Sea Otter cycling gain gives Eurobodalla tourism sector huge boost

Despite an 18 month wait, the Batemans Bay Business and Tourism Chamber hailed the news as a "fantastic" get for the area and something they can plan towards.

The reaction follows an announcement on Thursday, February 15, confirming Sea Otter Australia will launch on the Mogo Trails in October 2025.

Known as the world's largest cycling festival, the event draws more than 80,000 participants in California each year.

Chamber president David Maclachlan hailed the news as "fantastic".

"Events are important for tourism and tourism is our number one industry in the shire," he said.

"I'm happy for firstly financial (reasons), I'm happy for the businesses in the region and I'm particularly happy for it because I have an interest in tourism and what the council is doing in tourism.

"Events are a very important activator for an area. You need events just to activate areas, activate industries or segments of tourism to just keep the interest there.

"This is really important from those points of view because we haven't got a lot of big events in the shire, so that is important."

Rocky Trail Entertainment are behind Sea Otter's move to Australia. The festival has been running more than 30 years and includes a diverse range of racing and riding events, a extensive tradeshow and crucially, a summit, discussing trail-based tourism and industry growth.

Mogo as the host location holds special significance. The region is rebuilding after the devastating 2020 bushfires and festival organisers say the event presents an opportunity to showcase its resilience and ongoing revival.

Managing director of Rocky Trail Entertainment Martin Wisata said that the event was only possible on the Mogo Trails because of the Eurobodalla Shire Council's commitment to restoring the region after the fires.

"Our work has always been about building a community, and Sea Otter Australia aligns perfectly with the region's vision, becoming part of a resilient community", he said.

Mayor Mathew Hatcher said the Sea Otter announcement is a big step forward in confirming the south coast as a premier mountain biking (MTB) destination.

"When the planning for Mogo Trails began, we knew we wanted to build an international standard MTB destination. That was always the aim and we've been fortunate to have Rocky Trails Entertainment and Forestry NSW as brilliant partners in this project, always supporting our vision," he said.

"South-east NSW is fast becoming the premier MTB destination in the country.

"We've got stage one of Mogo Trails to open in a few months promising world-class riding. Narooma Trails are pumping visitors since they opened in December, and further south there's brilliant trails at Tathra and Eden, plus all the Snowy Mountains riding just a few hours inland."