Camel tours along the beach are being run three times a day, and they’re entirely booked at least a week out. Some hotels are using guest rooms for employee accommodation to ensure enough staff to meet the demand. And the cafes have signs explaining that after ordering, expect a 45-minute wait.

Broome is always busy in the dry season school holidays. But this year, the pearling town in Western Australia’s Kimberley region is struggling to meet the tourist demand, particularly after the stop-start of state lockdowns in the lead-up to July led to a flurry of cancellations and new bookings.