The opening of restaurants and cafes to a maximum of 50 people in NSW from 1 June 2020 has been welcomed by the Accommodation Association on behalf of the wider industry.
Accommodation Association CEO, Dean Long, said the announcement recognised the importance of protecting the NSW economy and the 26,000 people directly employed by the sector in the state. The imminent resumption of holiday travel as an approved means of movement will help regional hotels start the road to recovery, where previously intrastate travel accounted for as much as 70% of all visitor nights for regional hotels.
“The accommodation sector is currently experiencing revenue declines in the order of 85%, with many of our restaurants closed due to government restrictions,” said Long.
“The easing of restrictions is a common sense outcome that is vital to enhancing the destination experience and assists in supporting employment. However, opening up travel within NSW needs to be supported by the opening, not only of restaurants and cafes, but a range of unique destination activities.”
Long added he was looking forward to working alongside the government to further wind back restrictions in line with the implementation of comprehensive hygiene measures across the board.