A BUSH accommodation business north-east of Bathurst is getting more guests from the Central West after the various COVID lockdowns.
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Turon Gates, east of Wattle Flat, describes itself as a "bush hideaway" spread out over 6000 acres.
Its proprietor, Michael Lunoe - who lives on-site in the manager's cabin with his wife Alex - said the customer base for the business had traditionally been city people, but locals now seemed to be exploring their own backyard.
"We're getting people from Dubbo and Mudgee and Bathurst and places that we really weren't expecting people to come from, even the Central Coast," he said.
"I think the changing times have sort of made people more aware of the benefits of being away from others and having space and light and air and bush."
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Mr Lunoe said he believed most people didn't realise what they had in their own area.
"You don't look in your own backyard because it feels like it's the everyday and then other people are travelling four or five or eight hours to come here and we get people that have heard about us from overseas, and they've made a specific journey," he said.
Turon Gates was founded by Mr Lunoe's father in 1974.
"We've been out here for near on 50 years and for a number of years we had a manager in here [the manager's cabin] and then my parents lived here for 20 years and Alex and I have lived here for the last three years," he said.
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Turon Gates started off with camping accommodation only, but has since expanded into self-catered cabins and glamping tents.
"We built two cabins and then another two cabins and so on ... now we've got four cabins and seven glamping tents and a camping ground that fits 50 cars," Mr Lunoe said.
He said some people were shocked by how much fun their children could have without being on a device.
"I guess they're so used to having to entertain their kids and all of a sudden, fishing or throwing rocks in the river or going on a bushwalk, canoeing or for a horse ride is the most fun.
"These are things kids never get to do any more, so it's amazing to see."
He said COVID and its lockdowns was a difficult time, but he was pleased to be back to normal.
"Turon is generally very busy, it's very popular, it has been for years, and lockdown was a rollercoaster ride, but we saw our way through it and I think what it did do was open up regional NSW to a band of tourism that really never had any interest in travelling in regional areas," he said.
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