MOVE motoring on as more tourists flock to town

By Nicola Ceccato

Jan 4, 2022

To the rescue: Abbey Achcroft, 7, from Port Macquarie in a 1929 Chevrolet fire engine at the Museum of Vehicle Evolution, Kialla. Photo by Rodney Braithwaite

Kialla’s Museum of Vehicle Evolution is welcoming a boom of visitors from outside the region, fuelled by the end of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions last year.

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The museum has switched from between 80 and 90 per cent of its visitation numbers being locals to now 75 per cent being tourists, according to chief executive Peter Hill.

Mr Hill has been thrilled with the surge in visitors from outside the region.

“Our numbers at the moment are showing where we should be in five years’ time,” he said.

“It’s everything we hoped for and more ... I hoped it would be a major attraction for the Goulburn Valley and it’s exceeded our expectations.”

Matilda, 13, Jaiden, 16, Abbey, 7, Amanda and Bruce Achcroft from Port Macquarie Photo by Rodney Braithwaite

The opening of MOVE and the new Shepparton Art Museum in late 2021 provided the city with the opportunity to capture a bigger slice of ‘destination tourism’, and to convert day trips into longer stays.

MOVE is now applying for more funding from the Victorian Government in an effort to elevate the museum to the best of its type in Australia.

“Three months in and we are bursting at the seams,” Mr Hill said.

“We have people coming in and offering to bring in their cars and trucks to the point where we’ve had to create a waiting list of people trying to get in with their vehicles.”

Ella, 15 amd Mia Douglas, 9 from Wallan. in front of a Lamborghini 1995 Murcielago. Photo by Rodney Braithwaite

Motorbike enthusiasts Ash and Claire Douglas from Wallan were keen to visit with their children, Ella and Mia, to see what the museum had to offer.

“I’ve never seen a bike collection before, most people just focus on cars,” Ms Douglas said.

“I love seeing the old ones where you’re reminded that the Harley-Davidsons came from war, and it’s got a history steeped in function more than its appearance.”

Bruce and Amanda Achcroft came from Port Macquarie with their three children for the holidays and were impressed with the display and the variety of vehicles.

Owen Haddick, Oliver Lutterschmidt, 5 and Alicia Lutterschmidt from Werribee Photo by Rodney Braithwaite

“We went to a really big truck, car and bus museum in Alice Springs and it wasn’t very well looked after, but this one looks really good and they’ve done a lot of work here,” Ms Achcroft said.

For Mr Achcroft, a truck driver, the museum is a haven.

“I’ve been truck driving for 25 years and my dad did it since he was 18, so I’m loving this ... It’s very nice how it’s all been displayed, I have to give credit to them, it’s very well set out,” he said.

MOVE is open from 10am to 4pm daily and is located at Emerald Bank Leisure Land, Goulburn Valley Hwy, Kialla.