‘It’s essential’: Call to charge tourists for visits to Twelve Apostles

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Visitors to the Twelve Apostles would be charged a fee to see the renowned natural attraction under a plan being pushed by the area’s tourism body and local council.

The Corangamite Shire council and Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism Board have issued a joint statement urging the state government to seize the “once-in-a-generation opportunity” to introduce a user-pays model to access the site.

The Corangamite Shire and Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism want a user-pays model to visit the Twelve Apostles.

The board’s chairman, Andrew Jeffers, said implementing a charge would allow better management of visitors and protection of the coastal environment.

“As stewards of the visitor economy in this extraordinary region, we believe a thoughtfully introduced user-pays system is not only fair, it is essential,” he said.

The tourism board and Corangamite Shire also want to encourage more visitors to stay overnight in the region, as many tour groups make day trips to the Twelve Apostles from Melbourne.

The local tourism sector has long maintained the region misses out on the economic benefits of the natural tourism attraction when visitors leave the area at the end of the day.

The joint statement said the state government should show bold leadership and allow the user-pays model to provide benefit to Victorians for generations.

“A user-pays model must be co-designed, transparent, equitable, and focused on outcomes that serve both people and place,” the statement said.

A new $126 million visitor centre is being built at the Twelve Apostles in a redevelopment of the area. The project is part of the Geelong City Deal, which includes investment from the state and federal governments.

This week, the state government announced the rooftop structure had been completed at the visitor centre, where there will be a lookout. The centre will also include shops, eateries and a garden.

The Twelve Apostles remains immensely popular despite just seven limestone stacks of the original 12 remaining.

A Development Victoria report said the Twelve Apostles received about 2.8 million visitors in 2019 and the figure was forecast to reach 4 million by 2026.

Corangamite Shire chief executive David Rae said introducing a charge would ensure that maintaining the site as a tourism attraction was economically viable in the long term.

“Individuals benefiting from that experience should pay for it,” he said.

The facilities at the Twelves Apostles are being redeveloped.

Rae said there was no suggestion the Great Ocean Road itself should be tolled, but visitors to the Twelve Apostles could be asked to pay for car park entry or to book online to visit the site. He declined to say how much a visit should cost, but suggested something like $10 or $20 might be reasonable.

“If you’ve travelled internationally, you’re used to paying for experiences,” he said. “We’ve got to find the sweet spot the market is willing to bear.”

However, the area’s residents should not be required to pay the charge, Rae said.

Tourism operators licensed by Parks Victoria currently pay a fee to use the Great Ocean Road. But Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism general manager Liz Price said that fee was minimal and many smaller tourism businesses did not pay it.

Visitor numbers are in the millions each year.

She said a “dynamic pricing” model for visitors could be used to offer financial incentives to go to the Twelves Apostles at quieter times of the day and year as well as encouraging people to stay overnight.

“It’s time we aligned our tourism management with our values — sustainability, responsibility, and long-term community benefit,” Price said.