HOW AND WHY DID THIS ECONOMIC ANALYSIS COME ABOUT?
What has been a frustration over the past year is the feeling that climbers are seen as being of no tourism value. The reality is that we are most often highly skilled or professional and we visit regional Victorian areas with a frequency unlike any other recreational tourism group. I was increasingly aware of the positive benefits of climbing after reading studies in the USA and was interested in applying a similar approach in Australia. At about the same time I heard of a friend who was planning a climber survey and asked if I could include some economic and health questions. After that I put my house building project on hold to make the time.
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO QUANTIFY CLIMBING’S VALUE IN ECONOMIC TERMS?
Whether we like it or not, we are a sub sector of the tourism industry. As a legitimate commercial activity the industry is extremely important for rural communities and an economic dialogue has been missing. The economic conversation has been anecdotal hearsay that gets little if any consideration in decision making. Climbing delivers
