Accommodation businesses are concerned money flagged to help communities recover from the pandemic is being lost to online travel agencies.
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Bendigo Motels Association president Kristyn Slattery is campaigning for tourists to call accommodation providers directly when booking holidays.
She said online travel agencies such as booking.com, Expedia and Trivago take commissions between 12 and 20 per cent from bookings made through their website.
The commissions mean that money is not being spent in communities trying to recover from coronavirus-related lockdowns.
"When you book through a third party website, a large percent goes off-shore," Ms Slattery said. "That means government money is not doing what it is intended.
"There are a number of ways people can book direct such as going to (local businesses) websites or calling direct."
To encourage people to book directly through local accommodation providers, Ms Slattery hopes to see direct bookings made part of the terms and conditions of Victoria's travel vouchers system.
"I see it as being as simple as making it a condition of the travel voucher that, to be redeemable, you can't use online travel agents," she said. "If that became a term and condition, the education of people (about third party bookings) would be gold for us for long-term."
This week, the Victorian government announced a further 80,000 travel vouchers would be released to help businesses recover from the current lockdown. A release date for the vouchers will be announced at a later date.
"The effort to combat this outbreak makes a call on all of us - and we know that means a significant pause in the steady recovery being experienced in our tourism sector, especially across regional Victoria," acting premier James Merlino said.
"We have backed business with announcements over the past seven days and today we're showing regional tourism businesses and their workers that we understand the pressures they face."
To push for the change in travel vouchers, Ms Slattery has written to Mr Merlino, tourism minister Martin Pakula, the Victoria Tourism Industry Council and the Accommodation Association of Australia.
"It's a simple fix to make a small change that makes a big difference," she said. "If it stimulates people into moving around and consumers booking direct, that makes a massive difference.
"I cant fathom that (the state government) would spend money on travel vouchers and let between 12 and 20 per cent of it go off-shore."
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