Experts say Sydney set to benefit from Covid restrictions being lifted
There’s a heap going on in Sydney as locals flock out to see what the city has to offer after two years of Covid restrictions. See a list of the top ten things to do in our beautiful city.
NSW
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Tourism experts have declared Sydney will be the beneficiary of less interstate travel this January with many locals choosing to holiday in their own backyard.
Sydneysiders are revelling in a city largely free of international tourists and their first summer holiday period without covid restrictions for the first time in almost two years.
Tourism & Transport Forum chief executive Margy Osmond said Sydney would host a surge in those embarking on day trips and urged residents to do their research so they knew the full ambit of activities available.
“There is so much to do, if you have made the choice as most people have to holiday in your own state don’t forget how gorgeous Sydney is and how much it has to offer,” she said.
She tipped activities like Taronga Zoo, Scenic World in the Blue Mountains and the Bridgeclimb would be popular now that the weather had warmed up after a cool December thanks to the La Nina weather event.
“The majority of people have made the decision to holiday within their own state so the first beneficiaries of that are actually going to be lots of regional holiday operators,” she said. “But without a doubt within the next couple of weeks we expect to see an increase in choosing day trips or overnight trips and long weekends in places like Sydney.”
Accommodation Association of Australia chief executive Richard Munro said hotels were already seeing a boost from those taking a city break over the New Year’s period.
“Food and beverage has performed well despite the issues with staffing and good occupancy,” he said.
Mr Munro said events including the Elevate Festival atop the Cahill Expressway were also getting Sydneysiders and those from regional NSW into Sydney.
“Demand has been better and I think it is great the NSW government put on that event because it has generated interest when we have capacity, there are hotel rooms available,” he said.
Bureau of Meteorology duty forecaster David Wilke said ideal swimming seen over the weekend would continue with temperatures remaining in the high 20s for the next few days but showers are expected to develop later in the week.
“Generally we‘re expecting a bit of shower activity in the second part of the week but the next couple of days on the whole are looking reasonably nice,” he said.
“A change is definitely coming, but it is a bit of a gradual one, the second half of this week will be a little bit cloudier, and a little bit more showery.”
Sydney hit 29C on Sunday while water temperatures were almost tropical at 23.8C at Bondi.
Across town at Lake Parramatta, Baulkham Hills mum Nora Darwish had spent the second day in a row at the lake with her extended family after opting not to leave Sydney this year because of Covid concerns.
“We usually get a house up the coast or down towards Canberra, but because of all the Covid scares we’re really hesitant. We’re fully vaccinated but we didn’t want to bring anything into the regional areas,” she said.
Instead they have been exploring the local area and she was impressed by the pristine lake. “It is just so pleasant and refreshing … and it is so close,” she said.
The Johnson family from Parramatta yesterday travelled into the city to see the Wiggles atop the Cahill expressway after the government closed it for traffic until January 5 for the Elevate Sydney festival.
Four-year-old Abigail Johnson enjoyed the debut performance of the newest addition to the Wiggles, Tsehay Hawkins. “I liked her dancing,” Abigail said.
Argentinian Agustin Dauria enjoyed yesterday’s warm weather with fellow backpacker Clara Nespoli from Brazil. “It was pretty good with this weather, we had a beautiful swim,” Mr Dauria said.
Bridgeclimb’s head of marketing Ali Cassim said things had picked up but they still needed international tourists to return.
“We had it a little tough ... and now it is nice to see people coming out,” she said.
“We’re looking forward to a strong January.’’
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