Businesses all through the Grampians are preparing for one of of the busiest Easter weekends ever with people expected to flock to the region.
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The Stawell Gift is the jewel of the tourism crown, but with other Easter activities and increased domestic travel, huge numbers are expected throughout the Easter holidays.
Grampians Tourism chief executive officer Marc Sleeman said he was expecting the weekend to be 'massive' for the region.
"It is going to be probably our biggest weekend in history," he said.
"We have seen, post-COVID, with the ring of steel in Melbourne coming down, some of the strongest visitation in our region in our history and if that is anything to go by, we are going to see a massive weekend here with the Stawell Gift in the Grampians.
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"The economic boost the Stawell Gift gives to the region is wonderful for all business and as an event and it is such an iconic event for the destination.
"The economic wave is felt right around the region and it is not just isolated to Stawell.
"Accommodation across the region is as full as possible and it is traditionally one our biggest weekends, so we are looking forward to a cracking weekend both economically, but also from a community perspective it is great to have our hero event back on."
Despite the bumper weekend, post-Easter can be a challenging time for local providers as the cooler months set in.
But the Victorian Government has announced another round of its Regional Travel Voucher Scheme which Mr Sleeman was hoping would help the region ride the recovery wave.
"It is critical the state government continue to invest in these kinds of initiatives to help get people out into regional Victoria," he said.
"At the moment we are seeing a $20 million dollar gap in international visitors through these March, April and May months.
"But by keeping people within Victoria we have a massive opportunity over the next six to twelve months to have a strong recovery."
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On Tuesday 50,000 travel vouchers worth $10 million were taken up by Victorians in just 3 minutes, in what the state government is hoping will provide a major boost to tourism businesses and workers across the state.
Acting Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Jaala Pulford said it was the fast uptake of the vouchers was fantastic.
"It's fantastic that so many people want to explore their state and support the businesses and workers that make Victoria the best place in the country to visit," she said.
"We know that our famous holiday destinations will be busy over Easter - these vouchers will help to ensure that demand stays high across April and May."
The third round of the Andrews Labor Government's Regional Travel Voucher Scheme represented the largest release of the popular $200 vouchers.
Victorians who secured vouchers on Tuesday will be able to claim a rebate for travel between 6 April and 31 May.
The new allocation means 200,000 travel vouchers for $200 have now been taken up by Victorians, including 40,000 vouchers for travel in Metropolitan Melbourne currently in circulation.
Regional voucher holders are required to spend $400 on paid accommodation, experiences, tours or attractions in regional Victoria, the Yarra and Dandenong Ranges or the Mornington Peninsula, and spend at least two nights in paid accommodation.
More information on the Regional Travel Voucher Scheme can be found at vic.gov.au/regional-travel-voucher-scheme.
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