Tourism

A report to be considered by the City of Ballarat Council this month will recommend the commencement of works to extend Ballarat Airport’s north south runway. The report to the 23 June ordinary meeting of Council will also recommend a commercially focused board be appointed to oversee the management of the Airport, with Council retaining ownership of the facility.

Tourism businesses and organisations are invited to come on board to work together to build greater awareness and encourage visitation to the Wagga Wagga + Surrounds region ... “Domestic travel is booming in regional areas as people are exploring a little closer to home, which is a significant opportunity to leverage off.”

Bendigo’s newest food precinct, Lyttle Eat Street, has been launched on the footpaths at Lyttleton Terrace in the city centre to celebrate and indulge in delicious global street food. Fourteen local businesses from Lyttleton Terrace have joined forces to create Lyttle Eat Street, an initiative to create a new ‘street food vibe and neighbourhood’ in the city centre. It is the first in a winter-long series, Slow Smoking Saturdays, to entice more people to visit the area on weekends to enjoy unique dishes and drinks.

Over 12,000 event attendees celebrated the return of the nine-day Argyle Diamonds Ord Valley Muster held in Kununurra, Western Australia ... New events added to the program this year included Art in the Park featuring 40 local artists, Storytelling Night around a fire by Miriwoong elder David Newry, and the free family-friendly event, Party in the Park to close the festival ... The nation’s most remote party was headlined by one of Australia’s most successful female artists, Jessica Mauboy, who last performed at the Muster as an up-and-coming 16 year old in 2006.

Emma Pritchard. It was the perfect opportunity for the local hockey community to showcase their skills and home turf pride when the Grafton Hockey Association hosted the Men’s Masters Over 50’s State Championships last weekend ... “For Grafton to be able to host a tournament of that calibre in these current times, and for it to make a significant contribution to the local economy is a big thing for the community,” said President of the Men’s Masters Peter Gibbons.

Richmond Field Days coming up!

Ticketed events for this month’s Cooktown Expo are close to selling out, but there is still plenty of accommodation available for those wanting to take advantage of 10 days and nights of free events from this Friday ... Cooktown’s Reconciliation Rocks precinct where Australia’s first recorded act of reconciliation took place in 1770 between James Cook and a Waymburr Warra Elder will be officially opened on Friday.

Greg Targett said he is here to make hard decisions. He was a publican in Tennant Creek in the Northern Territory for years and owned his first hotel in the Territory in 1988 when he was 20 ... Now in ‛semi-retirement’, he lives in Yamba and is the new chief executive of Club Evans.

With 2021 show festivities due to commence in June, the hype, excitement and planning is well underway! This year’s events are set to thrill, entertain and engage people of all ages.

Start getting excited for some adrenaline pumping fun, because the Rockhampton Agricultural Show has just announced its entertainment line-up! Rockhampton Region Mayor Tony Williams is excited to announce Camel Racing is coming back to the Rocky Show. “We’ll have Camel Racing proudly presented by The Capricornian drawing crowds to Centre Ring on People’s Day followed by the spectacular Rooftop Express and fireworks” Mayor Williams said.

Weipa's newest tour guides are loving life on the Cape. Darren Corke and partner Jane Monacella are five weeks into their stint for the tourist season ... “I’m really impressed with the area and how many crocs there are in the water. The amount of wildlife; from fish to dolphins, turtles, snakes and birds ... there’s something different to see with every boat trip,” says Darren.

Tutor Siri Omberg was in town this week building up the hype for the Alice Springs Festival and brought the warmth to Tennant Creek by holding beanie-making workshops at the Paterson Street Hub to encourage more entries into the festival.

New walking trails will be ready to explore in just a few weeks, with work underway on the river walkway link from Lower Sterne Street in Eastgrove through to Cemetery Street ... “This area of Goulburn is just another gem waiting to be discovered, and I think many residents will be pleasantly surprised when the project is complete” said Mayor Bob Kirk.

Norco Primex has welcomed back bumper crowds after the event was put on hold last year because of covid restrictions. “We have beaten the odds,” Primex director Bruce Wright said.

Musicians, visual artists, and school students will take centre stage at this Saturday’s Somerset Art Beat Festival in Toogoolawah. The celebration will showcase all things art and culture, with market stalls, live music, dance performances, workshops, food and more.

Shire of Ashburton are thrilled that the Neil and Judy Baker Shell Museum opens this week in Onslow ... “Council has supported and worked hard to be able to showcase the impressive shell collection from residents Neil and Judy Baker so that it can be enjoyed by tourists and the community for decades to come”, said Councillor White. “Accumulated for over 60 years, most of the shells have been collected from the waters and islands surrounding Onslow, with others coming from Europe as collector items.

The things you see while driving in the Cape. This is Peter Stuart, an Atherton man on a mission. He’s riding all the way to the Tip of Cape York and for no particular reason.

Australian Regional Tourism and convention partner, City of Ballarat, is pleased to announce that Ballarat, Victoria will be hosting the 2021 Australian Regional Tourism Convention (ARTC) to be held 11-13 October 2021 ... The ART Convention is a must-attend event for local councils, regional tourism organisations, tourism professionals and businesses, and government personnel wanting to contribute to the future of regional tourism in Australia, with the 2021 Convention theme ‘A Robust Visitor Economy – navigating our new future’

Visitors and locals were thrilled with the offerings at the Border Flywheelers Club and Heritage Museum 24th Vintage Engine and Machinery Rally. “You could spend weeks in there,” was a repeated comment from visitors. The shear volume and variety of local history that has been amassed is a credit to everyone involved.

Narrandera could potentially become the centre in the Riverina for cycling enthusiasts with a $600,000 Rocky Waterholes Mountain Bike Park mooted. The idea was conceived by the Mountain Bike Trail Narrandera Group whose members want to see the informal trails in the Rocky Waterholes hill transformed into a formal mountain bike trail.

A young Githabul woman with tears in her eyes stands above Tooloom Falls at Urbenville. She describes how the establishment of a campground at the site will impact her and her mob ... Her grandmother Gloria Williams said they had been told the Githabul Nation Aboriginal Corporation had given approval for National Parks to place a permanent caravan and camping area at the falls.

The thirtieth Noosa Festival of Surf is being held between 15th and 23rd May. The festival organisers expect up to 400 competitors – one of the biggest turnouts in the event’s history and with eleven different age divisions, six open divisions, a team challenge, family challenge, standup paddleboard surfing, and the crowd-pleasing dog surfing championships, the event promises to be one of the most exciting yet.