Great Ocean Road towns are forecast to lose almost $40 million in tourism earnings in their busiest period of the year due to the bushfires driving holidaymakers away.
Great Ocean Road Regional Tourism chairman Wayne Kayler-Thomson estimated the Surf Coast and Colac-Otways shires, from Torquay to past Cape Otway, would see a 30 per cent drop in business after the Christmas day fire.
He said the two shires roughly received a combined $200 million from tourists in January - almost a third of their annual takings.
"It's a significant time of the year and it will have a flow on effect for the rest of the year," he said.
While the fire ravaged towns of Wye River and Separation Creek remain closed, nearby Lorne and Apollo Bay are open for business.
But Mr Kayler-Thomson said many holidaymakers were choosing to stay away.
"It's substantially down already for people travelling along the Great Ocean Road," he said.
"It's a question of whether it will flow onto next week."
He said the real cost of the economic damage wrought on the towns would not be known until the results of a survey were completed.
Mr Kayler-Thomson said businesses in the fire affected areas would need considerable time to recover.
George's Takeaway on the Great Ocean Road, Apollo Bay, was one of the only places open on Christmas Day. The business served Wye River and Separation Creek residents who had escaped the fire.
Two days later, owner George Papadopoulos said business was down by 35 per cent.
"There are no tourists, nothing," he said. "Everyone is waiting until January to make money, so we're all really worried."
His son Michael Papadopoulos said the shop was quieter during the the holiday period than he'd seen in the 10 years since it opened.
"We have 15 employees - these people we've promised them work for the summer. If it goes down, I don't know what we'll do," he said.
Meanwhile, major tourist hub Lorne usually swells from 1600 to 16,000 people during the week between Christmas and New Year's Day.
While Torquay was busy on Sunday, Lorne was quiet as shops and cafes reopened.
"For us, it's the busiest time of the year," Surf Coast Shire economic development and tourism manager Matt Taylor said.
"That's a big population increase, so obviously those people coming in form an important part of business sustainability and expenditure."
He was keen to let potential visitors know the town, evacuated on Christmas day, was back open for business.
Surf Coast Shire mayor Rose Hodge said business owners had told her they were worried about the loss of 16,000 Falls Festival revellers that usually descended on the coastal town.
"That's going to have a huge impact," she said.
"That usually brings millions [of dollars] into the community, so I know Lorne will be concerned."
She said businesses would struggle and implored tourists to visit the shire during other times of the year. "Most coastal towns rely on Christmas time to take them through the winter," she said.
Lorne Business and Tourism Association chairperson Chris Tutungi, who lost a home in the 1983 Ash Wednesday fire, said he hoped tourists would come and support the town now that it was safe.
"We really need them not to say it's too risky when it's not at that level at all," he said.
Mr Tutungi, who owns the Lorne Bush House Cottages and Eco Retreats, said some holidaymakers had cancelled reservations, while others, who evacuated on Christmas day, had not returned.
He hoped to recover some of the costs from insurance.
The Insurance Council of Australia has declared the bushfire a catastrophe, enabling the industry to escalate claims from the area.
It has estimated initial costs at $25 million based on properties losses, however this is expected to increase.
Minister for Emergency Services Jane Garrett, who is visiting the fire ground on Monday with Premier Daniel Andrews, said the state's contribution to the clean-up would be resolved in the coming days after an assessment of the area had been completed.
She said the state would be "front and centre" in the clean-up. "We will be there to help in every way we can," she said.