We are a strong, adventurous, creative and courageous community. Our way of life supports our economy, global or local, regional or on our own street, we call this place home.

The above words are from the vision outlined in our Community Strategic Plan (CSP) 2022-2032, a document our community, Councillors and staff worked hard to create at the beginning of our Council term last year. I thought of them this week when I turned my mind to tourism.

In a summer-friendly area as ours, tourism seems a given during the warm months.

However, as the seasons turn to cooler days and darker nights, I’m even more aware of the beneficial influences our tourism industry brings to our area, our people and our economy.

It is my belief that if we understand that tourism is good for the area, the benefits should flow to us all. So, what we do for tourists, we do for ourselves as well.

Council’s tourist arm, Destination Kiama, recently conducted its Local Tourism Survey, which received almost 400 responses from locals, local businesses, tourists and tourism operators.

One of the top responses was a desire for more local events in off-peak periods. This is why, as winter’s chill descends upon our idyllic seaside lives, Council (and others) are preparing to transform our place into a captivating winter wonderland, with a dazzling display of festive lights, engaging events, and winter cheer, turning the frosty season into an unforgettable, lovely Kiama winter.

Our keystone event for the season will be the 2023 Kiama Winter Festival, held during the school holidays and once again bringing a real ice rink to central Kiama from 7 to 12 July.

This is the sort of family friendly, all-ages, accessible activity that you’ve told us you enjoy and we’re thrilled to be providing.

As an added bonus, there will also be igloos!

In terms of priorities for tourism projects in general, the highest response was for walk, cycle and nature-based experiences. This is hardly surprising, as we know our community loves and values our stunning natural environment.

In fact, Pillar 2 of our CSP says: “We thrive in a sustainable environment” and has outcomes built around protecting our people, our place, our flora and fauna and valuing our natural environment of spectacular beaches, rainforests and rolling hills.

Our CSP also says we’ll work together to understand and respond to the need for growth and change and will create a strong and diverse economy.

Nowhere is this more apparent than in our tourism sector, where our local operators have had to pivot and pivot again to meet the challenges of the past few years. I’m proud to see what has been achieved and what continues to be apparent: we have so many thriving local businesses and new ones every day.

The appreciation for this is reflected in the Tourism Survey, in which respondents said they value our town and village streetscapes and love new activations, niche and growing visitor sectors, such as accessible tourism.

A brilliant example was Council’s recent Sun Up Surf and Skate Festival in Kiama Downs (put on by Destination Kiama in partnership with Surfing NSW and with funding from the NSW Government), which saw an area transformed into a local festival that had not traditionally been used that way.

So as the nights draw in, rest assured that the good times will not cease. Your Council is working hard to ensure locals, businesses and visitors alike can enjoy our wonderful area all year round.

On the King's Coronation

The Coronation of His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Queen Consort will occur at Westminster Abbey on Saturday 6 May, 2023.

On behalf of the Council of Kiama, I wish the new King the happiest of reigns and offer him and his family all the warmth of our community’s feelings.