La Maison, River Deck: Border businesses hit by hundreds of cancellations

Border businesses are dealing with hundreds of cancellations during peak season as the NSW/Victorian border checkpoint hits hard.

River Deck cafe owner Alex Smit says he received 200 cancellations in one day following the border closure after New Year.

Albury and Wodonga hospitality businesses have been hit hard by border closures as confused and cautious travellers cancel bookings.

Businesses in both towns say they have struggled since Victoria shut its border on New Year’s Day, with La Maison Restaurant owner Wassim Saliba, whose eatery is located right behind the checkpoint, saying the impact had been “quite detrimental”.

Mr Saliba said his Gateway Village restaurant, on the Lincoln Causeway, could be accessed from Albury but getting to it from Wodonga was “a little bit tricky at the moment”.
“People are a bit dubious about crossing the border and don’t know where we are,” Mr Saliba said.

“We are right on the crack of being on this side and being on that side; it’s very annoying and detrimental to business.”

After being closed for two weeks over the holidays, Mr Saliba said he reopened his restaurant for trade on the weekend but had 130 people cancel on Saturday alone.

“We were supposed to be booked out on Friday and Saturday but we’ve had cancellation after cancellation,” he said.

“Four different functions we had on that day cancelled, purely because of an interstate scare.

“At this stage it is certainly affecting us and I don’t know what to do next.”

While La Maison is still open and operating as usual, Mr Saliba said it had received little support from checkpoint staff.

“We had them for the odd coffee here and there, and we have suggested to them that we are willing to show them some hospitality but there’s been nothing,” he said.

La Maison Restaurant is located right behind the NSW/Victorian border checkpoint on the Lincoln Causeway.

River Deck cafe, a popular spot for Albury locals and tourists during the summer months, was also hit hard by cancellations when the border closed.

“This border closure at a peak period has impacted our ability to earn; last year we had the fires, this year we have the border,” owner Alex Smit said.

“We had probably 200 cancellations within a day when the border closed after New Year’s. That’s usually one of the busiest weeks of the year for us.

“It takes about two weeks for people to figure it out and have a level of comfort with the restrictions, but once those two weeks are up everyone will be back to work and school.”
Mr Smit said tourists made up a big part of their business, but they had received a huge amount of support from locals.

“Our destination serves a lot of visitors to Albury, and locals like bringing their family and friends to us as well,” he said.

“But people are not coming through, and there is a level of uncertainty now seeing how quickly they shut the border.

“It’s a shame because there’s so much to do along the Murray region right across the border to Mildura.”

Business Wodonga chief executive Neil Aird said the city’s accommodation providers had also seen reduced business since the borders closed.

While checkpoint workers had stayed in local Albury hotels and eaten at local venues when the NSW border had been closed to Victoria, Mr Aird said the same support hadn’t been shown in Wodonga now roles were reversed.

“Accommodation places had cancellations as soon as the border closure was put in place,” Mr Aird said.

“Where the crossing is it pretty much covers a few hospitality businesses and customers can’t get to them.

“The police have been bussed out to the barracks at the army bases instead of staying in local hotels.

“And food is being supplied from Melbourne. It just adds to the pressure a lot of our businesses are under.”

Mr Aird said he supported the border closure if it meant stopping further outbreaks of COVID-19, but he was calling for Albury and Wodonga to have the same restrictions to stop negative impacts on Wodonga businesses where people have to wear face masks.

“I think they’ve got it right pretty much, but we still have two different regulations for NSW and Victoria, and we need consistency across the board,” he said.

“We’re seeing the same issues arise; people are heading across to Albury possibly because restrictions seem to be freer there.”