Easing of travel restrictions to boost Hunter visitor economy

The Hunter Business Chamber has welcomed the return of travel to regional NSW from 1 June.

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“Our regional business communities have been doing it tough for some time due to drought, bushfire and the pandemic. The opening of the regions will help kick-start our economic recovery and be a huge boost for the tourism and hospitality sectors in particular,” Hunter Business Chamber CEO Bob Hawes said.

“People will be eager to travel after a long period of isolation and our region is perfectly placed for weekender and school holiday visits from Sydney and other major centres.

“Business NSW estimates that about 20,000 jobs have been lost across the Hunter, many of them in those hard-hit sectors, so the relaxation of travelling restrictions will help boost business confidence and encourage businesses to start employing people again.”

“While a number of restrictions remain in place for many of our hospitality and tourism businesses, we expect these to ease and urge the NSW Government to relax restrictions as the risk of virus transmission decreases.

"Businesses and local tourism operators have and will be working hard to ensure all the necessary precautions are in place to safely welcome visitors back to our region.”