Tourism industry on the open as hotels reopen, Brisbane Airport records busiest day since pandemic started

It’s been a long road, but some significant milestones – including a big day at Brisbane Airport and major hotels reopening to travellers after hotel quarantine – have tourism leaders confident the industry has finally turned the corner.

Tourism’s “new normal” is finally starting to look like the old one.

In a major boost for the industry, Brisbane Airport has reported its busiest day of travel since the start of the pandemic two years ago, while the Rydges South Bank hotel has thrown out the welcome mat for guests for the first time since finally ending a two-year stint as a quarantine hotel.

They are just some of the signs that tourism is finally starting to return to some form of normality, with online bookings for this year showing travellers are rediscovering the confidence to plan holidays in 2022.

On Friday, Brisbane Airport’s domestic terminal recorded more than 43,000 passenger movements in the busiest day of travel since the start of the pandemic.

The past week has seen the average number of daily passenger movements pass 30,000 for the first time since early 2020.

Qantas is ready to ramp up international services out of Brisbane as the city’s airport reports its busiest traffic since the start of the pandemic. Picture: Jono Searle/NCA NewsWire

A spokesperson for Brisbane Airport Corporation said it was heartening to see the buzz returning to travel.

“Today’s passenger numbers are a strong and welcome milestone on the road to recovery for the domestic travel industry,” the spokesperson said.

“We are closer than ever to reaching pre-pandemic numbers domestically, and it is a welcome sight to see the domestic terminal full of life again.”

International travel is also slowly picking up, with Qantas to resume Brisbane flights to Singapore from March 27 and Los Angeles from April 1.

Rydges South Bank is also welcoming guests for the first time since a month-long closure for a deep clean following an end to hotel quarantine.

Rydges South Bank is issuing an official invitation to visit Brisbane as travel starts to return to normal. Picture: Peter Wallis

General manager Rob McGufficke said now was a great time to visit Brisbane, to support the city following the floods and to share the joy of being able to travel freely once again.

“There’s excitement throughout the whole hotel and our foyer is buzzing,” he said.

“Our staff are keeping things refreshingly local, sharing all their favourite haunts and insider knowledge of Brisbane so guests can really make the most of their stay.”

It comes after data from leading online booking platform SiteMinder this week revealed Queensland travel demand was now higher than before the start of the pandemic, with the Sunshine State recovering quicker than any other Australian state and among the fastest destinations to recover around the globe.

Queensland Tourism Industry Council CEO Daniel Gschwind said after the easing of the Omicron surge and the passing of the floods, the future was finally looking brighter.

“Hopefully we’re coming to the end of the doom and gloom,” he said.

“We’ve all been waiting to see some green shoots and now it seems like we are getting them.”

Originally published as Tourism industry on the open as hotels reopen, Brisbane Airport records busiest day since pandemic started