Future vision for Warrnambool's Flagstaff Hill Maritime Museum on the horizon

The cost of the masterplan - which is nearing completion - was covered by a grant from the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions and will go to the council meeting in July or August.

Surveys and drop-in sessions were held to gauge public feedback about the future of the museum and more than 540 people took part.

A city council spokesperson said the museum, visitor centre, giftshop and the sound and light show had been "tracking well" since summer and had "exceeded expectations over the past 12 months.

Over the March quarter, the number of people attending the village and sound and light show was 16,749, while 43,666 people used the Visitor Information Centre.

The masterplan aims to create a long-term vision for the tourist site which includes both public and private investment.

In September last year, councillors gave the go-ahead for a business case and masterplan on the museum's future direction which comes after years of debate about the facility's drain on council's finances.

The combined museum and visitor Flagstaff Hill Maritime Village and Visitor Centre is forecast to make a $935,000 loss this financial year.

And that loss is only expected to grow with the cost expected to balloon to $970,000 next financial year.

First planned in 1972, the museum was constructed over five years transforming what was an open paddock with grazing horses into a village that recreates Warrnambool early settlement.

At the time, the site was home to some National Trust buildings, the lighthouse keepers' cottage, four fortifications and the flagstaff.

Many historic buildings were relocated to the site, and finds from shipwrecks were used in some of the construction.

The museum also houses numerous historic artefacts that have been recovered from the bottom of the ocean.

Flagstaff Hill also experienced a strong visitor numbers across the June long weekend which were up on both last year and 2019.

From Saturday to Monday, there were 764 day visitors and 224 attendees at the sound and light show - a 10 per cent increase on last year where there were 709 day visitors and 191 for the light show.

Numbers were up eight per cent on pre-COVID 2019, where there were 658 day time and 255 night time entries.

Warrnambool Mayor Debbie Arnott said that Flagstaff Hill was a popular year-round attraction.

"While the weather over the long weekend was generally quite good, as a city where many of the most popular things to see and do are outside, Flagstaff Hill is an important attraction because it provides a high- quality, all-weather option," she said.

"Summer, winter, autumn, spring - visitors continue to be attracted to a day, or a night, at Flagstaff Hill.

"We've seen glimpses of whales over the past couple of weeks, and hopefully we are in for a bumper whale season that coincides with the school holidays to further boost our visitor economy."

Cr Arnott also encouraged everyone to vote for Warrnambool in the Top Tourism Town Awards.

"Judges have named Warrnambool as one of eight finalists in the 10,000+ population category of the Victorian Top Tourism Town Awards, and a public vote will help to determine the winner.

Voting at www.vtic.com.au/toptourismtown2023 closes on June 22 and winners are announced on July 26.

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