![Winter holiday boost: Fewer visitors spend more in city Winter holiday boost: Fewer visitors spend more in city](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/nB9BrLNgExsfwsLgDBevWP/8c971474-08b9-4ac2-b487-a7497a1fb913.jpg/r0_0_5000_3333_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Warrnambool's economy was given a little winter boost during the school holidays but some sectors have been left out in the cold, new statistics shows.
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There were fewer visitors to the city this year but they spent more during the school holiday period which includes the week before and the week after.
Spendmapp data accessed by the city council shows spending was up compared with the same time last year but that doesn't mean everyone was reaping the benefits.
"Anecdotally we know that for some - not all - retailers the rising cost of living is having an impact on consumer spending," a council spokesman said.
"Encouragingly though, spending during the recent winter school holidays was equivalent, or higher, than spending over the same period last year."
....the rising cost of living is having an impact on consumer spending
- council spokesman
And while accommodation occupancy rates were "solid" they were down compared with the same period last year, the spokesperson said.
Occupancy rates in 2022 during the school holidays were between 63 and 68 per cent but this year they fell to between 51 and 60 per cent.
And fewer people stayed on after the holidays ended with occupancy rates tumbling to only 37 per cent compared with last year when 50 per cent of rooms were full.
![There were fewer holidaymakers in Warrnambool compared to last year. There were fewer holidaymakers in Warrnambool compared to last year.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/nB9BrLNgExsfwsLgDBevWP/a454e4da-cca6-4cda-a812-9712f8d2014c.jpg/r0_0_3877_2908_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
While Spendmapp data for the whole school holidays is yet to be released, the first week of this year's school holidays showed spending on entertainment and dining jumped from $3.56 million to $3.81 million.
Spending on travel had also jumped from $407,000 to $425,000.
More was also spent on groceries during the first week of the school holidays - rising from $3.15 million to $3.36 million.
But the cost of living has pushed the cost of groceries up.
Spending on personal services - such as health and beauty - had also jumped from $545,000 to $584,000 in the first week of the school holidays.
But Warrnambool retailers have reported sales have been "dreadful quiet" with trade slowing since Easter as interest rates and cost of living pressure start to bite.
A number of shops in Liebig Street have also closed their doors in recent months.
The new data comes after a jump in spending during the May Races - Warrnambool's biggest week of the year.
The Spendmapp data showed spending was up across the city by $700,000 around the carnival compared with last year and a staggering $4.5 million more than before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019.
Spendmapp data shines a light on spending habits in the city using comprehensive bank transaction data, creating a moving picture of the economy.
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