Traveling Blog: Special Essentials… Australian Tourism Exchange 2021

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9 June 2021

TOURISM AUSTRALIA UPDATE

After the challenges of the past 18 months, I am pleased to say that this week, Tourism Australia hosted the 41st Australian Tourism Exchange (ATE) in Sydney. The Live component of the event finished today, and the Online component starts tomorrow. More than, 600 Australian sellers and 400 buyers attended ATE Live and from tomorrow, 600 Australian sellers and 700 buyers will participate in ATE Online. More than 57,000 appointments in total are taking place throughout ATE21.

This year ATE has been funded by the Australian Government, as part of the $61 million in funding allocated to Tourism Australia through the National Bushfire Recovery fund. This included $6.5 million for ATE which meant we were able to subsidise attendance for both buyers and sellers at the event.

ATE is all about relationships and, even though we weren’t able to host all our international partners in person as we would normally, it was still fantastic to be in the room with so many friends and colleagues and be reminded of why we do what we do. Watch a wrap of the event here.

I am looking forward to connecting with all our international trade partners online over the next week for ATE Online, which runs until 17 June.

Phillipa Harrison

ATE21 Highlights

Welcome

ATE Live delegates were welcomed to the 2021 event by Clarence Slockee, a Cudgenburra and Bundjalung man from Northern NSW and the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, the Hon. Dan Tehan MP. Minister Tehan said, “The Australian Tourism Exchange is an opportunity for the industry to work together to plan for Australia’s future success, build networks and exchange knowledge.” Read more here.

Bushfire recovery panel

In recognition of the 2019/20 Summer Bushfires that severely impacted Australia’s tourism industry prior to COVID-19, Tourism Australia hosted a Bushfire Recovery Panel discussion on Monday at the ATE21 Welcome Lunch. Speakers included Richard Beere, Chair of Destination Southern NSW and Craig Wickham, Managing Director of Exceptional Kangaroo Island. Richard and Craig discussed how their communities responded first to the fires and then to the pandemic.

ATE Luxe

New to ATE this year, the ATE Luxe program welcomed 65 premium buyers to ATE Live and 150 premium buyers to ATE Online to showcase Australia’s genuine style of luxury. The program offers targeted buyers exposure to Australia’s high-end experiential products tailored to the luxury market, as well as the wide range of premium tourism experiences and accommodation on offer. Luxe buyers attending ATE Live were invited to participate in a one-day tailored luxury educational in Sydney and surrounds and were greeted with a Tourism Australia premium update at the ATE Luxe Welcome Breakfast on Monday. While Tourism Australia’s focus in the luxury and premium sectors extends back to 2014, Tourism Australia continue to evolve the approach. Whilst international borders have been closed, Tourism Australia has shifted focus to encouraging domestic consumers to take up Australia’s luxury and premium experiences to ensure that these world-class experiences remain open and on offer to international visitors when borders reopen.

ATE Aviation Program

In a first for ATE, Tourism Australia created a specific Aviation Program for 2021. The program consisted of 14 Australian international airports, 26 airlines and eight state and territory tourism organisations. In addition, CAPA – Centre for Aviation joined Tourism Australia to capture the content program in a series of TV style interviews as well as through a ‘future of aviation’ panel discussion. The UNSW School of Aviation also exhibited at the event and some of the Australia’s best and brightest university students competed in a ‘Sustainable Aviation’ data science hackathon competition. The Aviation Program was developed by Tourism Australia to help Australia’s international airports and all airlines based in Australia, develop stronger connections to aid the post-pandemic aviation and tourism recovery. Tourism Australia understands that aviation is critically important to our tourism industry and in taking a ‘Team Australia’ approach aims to create a stronger and more sustainable future for both aviation and tourism.

Content hubs

Delegates at ATE Live were invited to drop into the newly established Sustainability, Indigenous and Business Content Hubs. The three hubs were home to a variety of short informational sessions throughout the Monday and Tuesday and featured industry experts on a range of topics, read more below.

Photos and content on demand

All content sessions including the sessions from the Sustainability, Indigenous and Business content hubs, and the lunch panel discussions, are now available online. Photos from the event can be accessed here.

Sustainability hub

The Sustainability hub hosted industry experts from B Lab Australia and Aotearoa NZ, Intrepid Travel, Ndver Environmental and Zoos Victoria. Topics included why business for good is good for business; 10steps to decarbonise your business; reducing energy, water consumption and waste in tourism businesses; and best practice guidance for working with wildlife in tourism.

Indigenous hub

The Indigenous content hub hosted speakers from the Australia Council for the Arts and Voyages, Indigenous Tourism as well as a Wiradjuri Cultural Educator and Sydney Botanic Gardens guide. The speakers discussed Indigenous protocols for businesses; partnering with Indigenous communities; and respecting cultural knowledge. The Hub also featured a session on developing a Reconciliation Action Plan hosted by Tourism Australia’s Head of Indigenous Affairs, Phil Lockyer.

Business Hub

The Business content hub focused on practical advice for growing businesses and featured guest speakers from the Australian Tourism Export Council, the Australian Tourism Data Warehouse (ATDW), Facebook and Google. Sessions focused on promoting Australia as a ‘safe’ destination to the rest of the world; becoming a Market Specialist Host; an introduction to the ATDW; social media workshops; and how to show up and stand out with Google.

Signature Experiences Portal goes live at ATE

Travel advisors and media will now find it easier to discover the more than 700 experiences offered by the eight collectives in the Signature Experiences of Australia program via a new portal launched this week at ATE Live. Featuring a carefully curated selection of Australia’s premium travel offerings, visitors can search for a range of different experiences including guided Aboriginal experiences, memorable walks, fishing adventures, wildlife journeys, unparalleled winery experiences, prestigious golf courses, leading cultural attractions and immersive luxury lodges. Access the portal here.