We may not be able travel for pleasure overseas any time soon but, for now, we can expand our horizons closer to home and help to kickstart the local tourism industry that has been so badly mauled by this year’s COVID-19 crisis.
That is the message that Terry Karamaloudis, the man who is leading the charge to reactivate tourism to Bendigo is looking to convey to Australians.
A Bendigonian to the core, Mr Karamaloudis has been the Manager for Tourism and Major Events at the City of Greater Bendigo for the past three years. Bendigo is Victoria’s fourth largest city with a population of over 111,000 people and covers an area of about 3,000 square kilometres.
“I like the fact that I can drive across Bendigo in 10 minutes on a busy day. There is also the low cost of living, and the relaxed lifestyle. If Bendigo had a beach, it would be perfect,” he told Neos Kosmos. But he may be in a relaxed environment but the demands of his job to reinvigorate tourism after the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions are high.
Before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bendigo was doing more than alright with the tourist trade. As a city that was at the epicentre of the Victorian Goldfields of the 1850s, Bendigo’s history is very much part of the history of the state. Its gold helped to build Melbourne. And while it lacks a body of water in the form of a lake or river, or beach, there is still plenty for visitors to enjoy in the city.
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“In the year to the end of March 2020, there were 4.7 million visitors to the city. Just 72,000 of these were international tourists. Seventy percent of the visitors were from Melbourne- of these, 1.27 million visitors stayed overnight, 2.3 million came on day trips. It was an 8.6 percent increase on the previous year,” he said.
Then for the rest of the year, as we all know, COVID-19 measures ground all travel to a halt and tourism went into a hibernation that Mr Karamaloudis is keen to revive as quickly as possible.
For the past 20 years, the city has focused on its arts and cultural offerings to draw visitors. The Bendigo Art Gallery has hosted major exhibitions making it one of the coutnry’s top art destinations.
“Bendigo Art Gallery is in the top three regional galleries in the country and is famous for its international exhibitions.”
Currently running until 17 January at the gallery is the Piinpi: Contemporary Indigenous Fashion Exhibition. Following hot on its heels, in March, will be the exhibition that highlights the contribution of 1960s fashion icon, entitled Mary Quant: Fashion Revolutionary.
The city’s theatres, the Ulumbarra and the Capital, have also added to is vibrant arts and culture attactions.
At the end last year, the city added a gastronomic element to its host of attractions when it was included Unesco City of Gastronomy project that is part of the wider Creative Cities Network. It is the only Australian city to feature on this exclusive list of over 30 cities worldwide.
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“It puts Bendigo in line with great food cities of the world and because of this Bendigo will become a point of difference” Mr Karamaloudis said.
“We also have a mission to run an events-led strategy so along with arts events we have also hosted the world snooker and jurnior table tennis championships as well as major basketball and hockey tournaments.
“We are hoping with state and federal government support to be able to again host big events,” he said. Under normal circumstances Bendigo has hosted up to 80 major events a year.
“What we are noticing since the fall of the ‘Ring of Steel’ around Melbourne a few weeks ago is that the number of visitors has quickly climbed from zero to half and more of pre-COVID times and it is mainly from visitors from Greater Melbourne,” he said.
The city is to set to take advantage of the Victorian Tourism Recovery Package announced last week to attract visitors to Regional Victoria. Under the initiative $28 million has been set aside for the provision of 120,000 vouchers each worth $200 for visitors to Regional Victoria.
Visitors qualify for a voucher refund if they submit their receipts to Business Victoria that show that they have spent at least $400 on accommodation, attractions or tours within Regional Victoria.
“We will be ensuring that all our hospitality and tourism facilities are well supplied and meet all the obligations to ensure a safe environment for all the visitors who come to Bendigo. COVID will not be gone after New Year and we will continue to work with the state government to ensure that Bendigo and the region, is an attractive and viable place to stay. We are looking for people to stay overnight and longer if possible,” he said.
Mr Karamaloudis is also the deputy chair of Regional Tours covering the Mount Alexander, Central Goldfields and Loddon Shire areas. He said there were plans to apply for the whole Goldfields region of Victoria to be designated as a World Heritage Site that would further boost the standing of the region.
Making people welcome may be part of his job description but it has been a natural extension of his Greek heritage.
“The Greek family I grew up in were warm, welcoming, and hospitable people. You take what you have learnt from your family as a second-generation Greek and tourism is an extension of that. I am naturally a people person and I like meeting people of all cultures. I am in my element in this role.”
Mr Karamoulidis is the son of Vasilios and Chrisoula, who both came from Limnos in their teens in the early 1950s. Their children John, Terry and Koula grew up in Bendigo. Terry has remained in Bendigo while his siblings were drawn to the “Big Smoke” of Melbourne.
“My dad came from the village of Tsimandria and my mother from Kousdias, on Limnos island, which was barely 40minutes away by foot. They found themselves in Bendigo through their connections with friends and relatives.
“Uncle Nick Galatzis owned a coffee shop in Bendigo and my dad was one of many immigrants who came to work at the café,” said Mr Karamaloudis. His father went to work in a number of industries in Bendigo.
After he finished his schooling in Bendigo, Mr Karamaloudis qualified as a teacher in Bendigo but then moved on to work in the private sector. He was to run his own businesses – a hairdressing salon, café and as partner in a hotel. He then did a course in radio and was to spend the next 19 years working in local radio stations 3CV and then 3BO in Bendigo moving from behind the mike to sales eventually becoming general manager.
“It was a very exciting time. I still have a passion for radio,” he said.
After a three-year stint in advertising, he moved to work for the City of Greater Bendigo first as its event manager and then as manager for events and tourism.
He is married to Angela and has two daughter Olivia and Ana who are proud of their heritage.
“The girls understand Greek especially with their Yiayia. My mother and I have made a conscious effort to speak Greek whenever we are together and the girls can speak and respond.
“I try to keep the culture alive in the household through the cooking and coffee,” he said.
♦ For anyone travelling to Bendigo, you are invited to the community’s Christmas church liturgy at 8.30am on 19 December at the Greek Orthodox Church Chinisi tis Theotoko on 3 Marong Street, Iron Bark-Bendigo. Tel (03) 5441 6800.
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