Next week, locals of Collarenebri and from across the Western Plains will have the opportunity to attend a rural tourism opportunity workshop, just one of many steps in the town’s facelift.  

Hosted over two days, the workshop aims to reinvigorate tourism to the town of Collarenebri by encouraging locals to build their own tourism products.   

Regional Development Australia (RDA) Orana Community Development Coordinator Kerry Palmer says that the town of 650 people is bursting with untapped potential.  

“We’ll be delving into market insights for specific opportunities to suit the development of potential new products in the region. Some examples that are suited are Aboriginal cultural tourism and farm stays,” Ms Palmer said.   

“Accommodation is a big opportunity on Collarenebri because they have primitive campground and a hotel with limited capacity. The hotel is filled right now with backpackers for harvest, so unless you have a caravan, you wouldn’t be able to stay,” she said.  

Located on the Barwon River and ‘home of the cod’, the town that means ‘place of eucalyptus blossom’ in Gamilaraay apparently has a host of opportunities to explore the natural environment. Yet a simple search on tourism websites for Collarenebri brings back results for the better-known tourist destination of Lightning Ridge.  

Following the end of stay-at-home orders and the release of Greater Sydney to travel to the regions, the upcoming season holds potential to see the same staggering domestic tourism numbers through the region that came with last year’s international and state border closures.   

“The Northwest is already a destination in the domestic market, but a lot of people will naturally go to Lightning Ridge because of the attractions and accommodation there…but why not visit Collarenebri? It’s a fabulous town, great people, big skies, and it’s an adventure?” said Ms Palmer. 

When visiting the town earlier in the year, Ms Palmer met a couple who had set up camp in the local campgrounds, the Delta outbreak having locked them out of their Illawarra home.   

“They weren’t unhappy about having to stay longer. They had facilities, were a walk from town, could have a campfire and meet other people who were on the road,” she said.  

Locals are encouraged to attend the workshops, perhaps leaving with their own idea to bring people back to town.   

The tourism opportunity workshop is one of six business improvement workshops commissioned by the Walgett Shire Council as part of Collarenebri’s economic development program to revitalise the community.   

The second workshop will be focused on local heritage and culture, hosted later this month.   

The town was also recently rewarded a grant of almost $500,000 for the refurbishment of the Collarenebri showground, including the grandstand, jockey’s room, bar, and kitchen facilities.  

The workshops will be hosted at the Collarenebri Club next Tuesday 16 November 5-7pm, and Wednesday 17, from 10-12pm. Virtual attendance is also available.