Some of Australia’s top tourist destinations are also under-vaccinated

New figures have revealed that some of Australia’s most sought after travel destinations also have nation’s worst vaccination rates.

They’re some of the iconic destinations we’ve been dreaming of holidaying when we can. But they’re also some of the places in Australia where vaccination rates are among the worst.

Government data released this week has revealed the suburbs and regions across Australia where vaccination rates are among the nation’s lowest — and hugely popular travel destinations such as Byron Bay, Bondi Beach, Mackay and the Whitsundays are among them.

And a tourism expert says there could be a significant blowback as travellers opt for Covid-safe destinations once the nation finally opens back up.

The data, published on August 15 from the Federal Government’s vaccine geographic location report, shows the areas in each state with the highest rates of vaccination for first and second doses, as well as the areas trailing behind on first jabs.

The holiday hotspot of Byron Bay also has some of the worst vaccination rates in NSW.

In NSW, the state with the nation’s largest Covid-19 outbreak, suburbs in Sydney’s west and south west are leading the charge while Bondi Beach lags with only 20 to 29 per cent of the population fully vaccinated.

The Byron Shire local government area, which includes Byron Bay that has been dubbed Australia’s “capital of conspiracy theories” and a hotbed for anti-vax sentiment, falls behind much of NSW with only 25.5 per cent of residents fully vaccinated, according to a breakdown of data by the ABC.

In Queensland, Brisbane West is leading the state with 52.9 per cent of the eligible population receiving one dose, while the holiday hot spots of Mackay, Isaac and Whitsundays are among the worst with only 32.8 per cent.

Low vaccination coverage in some areas isn’t necessarily due to people consciously objecting to the jab, however.

The Government’s data doesn’t provide details on the average age of each area, and therefore what proportion of the local population has been eligible to receive a vaccine yet.

It also doesn’t account for variations in vaccine supply. State premiers, including Victoria’s Daniel Andrews and Western Australia’s Mark McGowan, have called out the Federal Government’s “preferential treatment” of NSW in vaccine allocations, which the Federal Government has since said it would address.

There have also been challenges in rolling out the vaccine to remote and regional areas. While Darwin has a high vaccine update for the Northern Territory, figures drop in Litchfield, outside the city, which is a mecca for Top End tourists. NT Chief Minister Michael Gunner has also disputed the way the Federal Government records vaccine rates, which he says produces different — and less flattering — results than the territory government’s count.

But when travel restrictions lift and state borders reopen, certain destinations may find themselves overlooked by travellers in favour of those that seem more Covid-safe, David Beirman, a senior lecturer in the Management Discipline Group specialising in tourism at UTS Business School, said.

Litchfield National Park is a tourism mecca outside of Darwin.

“I have no doubt that as Australian federal and state governments continue to push the concept of people being vaccinated as a virtual ‘passport’ for both domestic and international travel, travellers will pay increased attention to issues like the percentage of people vaccinated in a given locality,” Dr Beirman told news.com.au.

“While we are in lockdown in NSW and Victoria the percentage of people vaccinated in Byron Bay or any other popular tourism town is largely irrelevant, but when the lockdown ends, I am sure it will become one of a number of factors which people will take into account in choosing a preferred destination when they are able to resume travel.”

Perceived Covid safety has been a “significant factor in destination choice” globally amid the pandemic, Dr Beirman said.

Vaccination rates are factoring into what places are deemed safe for holidays amid the pandemic. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Dan Peled

Pandemic measures such as the traffic light system, which has been adopted by in the UK, Europe and North America, assesses destination safety according to case numbers and deaths, as well as vaccination rates.

“This in turn determines whether travellers to these countries are required to undergo quarantine when they return to their home country,” he said.

However, Dr Beirman cautioned that an “atmosphere of Covid-related fear … (is) influencing the attitudes of many people toward how, when and where they will travel”.

“Certainly there is a pervasive perception that high rates of vaccination (equals) Covid safety irrespective of whether such claims are true,” he said.

“Sadly, even countries like Israel, UK and USA which now have very high vaccination rates continue to experience high rates of Covid infection, albeit with far lower mortality rates than in 2020.”

The Whitsundays is one of the regions that have been badly hurt by travel restrictions. Picture: iStock

Fear-driven travel decisions could have devastating impacts on regions that rely on tourism income. While vaccination rates are currently lagging in places like Mackay and the Whitsundays, they are also among the Queensland regions where tourism operators and businesses have been hurt the most by border closures.

As the pandemic continues to shape where and how Australians travel after lockdowns, there is a holiday option Dr Beirman expects to become even more popular.

“One area of tourism which is likely to grow is tourism to national parks and wilderness areas where the likelihood of contacting other people and Covid-19 is low,” he said.

“Prior to the Sydney lockdowns from late June 2021, regional tourism in NSW was going gangbusters. Sadly that is no longer the case as both the Sydney and Melbourne lockdowns and those applied to many regional areas in NSW and Victoria.”