 came from other parts of the nation, choosing the Capricorn Coast as part of their sunshine state tour. In addition, staff also responded to 321 telephone enquiries during the month.
The Capricorn Coast offers a total of 1300 commercial beds (1810 maximum guests) which were completely booked out during the September school holidays, with visitors to the Capricorn Coast Information Centre representing just under 4% of the daily visitation to the Coast, and bookings to Great Keppel Island remaining a hot favourite.
Complementing these impressive September VIC figures, local operators across the region also reported a solid month during September and have been excited to see a continued positive trend for forward bookings through to the New Year.
In addition, visiting friends and relatives and day trippers from Rockhampton added thousands of daily visitors to key attractions with many operators recording record days (Koorana increasing tours from two to four per day, hundreds of day trippers to Great Keppel Island leading Keppel Konnections to implement an additional ferry service to keep up with demand). Official Tourism Research Australia (TRA) domestic visitation numbers for the September quarter (year on year) to the destination will be released in November.
Capricorn Enterprise CEO Mary Carroll has noted a real buzz about town since the tourism sector returned to business back in June, following the easing of restrictions. “The destination is truly flourishing and it’s so wonderful to see high numbers of visitors and locals coming to experience our patch and enjoy all of the fabulous offerings.”
“Our wonderful volunteers and two part time supervisors at the Capricorn Coast VIC do an incredible job for our industry and the broader community in assisting visitors seven days a week to our beautiful home.”
“It’s encouraging to see that Queenslanders are continuing to support Queensland, thinking outside the box and moving beyond the usual drawcards and spending their days exploring our emerging hotspots,” Mary said. “The increase in visitation over the month of September has provided a great boost for local businesses and is helping to contribute to our again strong economy.”
The Capricorn Coast Visitor Information Centre, located at the Ross Creek Roundabout in Yeppoon offers a one stop shop for travel information including maps, brochures and itineraries. Staffed by skilled and knowledgeable locals, the Centre provides advice on the things to see, things to do and where to eat.
After proudly reopening on 8th June, following months of closure, the VIC has been steadily swarming with enquiries, indicating that our region remains a popular tourist destination.
The Capricorn Coast Visitor Information Centre opens from 9:00am – 5:00pm, Monday to Sunday.
