Coronavirus threat to annual ‘schoolies’ week
With an extended school year and travel plans in disarray, the only student scramble is likely to be for refunds.
The annual pilgrimage by thousands of Year 12 students to “schoolies week” events across the country is in doubt, following a decision by the Victorian government to extend the school year into at least December.
Victorian students studying their VCE are now expected to sit their final exams in December, if not early January, under the state government’s plan to move to remote schooling in a bid to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Other states are watching closely and are considering making similar adjustments.
Year 12 exams are typically held between October and mid-November, after which thousands of students flock to places such as the Gold Coast, Byron Bay, Bali and Fiji to celebrate the end of their schooling.
The event, which is typically held in the final week of November or the first week of December, has become a significant rite of passage for many school leavers, many of whom make their travel plans a year in advance. Accommodation packages can range from $1000 to $2500.
Students will now have to negotiate refunds with their travel providers, with any hopes of delaying their travel to January likely to be affected by existing summer holiday bookings by families.
Schoolies.com, which has been a central booking site for Schoolies Week for over 30 years, has a provision for cancelled bookings.
“Firstly, cancelling schoolies would be lame,” its website says under the heading “what do I do if I want to cancel by booking?”.
“Cancel before 60 days out and all you will lose is your deposit. Cancel 60 days or less before check in and no amount will be refunded. Fiji bookings if you cancel 120 days or less before check in then money paid will be forfeited.
“For leavers any money paid after final payment which is due 21 days after booking will not be refunded if you cancel.
“We understand that stuff does come up so please notify us via email as soon as you can.”
The loss of schoolies week would also be a significant blow to the tourism industry.
Schoolies.com has previously claimed that a typical schoolie visitor would spend $1500 for the week on the Gold Coast, equating to a $60 million injection into the economy.