New figures released by the Australian government have revealed the total amount of land burned in Australia is now a staggering 17 million hectares – and growing. The sheer scale and ferocity of the bushfires that are ravaging our beautiful country have left many Australians feeling helpless and overwhelmed.

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But while this bushfire season has brought untold suffering and devastation across our nation, it has also brought out the very best in us, with Australians from all walks of life coming together to lend a hand in any way we can. If you’re wondering what you can do, here’s something you may not have considered: your domestic holiday could help.

How your holiday can help

As many parts of Australia are currently in a state of emergency, it’s easy to feel that you need to cancel your travel plans and hunker down at home. And while there are some areas that should definitely be avoided by tourists at the moment (like Kangaroo Island for example – see a full list here), the vast majority of tourist destinations in Australia are not impacted by the fires and are very much open for business. Many towns and cities in Australia rely heavily on domestic and international tourism to survive and a drastic drop in tourism revenue could have a negative effect on Australia’s economy. So make sure you double check that it is necessary before cancelling your holiday and if you’ve booked a holiday to a fire-affected location for later in the year, wait until closer to the date to see if cancellation is required. The very best thing you can do for fire-affected towns is to visit them as soon as it is safe to do so, boosting their economy and breathing life into the tourism industry that many locals rely on.

Popular tourist spots that are still open for business

NSW

Blue Mountains (Partially impacted but still open to tourists)

Hunter Valley

North Coast

South Coast (Partially impacted but still open to tourists)

Sydney

VIC

Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges

Phillip Island

Great Ocean Road

TAS

Hobart and Launceston

SA

Adelaide

WA

Australia’s Coral Coast

Australia’s Golden Outback

Australia’s South West

North West

Perth

NT

Alice Springs

Darwin

Uluru

What we’re doing to help

We’ve been devastated by the destruction and suffering that is occurring across our country and as an Australian business, we believe it is our responsibility to help. That’s why we pledged to donate 100% of all proceeds (not just a percentage of our profits) made on Saturday 11th January to the NSW Rural Fire Service.  With the support of amazing customers, we managed to raise a whopping $11,238.08 through this initiative. We’d like to thank everyone who booked their Sydney Airport parking online on Saturday the 11th for helping us make this sizable contribution to the bushfire efforts.

Other ways you can help

While simply going through with your holiday plans (or choosing to travel domestically instead of internationally) is an easy and effective way to support struggling communities and the overall Australian economy, there’s plenty of other ways you can help too. A lot of the lists you see online will focus only on organisations asking for cash donations, there are other ways you can use you time and resources you already have at your disposal to help, and we’ve included many of these options in our list.

To help the firefighting efforts, donate to:

NSW

NSW Rural Fire Service 

VIC

Country Fire Association              

QLD

Rural Fire Brigades Association

SA

Country Fire Service

To help the people and communities affected by the fires you can:

• Offer your property or a spare room for free to people who’ve been impacted or to workers helping with the fire efforts via Airbnb or findabed
• Volunteer your time or donate money to The Salvation Army, Australian Red Cross or Vinnies
• Donate to a bushfire specific charity like Bendigo Bank Bushfire Disaster Appeal or Gippsland Emergency Relief Fund

To help animals and wildlife affected by the fires you can:

• Donate goods or volunteer your time and skills with the RSPCA
• Donate goods like cotton sheets and pillowcases or knitted wool pouches on the WIRES wishlist
• Donate money to wildlife rescue groups like Koalas in Care and the Rescue Collective.

Our hearts go out to everyone affected by the fires, whether they’ve lost their home, been displaced, struggled with the air quality or simply felt the fear and sadness that accompanies such a wide scale natural disaster.