Standardised school holidays would devastate tourism industry
Managing Director of the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) Matthew Hingerty says that standardising school holiday periods across Australia could have a devastating impact on the nation’s tourism industry, adding that the proposal would create an “artificial seasonality” and would raise serious accommodation, travel and safety issues.
He said, “There may be perfectly good educational reasons to do it but, as usual, the tourism industry hasn’t been considered, with the industry trying to manage its yield over the year and having staggered school holidays allows them to effectively to do that.
“This would create major capacity issues, both in accommodation and in the air, and it will create an artificial seasonality in the industry … it would certainly be a retrograde step.”
The federal opposition wants to see uniform school terms across the country, arguing that Australia should also be working towards nationally consistent school curricula with Labor’s new education spokesman Stephen Smith arguing that this would ensure a smooth transition for families moving between States and Territories.
However, Federal Tourism Minister Fran Bailey slammed the proposal, saying that popular tourist destinations wouldn’t be able to cope with the influx of visitors, adding “Labor’s one-size-fits-all plan will mean tourist destinations like the Gold Coast will be busy one week, but almost deserted the next.” “The potential impact from this loss of business on local tourism operators and local jobs is immeasurable.”
Mr Hingerty said the proposal would also put further pressure on locals who live in popular tourist destinations, saying, “Byron Bay’s a pretty good example, where people are saying the impact of holidaymakers is affecting the amenity of their life … this will only worsen that”.
Mr Hingerty warned that environmentally sensitive areas such as the Great Barrier Reef could suffer “serious damage”, that airfares could also rise in response to the demand over the holiday period and that international inbound tourism would also suffer.
“How are we going to put those inbound groups into hotels if its jam-packed with Australian holidaymakers,” he said. “You just can’t say to a convention or tour group ‘Sorry you can’t come to Australia that week because it’s full’. “This proposal simply hasn’t been thought through.”
Report by The Mole
John Alwyn-Jones
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