| | | | | | | |  | | SPECIAL EDITION OF THE AUSTRALIAN TOURISM EXCHANGE TO BOOST BUSHFIRE RECOVERY | On 7 February, Australia’s Tourism Minister, Simon Birmingham, announced a series of initiatives as part of the 2020 Australian Tourism Exchange (ATE20) that will provide direct support to Australian tourism operators in the wake of the bushfire and coronavirus crises. The special edition of the annual trade show will have a strong recovery focus, with a raft of changes being implemented to the event’s format and delivery, including: - Waiving the bulk of the attendance fees for all seller companies to acknowledge the recent downturn in tourism and put money directly back into their businesses;
- Providing additional support for familiarisation visits for buyers to get out into affected regions to help spread the message overseas that Australia is open for business;
- Providing the opportunity for operators from fire affected destinations to attend ATE20 to give them important exposure to both domestic and international travel buyers;
- Activating spaces within the ATE event to educate and inform all attendees on how Australia is still open for business.
The initiatives are being supported by $6.5 million in additional funding provided to Tourism Australia as part of the Australian Government’s National Bushfire Recovery Fund. | | | | | | | | | |  | | | DESTINATION AUSTRALIA 2020 – RESILIENCE AND RECOVERY | | Australia is experiencing one of the worst fire seasons on record and many tourism businesses and communities are suffering as a result. We are now facing a global travel crisis with the coronavirus, which is impacting our largest tourism market – China. The recovery process will be one of the biggest challenges the industry has ever faced. The 6th annual Destination Australia conference will be held on 12 March at Adelaide Oval and is bringing together an incredible line-up of experts to address the themes of resilience and recovery. Now, more than ever, is the time for our industry to pull together, support each other and show the world that Australia remains a safe, welcoming and world-class destination. Register now to secure your spot. | | | | | | | |  | | ICC WOMEN’S T20 WORLD CUP | | Preparations for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup are ramping up with the Trophy Tour travelling through Melbourne and Canberra this week. Tennis legend, Billie Jean King, has announced that she will visit Melbourne for the Women’s Final on 8 March at the MCG. The squads have been announced and most teams are already in Australia, with the likes of Pakistan, the West Indies, Bangladesh, and Thailand undertaking preparation camps across the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast. Australia, England and India are contesting the remaining tri-series matches in Melbourne this weekend. The first game of the series starts on 21 February 2020 with Australia versus India at the Sydney Cricket Ground. | | |  | | AUSTRALIA ROADSHOW IN FRANCE | | Tourism Australia recently trained 130 French travel agents at the Australia Roadshow IN France. The training event was organized in partnership with Tourism NT, South Australian Tourism Commission, Tourism and Events Queensland, Tourism Tasmania, Destination New South Wales and Singapore Airlines. The event travelled through Bordeaux, Marseille and Paris. The training roadshow included a dedicated Premier Aussie Specialist training day featuring Australian tourism industry operators Sealink, Delaware North and THL. | | |
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| | | | |  | | AWARD FOR AUSSIE SPECIALIST PROGRAMME AND INDUSTRY UPDATES | | Tourism Australia in Germany was awarded the runner-up prize in the category “Best Service for Travel Agencies” at the annual Globus Nights Awards 2020. The selection was made by more than 2,000 German travel agencies and is a great recognition for the Aussie Specialist training program. Tourism Australia also recently organised a series of webinars and industry meetings across Germany, France and Italy, providing updates on the bushfires and continuing to promote Australia as a safe destination. | | |  | | CULTURAL ATTRACTIONS OF AUSTRALIA | | On 10 February 2020, the Australian National Maritime Museum (Sydney) and the National Museum of Australia (Canberra) announced that they have joined Australia’s peak, industry-led cultural tourism organisation, Cultural Attractions of Australia. The collective of iconic Australian arts and cultural attractions was launched in 2019 with the remit of presenting the best of Australia’s cultural offering to the world, creating a repository of premium, behind-the-scenes experiences to appeal to the increasingly significant cultural tourism sector. | | |
