Rising enquiries from Aussies wanting to book getaways once restrictions are eased have led to Australia’s largest holiday park operator opening a ‘waitlist’ for their most popular destinations.

Chief Executive of Discovery Holiday Parks, Grant Wilckens said that with an easing of restrictions in sight, people are starting to plan their ‘isolation-escapes’.

“For weeks our website has been closed for tourist bookings. Low virus numbers and the easing of restrictions in some states clearly has people thinking about a change of scenery and chance to reconnect with friends and family,” said Grant.

With no known date for when travel restrictions will be lifted, Discovery Holiday Parks has launched waitlists for some of its popular properties like Jindabyne, Airlie Beach, Swan Valley and the Barossa for people keen to be first in, once non-essential travel is allowed.

“Snow season is almost upon us and it’s unheard of that we would have availability near the snowy mountains at this time of year, but COVID has created an unusual situation,” said Grant.

“Obviously intrastate travel will open up first, so at this stage people should be planning a getaway within their own State. While we’re not there yet, after a difficult start to the year with bushfires and COVID-19, we’re expecting to be busier than ever once restrictions are lifted”.

“For some people, it’s about having something to look forward to. So for those want to make a booking now we’ve introduce a new flexi-travel policy. Bookings made between now and end of June can be deferred if needed without a re-booking charge,” said Grant.

Discovery Holiday Parks is part of Australia’s largest operator of holiday parks in Australia, with over 280 properties. With an abundance of self-contained cabins, and campsites with private ensuites, they are one of the safest forms of accommodation available during this period.

The company has introduced new contactless operating procedures, and under current restrictions all shared facilities are closed to the public.

Media enquiries: Brittany Harmer, Corporate Communications Manager | 0415 655 191, brittany.harmer@discoveryparks.com.au.

About G’day Group

Founded in 2004 with three caravan parks in WA, G’day Group is now Australia’s leader in regional accommodation experiences with more than 340 properties across the country.

G’day Group operates more than 90 holiday parks and resorts under the Discovery Parks and Resorts brand, with properties in iconic regional destinations, including Kings Canyon, Rottnest Island and the world famous El Questro. The Group is also home to G’day Parks, a network of 240+ independently owned, licensed parks and the G’day Rewards loyalty program, which has 260,000 paid members.

Beyond holiday parks and resorts, the Group owns Wikicamps, Australia’s largest regional travel community and the #1 paid app in the App Store with more than 300k monthly active users, as well as Bookeasy, a specialist provider of booking management systems and technology solutions to leading destination management authorities in Australia and New Zealand (operating as BookIt).

G’day Group has property assets valued at $2 billion and is on track to become a $2.5 billion business by 2026. The company is majority owned by Australian Retirement Trust and founder and CEO Grant Wilckens is a Board Director of the South Australian Tourism Commission and former Chair of the Caravan Industry Association of Australia.