With Valentine's Day falling on Sunday, hospitality business expect to lose money that is valuable to them during the quiet part of summer.

Bendigo Tourism chairman Finn Vedelsby said February is traditionally a tough month for hospitality and tourism businesses but that the five-day lockdown would make it worse.

Related: Victoria re-enters lockdown amid new COVID-19 infections

"There was no indication there was going to be any difference in that trend, we were going into a quite February," he said. "What usually props that up is a massive Valentine's Day, which helps us get through the month.

Closing down is really going to affect traders in hospitality industry. Restaurants and cafes are going to feel the pinch from closing this weekend, which is usually a savior."

Brougham Arms co-owner Scott Macumber estimates he will turn away 600 people due to the five-day shutdown.

"From this afternoon we have been cancelling all bookings including some big wakes. It's disappointing," he said. "Valentine's Day also had a lot of bookings.

"All the sales have gone from those bookings. We were expecting a busy weekend and the carpet has been pulled from under us. It's just frustrating more than anything.

"Business was getting to as close to normal as it has ever been so it is a severe kick in the guts. There's no cases in Bendigo but we are copping the full consequences from Melbourne. (But) we will do everything right and don't want to get it into to Bendigo."

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Mr Vedelsby said hospitality traders expecting big Valentine's Days would have been stocked with fresh produce that won't last the lockdown meaning business will not only lose the revenue but have lost money they have spent.

"Multiply (each cancellation) by $70 or $80 a head and that's the kind of thing everyone looking at," he said.

"After feedback from a lot of people, it looked like (restaurants and cafes) were going to put some money in the bank for the first time instead of just bleeding money, so (traders) are really disappointed.

"There was optimism there but a five-day shutdown, as important as it is, will really hurt some small businesses and the mental health of their owners."

Be.Bendigo had to reschedule some of the events it had planned for the five days the state would be locked down, including a state of the market economic breakfast planned for Wednesday.

Chief executive Dennis Bice said the situation was challenging, and the stop-start nature of restrictions was causing a lot of grief.

"But it is what it is, we've just got to get on with it," Mr Bice said.

He said Be.Bendigo would be available if business owners needed support or assistance.

Mr Vedelsby and Mr Macumber both encouraged people to support local, independent businesses where they could during the shutdown.

"We haven't made a decision on whether we will do takeaway (during the five-day shutdown)," Mr Macumber said. "Because it is only five days - and we hope it is - it's hard to set plans and execute them so quickly.

"You just hope in the short period of time, the people of Bendigo continue to support local business. The support (in the last lockdowns) was fantastic, just unbelievable. I think we will get a lot bookings tonight for a last hurrah."

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