Omicron Sunshine Coast what super strain means for region’s tourism operators

Sunshine Coast tourism operators are bracing for the fallout of what could be a devastating blow as Omicron strain uncertainty threatens to destroy another Christmas.

A Maroochydore tourism operator on high alert over the Omicron Covid variant says his business would be “devastated” without the financial benefits from southerners this festive season.

Paradise Seaplanes owner and chief pilot Shawn Kelly said he would watch the latest developments around the new strain “like a hawk” with fears that the state’s borders could slam shut.

Three cases of the new “super strain” have already been detected on Australian shores which has caused major concerns for the potential impact it could have on Christmas travel.

The Omicron variant has twice the amount of mutations of the Delta variant that has caused havoc around the world.

Paradise Seaplanes owner Shawn Kelly said he was concerned about the summer tourism season with the uncertainty of the Omicron Covid-19 variant. Picture: File

Mr Kelly said he feared that those in Melbourne and Sydney who wished to come to the Sunshine Coast for holidays would be turned off given the uncertainty.

“Most people like me are very concerned about it, not so much in terms of it being more dangerous, but that it will create a knee-jerk reaction,” Mr Kelly said.

“Things can slam shut so fast. It worries me.”

Mr Kelly said Christmas without the traditional southern holiday makers for the second straight year would have a devastating impact on his business.

“The past 18 months have been really rough. Not just for my business, for all of us,” Mr Kelly said.

“The locals are wonderful and try and take up the slack but they can’t make up the visitor numbers.”

Sunreef Mooloolaba operations manager John Fell said the Omicron variant cast a cloud of uncertainty ahead of the summer holidays.

“We’ve just been catching up after Delta, now this one comes out of left field,” Mr Fell said.

“It has made things uncertain. We don’t really know what’s going to happen next week.

“It makes things really unpredictable for us.”

Mr Fell said the business had suffered without holiday makers from the south who traditionally dominated midweek booking numbers.

“Our weekends have been very busy with the locals and Brisbane people coming out but midweek has been a bit of a ghost town,” Mr Fell said.

“Those midweek booking numbers have been way down.”

Sunreef Mooloolaba operations manager John Fell said midweek bookings had suffered since the pandemic.

At Visit Sunshine Coast’s 2021 annual general meeting, chairman David Ryan reported visitor numbers for June 2021 had dropped by 13.9 per cent compared with June 2019.

In the June 2019 financial year, more than 1.2m people from Victoria and NSW visited the region.

“When we compare the year ending June 2021 against the year ending June 2019, domestic visitor numbers declined by seven per cent, and if we add in the loss of international travel, the region suffered a 13.9 per cent decline in overall visitor numbers,” Mr Ryan said.

“Of our sectors, business travel was the hardest hit with a 40.8 per cent decline. The loss of corporate and conference travel particularly affected midweek performance and yield.”

Mr Ryan said the region had set a new record for June 2021 of $2.8bn in domestic overnight visitor expenditure, up by 7.7 per cent compared to 2019.

Visit Sunshine Coast chief executive Matt Stoeckel said any uncertainty surrounding a new strain of the virus was a concern.

“We are monitoring the situation closely and keeping our members informed, but at this point in time everything remains on track for a 17 December border reopening,” Mr Stoeckel said.

“Our current forecasts are showing occupancy rates of more than 80 per cent for the Christmas and New Year period.

“Prior to Covid, most accommodation would already be booked out by now. Bookings are also softer than usual for the remainder of January, though this is likely to pick up as we move closer to Christmas and there is more certainty about interstate travel.”

Deputy Premier Steven Miles said the State Government would be taking a “cautious approach” to the new variant but said the reopening date had not changed.