Being named in the world’s top 10% of attractions for one of the toughest years tourism has known says something pretty special about Port Macquarie’s Hello Koalas Sculpture Trail.
Hello Koalas has for the sixth year been recognised with Tripadvisor’s Traveller’s Choice Award for 2021, meaning that on the world’s largest travel platform, we have consistently scored ratings of four and five stars.
Most rewarding of all, those reviews come from the people we most seek to impress – our visitors.
“This is a real honour for us and really shows we are fighting above our weight with our very small but dedicated team,” said Hello Koalas Sculpture Trail creator and director Margret Meagher.
She pointed to recent Tripadvisor reviews including “genius tourist attraction … gorgeous sculptures”, “Amazing project!!!!! My teenagers had a blast chasing these koalas all over town”, “… beautiful art works. Absolutely made me smile. I can’t wait to bring my daughter here”, and “what an absolute amazing experience! Just like a treasure hunt for all ages!”
In congratulating winners, Tripadvisor chief commercial officer Kanika Soni said she was impressed by how businesses had adapted to the challenges of the past year by implementing new cleanliness measures, social distancing guidelines, and utilising technology to prioritise guest safety during the pandemic.
“The Travellers’ Choice Awards highlight the places that are consistently excellent – delivering quality experiences time and time again even while navigating changing customer expectations and new ways of working,” she said.
For Hello Koalas, that meant in April 2021 navigating both the pandemic and flooding (thanks to the muscle power of 18 Hastings Valley Vikings Rugby Union Club members and an oyster punt!) to successfully take 22 Hello Koalas sculptures to Campbelltown for a 30-day exhibition primarily based around the Mt Annan Botanical Gardens.
Member for Camden Peter Sidgreaves later told NSW Parliament, “It is a great way to forge bonds, create memories and celebrate the fundamentals of Australian history past and present. I am honoured to have such a remarkable project come to the Camden electorate”.
It also meant in 2020 rescheduling and revamping the annual Hello Koalas Festival into a September long weekend treasure hunt, which brought out locals and visitors to join in the fun of exploring Port Macquarie and raise awareness of the need to protect our koalas and our environment, all in a Covid-safe environment.
Director Margret Meagher said that unfortunately, due to current restrictions, the event will not go ahead in 2021, but will hopefully be back in 2022 brighter than ever.
“We have opened our new Hello Koalas Gift Shop and introduced a number of new sculptures to the Hello Koalas family over the past year, including our wonderful Winnie the Unicorn Koala by artist Pauline Roods,” she said.
Winnie the Unicorn is by artist Pauline Roods and currently lives at the Hello Koalas Gift Shop, 16/10 Bellbowrie St, Port Macquarie.
“We now have 80 1m-high Hello Koalas sculptures and we have big plans for the coming year, including another tour and introduction of a big koala, measuring 2.5m high, as part of the exciting Cowarra State Forest Tourism Precinct, Guulabaa, which very appropriately means Place of Koala.
“We thank all those people who have taken the time to write reviews for us on Tripadvisor and Google sharing their thoughts and experiences, as well as those who have shared their photos and comments on Facebook and Instagram.” To find out more about Hello Koalas Sculpture Trail go to https://www.hellokoalas.com/ or find us at the Hello Koalas Gift Shop Tuesdays to Thursdays 10am-3pm at 16/10 Bellbowrie St, Port Macquarie.
MAIN FEATURE PHOTO: Meeting Hello Koalas like Frankie Firefighter is a wonderfully engaging day out for the whole family, like this Mum and daughters enjoying our tour of Campbelltown and the Mount Annan Botanical Gardens. Photo: Harperbrave Instagram