The Limestone Coast is a hive of activity hopping into holiday mode as the Easter long weekend and Anzac Day approach.


Tourists have flocked to the region for last weekend’s Gather Round, which saw 40,000 people travel through Mount Gambier in 2024, and the Fantasy Medieval Festival.


The buzz continues for the school holidays with South Australia officially starting their term one school holidays this week, while Victoria enters week two.


There are national public holidays tomorrow and Monday for Easter, while next Friday marks Anzac Day, with many opting to take April 22, 23 and 24 off work to maximise a 10-day break.


Others are already on holidays this week to take a 16-day break for only seven days of annual leave.


Mount Gambier Chamber of Commerce president Candice Fennell said there was a steady flow of visitors after the peak Christmas holiday period, with numbers picking up again due to the Easter holidays.


“At this time of year, we seem to have a steady flow of people from that Christmas/New Year break that seems to keep trickling into the community, and then we get the boost again (for) Easter/Anzac Day and that is now coinciding with the school holidays, which sometimes does not happen,” she said.


“We have certainly had the flow on that we have experienced other years with visitors into the community and I think that’s also been reflective of some of the other activities happening in the town.


“We have certainly already seen the activity and the Gather Round flow.


“We have had a few of the local events like the Medieval Festival that have brought people to the region too, so there is just a lot of community type activities going on.


“I think anything that means we get people to the area regardless of the event itself is going to have positive gains for everybody.”


Ms Fennell said accommodation was looking full in the lead up to the long weekend and retailers are experiencing an influx of foot traffic, but a hesitancy in spending.


“There’s been a lot of businesses that have their no vacancy signs out that’s for sure, and seeing that mid-week as well is something that is unique and really positive for the businesses,” she said.


“I think our hospitality businesses are experiencing the ebbs and flows they usually do and are sometimes very busy and sometimes not so.


“I think in general it is just another important reminder of us encouraging that shopping local message to help all of our businesses.


Ms Fennell said local retail businesses continue to struggle with the cost of living and prevalence of shoplifting.


“It is definitely having a flow on impact to our business owners, particularly the general message we have got is the cost of living increase is also a challenge for the cost of doing business,” she said.


“Our business operators are not just feeling consumers not purchasing because of that cost of living, but they have also had increases because of freight costs and things like that to keep their business running.


Several national brands have recently closed their stores in Mount Gambier including Mosaic Brands which owns Rockmans and Rivers and Jeanswest, who cited “market conditions mean sustaining bricks-and-mortar stores is not viable and unlikely to improve.”


These closures are part of a larger trend of national retailers struggling with market conditions and online competition, leading to store closures and eventual liquidation.


Ms Fennell said the Limestone Coast is big enough for both competitive local retailers and nationally recognised brands which employ community members.


“While we can say some of those more nationally branded organisations pull away from our local community businesses, at the end of the day they are still our community members that are losing their employment as a result of these shop closures,” she said.


“I think there is certainly a level of acknowledgement they have got a place in our community.


“Mount Gambier and its surrounds is large enough to have some of those businesses that operate at a national level, but it is one of those things that we have really got to just focus on what we can do locally and that is making a difference”.