Mary Valley Rattler Annual Report & Audited Financials

The Mary Valley Rattler today released their first audited financials since the commencement of operations.Cover

General Manager Micheal Green is pleased with the results to date. “Our first year of operations has seen the Mary Valley Rattler brand grow from strength to strength. We have been seen on Sunrise, The Great day Out and Queensland Weekender. These prime-time television shows not only highlighted the great heritage experience of the Mary Valley Rattler but also the beauty of the Mary Valley.

At the end of October 2019, 36,292 guests had enjoyed the wonderful experience of a heritage train ride. A customer survey was commissioned with findings released earlier this year. The survey showed that 94 % of the respondents believed that the experience was value for money and that 74% of the respondents came to Gympie for the heritage experience.

“We are very proud of our volunteer team who deliver a great tourism product with great passion. These passionate individuals provided 35,828 hours of their own time to produce the great experience that is The Mary Valley Rattler. This effort along with the support of our community have seen us take home the Silver Award for New Tourism Product in the state-wide Queensland tourism awards. We are also proud to be the number 1 Trip Advisor Activity in the region with a Certificate of Excellence.” Micheal said.

We have hosted many event trains, the most recent being the Halloween Trick or Treat Train. The DeguSTATION event – part of the Curated Plate destination series clearly placed the Mary Valley on the map and showcased some of the region’s great products.

A highlight of the year was the reintroduction back into the stable of C17 locomotive number 967 after a record 26 month rebuild. A competition to name this historical piece of Queensland Rail history saw the locomotive named as Spirit of the Mary Valley. A documentary was commissioned by local videographer Leeroy Todd to celebrate this great achievement and is available for purchase by contacting the Mary Valley Rattler. The Mary Valley Rattler is seen as one of the Tourist and Heritage Railway Industry benchmarks for safety performance with zero non- conformances during Rail Safety Audits.

The Annual Report can be accessed here.