A SURPRISING number of people have visited Bathurst's cultural facilities since they reopened to the public a month ago.
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Bathurst Regional Council closed many of its facilities in March to comply with COVID-19 restrictions, but were able to reopen most of them in early June.
Mayor Bobby Bourke said that, since then, there have been more than 7000 visitors to four Museums Bathurst venues: the National Motor Racing Museum, the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum and the Bathurst Rail Museum.
"Visitation at both the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum and National Motor Racing Museum are up on last year's numbers," he said.
"This was particularly so during the June long weekend where visitor numbers and income almost doubled. Numbers at the Bathurst Rail Museum also continue to grow.
"This is surprising due to the restrictions which do not allow for group bookings including school groups that traditionally visit the Museums during term two and three of the school year."
Council has found that people have been visiting more than one facility and the majority of visitation since reopening has been from metropolitan people.
The Bathurst Rail Museum, though, has had over 60 per cent of its visitation from people in the local area.
"As the Bathurst Rail Museum had only just opened to the public on February 22 then closed four weeks later many locals and visitors are now taking the opportunity to visit this museum for the first time," Cr Bourke said.
With the school holidays here, it is hoped that more people will visit museums and council is making an effort to encourage that.
"We have developed a range of social media content that was critical to our outreach during closure to keep people in touch with what is going on at our museums," Cr Bourke said.
"Our best form of marketing however is word of mouth and we rely on the Bathurst community to encourage their friends and family to come to Bathurst and see what we have to offer."
