Funding announced

If we are to create these benefits we have to ensure the region is properly prepared to give visitors a world class experience without disrupting communities, so we have to do a great deal of planning and preparation which this funding will allow us to commence.”

The VGTE will also allocate a further $50,000 to support related activities which will enable the Sustainable Tourism Toolkit project to progress and deliver more quickly.

Mr Meddows-Taylor stressed that there were significant opportunities to create added visitation as the bid for World Heritage Listing is developed and that some of the early tools in the Sustainable Tourism Toolkit would create quick wins for tourism such as website development and a focus on public relations and promotion of this unique region.

“Obviously a real priority is helping industry recover from the devastating impact of Covid19 and this project will really help us to do that by making people aware how special the central Victorian Goldfields are and encouraging them to visit when they are able to travel safely” he said.

If the World Heritage Listing bid is successful the economic benefits through added visitation are conservatively estimated to deliver $25 million annually into the regional economy and possibly as high as $66 million.

As the 12 municipalities in the consortium extend into surrounding tourism regions, the VGTE will work with neighbouring regional tourism boards so they are involved in developments and are able to leverage from these for their own planning and activities.

The Sustainable Tourism product, infrastructure and investment priorities project, is proudly co-funded by Regional Development Victoria, Victorian Goldfields Tourism Executive, City of Ballarat and City of Greater Bendigo.