From next month, residents of several NSW suburbs will be absorbed into the Queensland border zone, and the tourism industry is celebrating.

The decision comes just days after the Palaszczuk government announced the ban on travellers from the ACT will be lifted as of Friday.

Destination Gold Coast chairman Paul Donovan told Scott Emerson the recent changes to border restrictions are being hailed as the “light at the end of the tunnel”.

“We have 14.2 million tourists visit [the Gold Coast] each year, and 8.5 to 9 million of them come from south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales.

“We’re hoping that as we go forward, we’ll see some further opening and restrictions eased.”

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Image: Getty