The Australian travel sector seems set to see a rebound in its operational activities. While retail and some other sectors were the first to experience recovery from the pandemic, tourism and hospitality sectors have been witnessing disruptions and financial losses for a long time.

Understanding the critical condition of the hospitality and tourism industry, the government has been rolling out grants and revenue-boosting schemes. Recently, the government announced the release of the remaining AU$75.5 million pledged under the COVID-19 Consumer Travel Support Program (CTSP). The amount specifically aims to benefit travel agents and tour arrangement service providers.

Extending these efforts, the Australian government has now released additional funds to support regions hit by international border closures. Meanwhile, the Victorian government has announced the return of travel vouchers.

The financial boost from these measures is expected to give some leg room to domestic travel businesses to cover their costs and offer services in time. Currently, the tourism industry is experiencing a boom in domestic travel, and a large influx of foreign travellers is expected with the recent borders reopening.

ALSO READ: China lockdown: What are the repercussions for Australia?

Here is a closer look at the efforts taken by the central and state governments to support the tourism sector:

Boost for Queensland tourism

According to PM Scott Morrison, the return of the international tourism market will strengthen the Australian economy, support hundreds of thousands of tourism jobs and back the country’s world-class tourism operators and regions reliant on foreign visitors, like tropical North Queensland.

Building on this expectation, the Morrison government recently announced an additional investment of AU$60 million to boost Queensland tourism. While the move is being perceived as an election-related stint, it is sure to provide a leg up to the tourism and hospitality sector.

Australia Tourism Sector Gets Funding; Covid Restrictions To Ease

Out of the newly announced package, the government is investing AU$45 million for Tourism Australia, and the rest AU$15 million for Tourism Tropical North Queensland to get tourists back and promote the Great Barrier Reef. Essentially, the invested amount would help businesses amp up their operations while generating employment in the travel sector.

Benefits to tourism industry: As per Tourism Tropical North Queensland, over 9,000 tourism-related jobs have been lost since the pandemic started. Several tourism agencies and other services providers have suffered the wrath of the pandemic-induced restrictions.

Thus, tourism operators are now building up from scratch to rebound from losses. After a prolonged lull in tourist traffic, Queensland is now ready to welcome visitors from the rest of the world with the help of the government’s support.

ALSO READ: How 2022 rate hike might catch recent Aussie home buyers off guard

New round of travel vouchers

Another set of good news targets the tourism sector of Victoria, where the next lot of travel vouchers have returned today, i.e., 23 March 2022. The first 10,000 vouchers have already been released to eligible seniors in the previous week through a ballot. The latest round includes an additional 140,000 vouchers for the general public.

The applications for the vouchers have been taken from the Victoria government website, with the vouchers provided on a first-come-first-serve basis. It is no surprise that these vouchers receive many applicants. The previous round of vouchers ended within just ten minutes of being released.

However, vouchers are limited to one per household. Eligible travellers for vouchers are supposed to stay in paid accommodation for a minimum of two consecutive nights. Those with a voucher can claim a reimbursement for expenses incurred across accommodation, attraction and experiences between 8 April 2022 and 27 May 2022.

Benefits to tourism industry: Travel vouchers are a great way to drive tourism toward a particular place. As per local tourism providers, travel vouchers have helped bring more tourists to a particular area in the past. The latest vouchers are expected to benefit locals who seek to travel domestically in the stated travel period.

As airline capacity is limited and international tourism takes time to flourish, domestic travellers can offer a helping hand to the overall industry. Additionally, the move is set to remove fear and hesitancy among Aussies regarding cross-border travelling.

Bottom line

Government grants and funding go a long way in ensuring that businesses stay afloat under tight circumstances in the short run. The pandemic-related uncertainty and hesitancy have reduced significantly over the past couple of months with lower infection rates. Thus, the government measures seem well-positioned to bring back the lost momentum and allow Victoria and Queensland to welcome more tourists.

DO NOT MISS: Australia consumer confidence plunges to lowest level since Sep 2020