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A booming Easter weekend has given Warwick businesses a sweet dose of visitors, days after a potential Brisbane lockdown left a sour taste in their mouths.
Lake Leslie Tourist Park owners Adam and Caroline Bennett were said they were blown away by the numbers of campers for the weekend.
âEaster was the best event ever, the biggest weâve had in the eight years since weâve been there,â Mr Bennett said.
âIt was just absolutely phenomenal.â
Mr Bennett said Leslie Damâs recent rise after flooding across the state had also boosted numbers.
âThere were certainly a few that have never been here before but are definitely coming back,â he said.
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Sold out events and earlier peak seasons show tourism could be on a record boom in the Granite Belt.
This week the beloved winery tour and bus trip Grazing the Granite Belt sold out of spots for its May 15-16 event.
Tickets for the mid-year tour were only made available two weeks ago but the 200 people cap has already been reached, leaving organiser and Ballandean Estate Wines client relations manager Leeanne Puglisi-Gangemi floored.
âThe only reason we even put tickets on sale so early was that we kept getting inquiries about it,â she said,
âTo me it shows people are desperate to get out and come to the country.
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THE magic of Merry Muster shoppers is still rippling around the region with one Ballandean business calling the visitors an “injection” of love for local stores.
Last weekend, over 370 shoppers showed up to Ballandean Estate for the Granite Belt’s biggest picnic of 2020.
Fourth-generation vigneron Leeanne Puglisi-Gangemi said locavore picnic experience took days to prepare and a whopping 3850 pieces of sesame lavosh, 70kg of hand roasted capsicums, 40kg of grilled zucchini and more. Merry muster shoppers at Ballandean Estate.
“When Christine Bonner, founder of the Merry Muster, called last week to speak to Barrelroom chefs Matt and Bobbi Wells about last minute menu requests, and mentioned 370 people, I was flabbergasted. It was hard to keep my cool or contain my excitement!,” Ms Puglisi-Gangemi said.