Ed,

My wife and I have recently returned from a fifteen thousand plus kilometre trip, from Gulmarrad to Western Australia and back.

We have been reading with interest, the letters regarding Clarence Valley Council’s insane closing of the Visitor Information Centre’s in Grafton and Maclean. Everywhere we went, our first port of call was the local V.I.C. Almost every town in both South and Western Australia had one, and the information they provided was up to date and relevant. Their local knowledge helped us to plan our days, and find local points of interest that may not have been advertised in the available literature. They were also able to direct us to a local doctor where we could get an appointment on short notice, or a mechanic to help us, with an issue with our vehicle.

As an older couple with some mobility issues, they could suggest places where we could drive to a point of interest without having to hike for miles, or steer us clear of an attraction with difficult access. We also got to see some very interesting spots off the beaten track that otherwise we would not have heard of.

Most V.I.C.’s have a range of brochures from destinations well away from their local area. With so many people on the road nowadays, exploring our amazing country, often they pick up a brochure from a place they may visit at a later date. In W.A. we saw brochures from Victoria, and in South Australia we saw Queensland brochures. The only place we saw anything about the Clarence Valley was in Inverell, and that wasn’t much.

With everyone madly chasing the tourist dollar everywhere you go, it seems like the Clarence Valley has dropped the ball, and gone bush picking flowers. It is high time the Clarence Valley Council addressed this ludicrous situation and got back on the tourism bandwagon. Let’s re-open the V.I.C.’s and promote our beautiful Clarence Valley and Coast.

John Le Couteur,
Gulmarrad