Chris Oldfield, Naracoorte Community News

A desire by parents to get children out of the house, away from screens and in touch with nature is turning the Naracoorte district into a school holiday destination.

Visitors are using Naracoorte as a centre, staying overnight or for a few days rather than a few hours, while locals are tending to find things to do around the town and within 100kms.

For many years the World Heritage listed Naracoorte Caves National Park, Bool Lagoon, MiniJumbuk, The Sheep’s Back museum and its tiny train set, Art Gallery, various wineries and the Regional Livestock Exchange have each week attracted numerous people to Naracoorte.

But with more things to see and do along with a thirst for nature, bushwalking and camping, national parks and camping grounds are enjoying a resurgence, keeping more people in the area.

Naracoorte Holiday Park Edwards Group regional manager Alison Baker noticed an increase in families travelling a few weeks ago during the winter Victorian school holidays, as well as the current SA ones.

She thought many of the families might previously have stayed at hotels or motels or had gone overseas during winter.

“So, they’re actually sort of looking for more home and regional-based holidays and that tends to be more into the cabin style stays,” she said.

“They are also trying out (cabins) and caravan parks before they buy something big and expensive like a caravan.

“The caves, visiting open farms – anything that gets the kids outside (is popular).

“The idea of being able to get out, get the children out of the house and do all the things that we have in the local area that has a nature base, feet on the ground experience, is exceedingly popular.”

Ms Baker said locals were welcome to use park facilities for a small fee and just needed to visit the reception.

“Disc golf is really good fun. It’s really competitive too, particularly between fathers and their teenage sons,” she said.

ASI Outdoors’ Mandy Barr said while people were generally moving about more freely, she believed many families were travelling within 100km or so from home.

“We see a lot of people from Mount Gambier and from Victoria,” she said.

“We are selling a lot of sleeping bags to people”¦.(they) don’t like being cold.

“I was talking to someone (last week) and they couldn’t get away. They have a half acre block and thought they would go camping down the back yard.

“We learned how to do it during lockdown and it’s a matter of turning the phone off.

“Kids don’t care where they are camping, so long as they are camping.”

Ms Barr said this was the time of year for campfires, marshmallows on a stick, jaffle irons and camp ovens.

“There is nothing like cooking over an open fire to bring out the pioneering spirit,” she said.

“Cockatoo Lake is a free camp, you can camp out at the Caves for a fee and Black Cockatoo Bush Camp is a great place where you pay to camp as well – there is water out there. There’s Bellwether at Coonawarra too.

“Fairview Park out near Lucindale is a great place to go – there is a lot of birdlife out there.

“Poocher Swamp near Mundulla, even Ngarkat isn’t too far away and Little Desert out near Frances.”

Ms Barr said a lot more families were going camping for the school holidays “whereas once they would have gone to Fiji or somewhere like that”.

But on their way to camp spots, or on their way home, they always spent time in the town.

“A lot of tourists come through Naracoorte on a Sunday – MiniJumbuk is open then, and they see them all,” she said.

MiniJumbuk retail manager Ollie Homan said the weekends “have been vibrant”, but the shop was generally busy.

In addition to more people staying in the district, “people come in off the coast and we are a great draw card on a cold day,” he said.

“We’ve got a great mix of clientele where we’ve got 50 per cent tourist trade, and 50 per cent are our bedding customers from the SE and Western Victoria.

“We are a bit unique what we do here. There are not too many bedding manufacturers around.”

MiniJumbuck managing director Darren Turner said more people from all over Australia had been visiting in the last couple of years “and there’s definitely a younger group of people travelling”.

“There’s certainly a lot of people that have just packed up their family and hit the road.”

Mr Turner said in addition to school holidays, during the last one or two years, people were using Naracoorte as a base because it was central.

He said the Caves, many wineries, MiniJumbuk, the Sheep’s Back museum “and those sorts of things” meant there was enough to keep people occupied for three to five days.

However, he wished there was more high-quality accommodation on offer such as that offered by Naracoorte Cottages and The Avenue Inn.

Naracoorte Cottages proprietor Richard Peake said a lot more Adelaide guests and Victorians were travelling to, and through, Naracoorte this winter, especially compared with last year.

“Mostly the families stay only one night or a weekend as part of a road trip of a week or so,” he said.

“Recently eight adults from Adelaide stayed three nights and enjoyed touring Coonawarra cellar doors and eating out in Naracoorte, so they were very good for the economy.

“Covid-19 is still causing some cancellations but that kind of disruption is nowhere near the levels of 2020 and 2021.”

Mr Peake said he always asked prospective guests if they’d like a 10 per cent discount voucher to see the World Heritage listed Naracoorte Caves National Park.

“I provide a printed list of 15 dot points on a ‘What to see and do’ list in Naracoorte and also recommend where to eat locally as well as what to see and do in Penola, Coonawarra, Padthaway, Apsley and Edenhope.

“This encourages them to use Naracoorte as a centre.

“The Fossil Hunters Playground, Naracoorte Community Playground and the skate park are very popular with families.

“Guests are also impressed by the range of eat-in and takeaway food places and also the clothes shops, particularly for surf wear, hoodies, track pants etc.”

The Avenue Inn motel, café, restaurant proprietor Alex Protopopoff said she had “heaps of people staying for two or three nights’.

They wanted to catch up with people whom they hadn’t been able to see during the border closures and lockdowns.

“In particular, because its school holidays, we’re getting a fair few more kids and school age students coming through,” she said.

“It’s not just the single couples or the older free nesters. We have definitely seen an uptick (with families) and it’s nice to see our tourists back again.

She said the café and restaurant had also been very busy from Wednesdays to Sundays servicing locals as well as visitors.

Ms Protopopoff said families particularly enjoyed the wooden playground at Memorial Oval as well as the water pump there.

This article appeared in the Naracoorte Community News.