Planning for visitor arrivals in Ballarat

Councillors adopted the inaugural Ballarat Visitor Arrival Master Plan for central Ballarat at the ordinary December Council meeting, on Wednesday evening.  

The plan outlines how the City of Ballarat can enhance the visitor experience as well as delivering projects and experiences in the CBD that will activate the Lydiard Street precinct.  

The plan focuses on the length of Lydiard Street from Ballarat railway station to Federation University.

This will assist in unifying the visitor experience in Ballarat creating a sense of arrival leading the visitor from the railway precinct through the city.

Some key objectives outlined in the Visitor Arrival Master Plan include:  

• Integrating Ballarat Central as a culturally relevant tourism destination.
• Driving visitation, length of stay and spend in Ballarat.  
• Promoting the region’s broader historical context.
• Promoting private investment within the Lydiard Street precinct.  
• Encouraging collaboration between the community and businesses to enhance the visitor experience.  

This Master Plan builds on several strategic plans previously completed for Ballarat with the end goal to develop shovel-ready project concepts for development in the short to long term.

One of the key strategic priorities of the master plan is already progressing. Creation of an arrival experience through wayfinding and storytelling, as tourism offerings are sprawled across Ballarat, and ease of wayfinding needs to be improved.  

The recently announced Goldfields Gateway project will incorporate part of this work to pilot a refreshed wayfinding system, integrated with engaging fact-finding storytelling and digital visitor information throughout the CBD.

City of Ballarat Mayor, Cr Des Hudson said it is exciting to see the vision for Lydiard Street as a key visitor gateway to central Ballarat.

“Lydiard Street has the potential to be a focal point and generator of tourism activity in Central Ballarat, providing visitors with a Ballarat centric experience through arts, culture, boutique retail, experiences and entertainment,” he said.  

“From Lydiard Street, visitors will be encouraged to disperse through nearby areas to explore the city’s visitor experiences.”  

“Ballarat’s tourism industry is one of the most important contributors to our city’s local economy, injecting some $600 million.”