Where-We-Roam (NT 22 December) sees Tourism Noosa (TN) looking for a change from principally selling the congested coast to visitors. They perceive the shire’s hinterland as a mine of new products for visitors looking for new things to do and for an industry thinking hard about ways to keep visitors to the shire here longer. Never mind that there’s virtually no tourist accommodation, the infrastructure is struggling to keep up with economic growth, and there’s already a sustainable economy in place.
The initiative is billed as showcasing, “the lesser-known facets of this picturesque region, inspiring responsible travel, and fostering a deep connection with nature”. The promotion includes marketing gobbledygook such as the campaign being a response to, “the increasing need for travellers to explore responsibly, ensuring the preservation of Noosa’s natural beauty for future generations”. Advertisers are told the campaign, “sparks a spirit of curiosity, fostering genuine connections with Noosa’s authentic charm and its warm local community.”
The Noosa Country Drive was an early attempt to link the towns and villages of Cooroy, Pomona, Cooran, Kin Kin, Boreen Point and places beyond, with a series of holiday drive options. Billed as “visitor dispersal”, the aim was to “encourage visitors to explore the lesser-known areas of Noosa, dispersing the tourism footprint across the region.” Of course, opening the hinterland to mass travel comes with responsibilities for TN. Despite the fact that the major quarry operates north of Kin Kin and generates around 200 truck and trailer units a day on the local roads leading to the Bruce Highway, travellers are being given no warning about the need to be vigilant on the narrow, winding roads.
These days, the hinterland’s principal town, Cooroy, has grown to the extent it needs traffic infrastructure updates to serve residents, let alone any extra visitors TN plans to send. This bustling town is the hinterland’s retail, medical and business services hub, and while it has fine visitor attractions, such as the Hinterland Playground, the Butter Factory Art Gallery and a multi-purpose library, it is not in need of the visitor largess TN wants to bestow on us.
The hinterland only has two very small motels, one in Cooroy and the other at Boreen Point. At a time when affordable hinterland accommodation is at a premium, putting pressure on private property rentals is evident because around 1000 hinterland properties now appearing on the AirBnB platform. Just like with the coastal precincts, increasing conversion to STA will put significant pressure on hinterland housing stock by the conversion of housing from long-term accommodation to STA. This is not in line with the TN notion that their campaign will, “Drive economic benefit to Noosa’s lesser-explored areas, supporting local businesses and communities.”
Tourism Noosa chief executive officer Sharon Raguse says, “Where-We-Roam is not just a campaign; it’s a commitment to the sustainable future of Noosa.“ In fact, it has nothing to do with environmental sustainability, it’s just another grab for a part of the shire that’s being well looked after. And it’s a part of the shire that doesn’t want to be lumbered with the resident amenity chaos that we see tourism causing on the coast. Far from TN concentrating on high-value, low volume visitation, its consumer social media platforms for @visitnoosa, with a combined following of 193,000 people annually, targets visitors of all demographics. Utilising user-generated content, influencer shoots and campaign imagery, the aim is to “inspire followers to book a Noosa holiday and experiences”. The imagery is always top shots which draw all demographics.
The hinterland towns are not just assets for the tourism industry to “build resilience …by promoting sustainable practices and ensuring the long-term viability of the region as a premier travel destination”. Most hinterland residents do not look forward to the industry’s insatiable appetite for product because we look askance at the congestion and the effects on residential amenity.
The prospect of hinterland communities with their own economic and environmental sustainability being moulded into a product without any community consultation is astonishing. And, we’ve just been through a lengthy and thorough consultation for a Destination Management Plan that raised the thorny issue of tourism away from the coast. Now we immediately see TN going off on this tangent as if nothing was discussed.
We love visitors but we don’t believe TN has the skill set to deliver us the kind of visitors they are proposing. And we certainly don’t like the prospect of being an overflow destination for the coast when the main visitor demographic there these days is day trippers.
Rod Ritchie
President
Cooroy Area Residents Association
