Tourism not dead in the Red Centre despite crime ‘crisis’

Tourists are continuing to visit Alice Springs in dribs and drabs despite negative national media amid a crime ‘crisis’. Read why they have not been deterred from the Red Centre.

Passengers disembark at Alice Springs airport on Wednesday as the town grapples with an ongoing crime wave.

Tourists continue to trickle into Alice Springs from around Australia and the world despite the troubled outback town making national news for all the wrong reasons.

A crackdown on alcohol sales following a crime ‘crisis’ was not enough to deter solo traveller Tricia Rose who was among those milling around the pool at the Mercure Resort on Friday.

The 60-year-old from Cork in Ireland’s south said the negative press was not enough to interrupt her trip to the Red Centre as part of a journey around Australia.

“I’m heading out to Uluru tomorrow and it’s great so far,” she said.

“I have to confess I’m a bit nervous about going into Alice Springs on my own because I’m travelling round on my own and we were warned coming from the airport and I’d been reading a bit about the news.”

Sunsets over Gregory street and Uncle Tavern on the streets of Alice Springs. Picture: Mark Brake

But Ms Rose said she would still head into town for a look around during daylight hours.

“I might take a taxi in later and get a taxi back here and see if I’m feeling brave,” she said.

“Just simply because it’s too hot, I know it’s not far to walk but it’s probably just that bit too hot.

“I would love to be in Alice Springs roaming around, wandering around, I would love to go in there in the evening but I’m not going to.”

Despite those few nerves, Ms Rose said she had had no negative experiences so far.

“My whole trip to Australia thus far has been amazing, I’m just so privileged to be visiting here, it’s a beautiful country,” she said.

Teenage boys on the streets of Alice Springs at night. The Red Centre has come under national scrutiny for what some local residents say is the worst crime escalation in decades. Picture: Mark Brake

Meanwhile, Melbourne grandmother Margaret Vieth said she too was undeterred from her regular trip north to visit her daughter, who she’s been travelling to see in Alice Springs for the past two decades.

“I would have come anyway, but I’ve noticed the change over the last 20 years though, of what’s been going on here and it’s a bit disconcerting sometimes when I’m down the street,” she said.

“I can see the change this time, there’s a lot more (young) Indigenous people in town that don’t appear to have things to do.

“My idea is educate the young people, give them things to do instead of just milling around with nothing to do.”

The 78-year-old said she too would venture into the CBD but would be keeping her wits about her.

“I’ll still go, you’ve just always got to be aware of what’s going on around you.”