Accommodation venues in Warrnambool are starting to sell out a year in advance, with back-to-back speedway meetings booked in 2024 set to draw even more visitors to the city.
It is also expected to inject $10 million into the local economy - $2 million more than usual.
Speedway Australia chief executive officer Darren Tindal said he had managed to secure his accommodation for next January but he had been told others were struggling.
He said two of his friends were told the venues they had tried to book were already full.
"Next year in Warrnambool is going to be crazy I can tell you because the week after the Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic will be the Australian Sprintcar Title and a week later you've got the Classic," Mr Tindal said.
He said while the Classic injected on average about $7 million into Warrnambool's economy each year, this year it was more than $8 million.
"Next year with having the Australian Sprintcar Title and the Classic within two weeks, you're going to hold those people there for 10 days," Mr Tindal said.
"So you are probably talking a $10 million injection to Warrnambool's economy."
(It will be) a $10 million injection to Warrnambool's economy.
- Darren Tindal
Mr Tindal said the numbers of people attending the Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic over the weekend were "just staggering".
He said there was more than 30,000 people across the three nights.
"That's not including 130 teams in the pits and they all average five to seven people each."
Mr Tindal said Premier Speedway at Allansford was in need of a multi-million-dollar upgrade and they would now look at what they can do to enhance the facilities moving forward.
"If you look at the best facilities in the country they have bitumen pits, so there's not mud laying around," he said.
"They have better walkways and better disabled toilets. Those facilities have been around for a long time (at Warrnambool). They are a little bit tired.
"It's still one of the great venues in our country but it could do with a facelift that's for sure."
A Warrnambool City Council spokesman said it had been a busy summer at its two foreshore holiday parks.
"The range of activities over the weekend were a drawcard for visitors and saw Surfside Holiday Park with just a handful of spare spaces, while the "overflow" park, Shipwreck Bay, had more than 150 sites still available," the spokesman said.
"Overall, of the 1028 sites, more than 800 were occupied - a great result just as the school term was about to begin."
Katrina Lovell
Katrina Lovell is a senior journalist at The Standard who covers council news and human interest stories.
Katrina Lovell is a senior journalist at The Standard who covers council news and human interest stories.
