Ready to leap into summer as travel bookings soar

Millions of Australians are already snapping up cheap flights and accommodation for the upcoming holiday period, enticed by the promise of freedom.

Cairns hospitality worker Lucy Smith, 22, bungee jumps at the city’s Smithfield SkyPark amusement centre. Picture: Brian Cassey

Millions of Australians are snapping up cheap flights and accommodation for the upcoming holiday period, enticed by the promise of freedom and open borders once Covid-19 vaccination thresholds are met.

Tourism and hospitality operators are preparing for a summer bonanza for domestic tourism, with consumers opening up their wallets earlier than normal in anticipation after months of gruelling lockdown.

Tourism Accommodation Australia chief Michael Johnson said popular destinations such as NSW’s Central Coast and South Coast and Victoria’s Great Ocean Road and Mornington Peninsula were already heavily booked.

Residents of the southeastern states have also shown strong interest in Queensland destinations such as Cairns and the Gold Coast.

“Everyone is looking forward to their holidays and desperately hoping they can get in and holiday during the warmer months,” Mr Johnson said. “There are a whole lot of people who are due for a much-needed break.”

Recent announcements from NSW and Victorian governments outlining their freedom road maps have triggered a surge in bookings, with popular platform Stayz recording a 20 per cent spike in demand for houses.

Stayz says the demand for Christmas holiday houses has come earlier than normal. However, past snap border closures mean some travellers are opting to book holidays intrastate rather than run the risk of cancellations.

Stayz demand data shows 75 per cent of all bookings for houses in the NSW’s far north are from people living in NSW.

The much-needed boost to the tourism sector is also being propped up by the historically high levels of accrued annual leave, recent Roy Morgan research shows.

Australian workers had 151 million days of annual leave when the country entered its Covid-19 shutdown in June, which was the highest total of accrued annual leave since March 2012.

Consumers are being enticed by cheap flights, with Jetstar offering fares from as low as $20 one way to get people back on planes when the Victorian-NSW border reopens. Qantas has also launched a five-day flash sale for flights between Melbourne and Sydney, as well as cheap fares across several regional routes to Bendigo, Mildura, Byron and Coffs Harbour.

Airlines including Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin offer customers the choice of a refund, to reschedule or a travel credit without charge should borders be closed again.

Accommodation providers, including hotels and short-term stays, have also implemented flexible booking arrangements in a bid to give assurances and instil consumer confidence in the industry.

Operators in the sunshine state are likely to face some challenges in the months ahead, with Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk threatening to keep the border closed even after reaching an 80 per cent vaccination rate.

Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief Daniel Gschwind said interstate travellers still harboured “enormous hesitancy” when booking trips, and called for greater clarity from the Premier.

Cairns hospitality worker Lucy Smith, 22, said her restaurant had experienced a downturn in trade following recent lockdowns.

“I am looking forward to Christmas when things will hopefully pick up – and hopefully do some travel myself,” she said.