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| | | | |  | | PREMIUM FOCUS FOR INDIA | | Tourism Australia and Luxury Lodges of Australia co-hosted six events in India last week, with a focus on Australia’s premium offering and the Signature Experiences of Australia program. Events included exclusive networking dinners for Traveller Made partners; premium and luxury travel advisor Showcase events utilising the big screen in premium cinemas, and luxury/lifestyle media partner presentations in both Mumbai and Delhi. With a focus on articulating Australia’s premium offering, building sector knowledge and nurturing key distribution partnerships and media opportunities, the events were designed to capitalise on the growing demand for high-end Australian experiences from the Indian market. | | |  | | GREAT FISHING ADVENTURES OF AUSTRALIA | | The Great Fishing Adventures of Australia collective, in partnership with Yellow Dog Flyfishing adventures, recently attended two consumer fishing shows in New Jersey and Atlanta in the United States. It was the first time Australia has been represented at these events. Australia’s attendance generated very positive leads and interest. Great Fishing Adventures of Australia provided an update on the size and scale of the bushfires on the areas impacted and not impacted. Fishing enthusiasts were impressed by video content featuring Tasmania’s pristine trout waters, the incredible species diversity on the Great Barrier Reef and the authentic Australian landscapes associated with barramundi fishing in the North. Yellow Dog will also represent Australia at two upcoming shows in Colorado and California. | | |
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| | | | | | | | | |  | | ECHIDNA WALKABOUT TOURS LAUNCH NEW KOALA RECOVERY EXPERIENCE, VIC & QLD | | Echidna Walkabout has a new, hands-on Koala Recovery Experience allowing guests to contribute to important wildlife conservation activity. Launched in partnership with the Koala Clancy Foundation, tours will operate in July and August with 100 per cent of profits helping to support Australia’s wildlife. With one, two and three-day itineraries available, travellers will have access to a private farmland where they can plant trees, take walks with koala researchers, see and meet the friendly local native wildlife. Tours will run in the greater Western Plains region near Melbourne, Victoria and Brisbane Ranges National Park in Queensland with limited dates available in July and August 2020. | | |  | | GET A TASTE OF THE SNOWY MOUNTAINS THIS SUMMER, NSW | Thredbo Resort and the Snowy Mountains region have announced the re-opening of parts of the Kosciuszko National Park following a temporary closure from recent bushfires. Thredbo has resumed full resort operations with enticing line-up of upcoming events, festivals and activities such as Taste of The Snowies: Thredbo Food and Wine Festival. Dedicated to showcasing the best food and wine from the region, guests can enjoy live entertainment, tastings, dinners, talks and more at the popular event from 8 to 10 March.
Only two-and-a-half-hour drive from Canberra or six hours from Sydney, there is no better time to show your support and enjoy all that the Snowy Mountains region has to offer. | | |
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| | | | |  | | CRYSTALBROOK’S FLYNN PREPARES TO LAUNCH IN CAIRNS, QLD | | Crystalbrook Collection’s $180 million hotel, Flynn, has begun taking bookings ahead of its 31 March opening in Cairns. Flynn will become the Group’s fifth hotel and is designed with sustainability in mind. Situated on the Cairns Esplanade boardwalk, Flynn features two social glass pools overlooking the Coral Sea, 311 stylish rooms and suites, three levels of restaurants and bars, a day spa, a 24-hour gym and meeting spaces for up to 120 people. Located in Queensland’s Tropical North, flying is the best way to reach Cairns with regular domestic and international flights available. | | |  | | TASMANIAN WALKING COMPANY LAUNCH SEED COLLECTION WALKS INITIATIVE, TAS | | Great Walks of Australia member, Tasmanian Walking Company, has partnered with the Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens on a sustainability initiative to revive the burnt trees on Tasmania’s Overland Track. Taking place in late March and early April, two walks have been scheduled to coincide with planned tree seeding activity. Guided by the Tasmanian Walking Company, the walks will provide opportunities for guests to assist and engage in wide-ranging conversations about Tasmania's alpine flora whilst contributing to the ongoing work of the program. The Overland Track is located in Cradle Mountain National Park, a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Launceston or one and a half hours from Davenport. | | |
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| | | | | VICTORIAN VISITOR ECONOMY FORUM | | The Victorian Tourism Industry Council (VTIC) is hosting the 2020 Visitor Economy Forum on 3 March 2020. The free of charge event is the first opportunity for the Victorian tourism industry to come together after the bushfires. VTIC has been working closely with Tourism Australia and Visit Victoria to develop a tailored program to share key recovery priorities and activities they are undertaking collectively to support the industry. Register here to attend. | | |
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| | NEWS IN BRIEF | | Applications for the Regional Tourism Bushfire Recovery Grants program will be opened on 17 February 2020. The program will support events, concerts, festivals and visitor attractions in fire affected regions to assist with recovery efforts and encourage international and domestic visitors to come back to the regions. | | | Ballarat will host the Australian Regional Tourism Convention from 26 to 28 October 2020. The Convention theme is ‘building resilient and adaptive communities that thrive’. | | | | The Tourism and Transport Forum is hosting its 19th Leadership Summit on 19 March in Sydney. The event is designed to facilitate dialogue between political leaders, policy makers and the leaders from the tourism, aviation and transport industries. | |
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