Australia’s business events industry on show at IMEX

Australia’s Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, the Hon Steven Ciobo MP, joined a 23-strong delegation of Australia’s business events industry at IMEX America last week, one of the world’s largest business events trade shows. Australia’s strengths as an incentive and association destination were on show with representation from an array of destinations, airlines, convention centres, accommodation, team building experiences and destination management companies. IMEX is also held in Frankfurt each year and Business Events Australia today opened registrations for the Australia Stand at IMEX Frankfurt 2018 from 15 to 17 May. Further information is available in the IMEX Frankfurt 2018 prospectus and statistics on this year’s event have been published in a handy IMEX Frankfurt 2017 infographic. Registrations are open until Friday 10 November.

Latest visitor arrivals data

Australia welcomed 8.7 million visitors for the year ending August 2017, an increase of 8.2 percent representing an additional 660,000 people. All of Tourism Australia's key markets showed growth in the 12-month with the leisure driving growth, up 8.2 percent across all arrivals.

Australia’s wildlife captivates American art enthusiasts

More than 200 art lovers celebrated the opening of Australian photographer Leila Jeffreys’ first gallery show in New York last week at an event supported by Tourism Australia and Tourism Western Australia and hosted by actor and art collector Brooke Shields. Attendees at the event included actor Deborah Lee Furness, composer Phillip Glass, New York Consul General Alastair Walton and writers from Conde Nast Traveler, The New York Times and Vogue. Leila creates human-size images of native Australian birds. Guests enjoyed wines from Western Australia, where Leila grew up, and learned about a new outdoor exhibition at Sydney’s Taronga Zoo showcasing her work.

Good news from Western Australia in #AussieNewsToday

Perth, Rottnest Island and Karijini National Park will soon feature in Tourism Australia’s tongue-in-cheek news channel, Aussie News Today, which launched last week. Two of the news channel’s roving reporters, Teigan Nash and Lincoln Lewis, spent this week in the state where their assignment included exploring Perth’s nightlife and laneway bars, grabbing selfies with Quokkas and exploring Karijini National Park’s gorges, fresh water pools and aboriginal history. Tourism Australia has posted an on demand webinar for industry explaining the campaign and has published a fact sheet on how to get involved.

Americans tempted by what they could be doing #ThisTimeTomorrow

Another burst of Tourism Australia’s successful #ThisTimeTomorrow co-operative marketing campaign with Virgin Australia is running in the US until 19 November. The campaign aims to break down the perceived barriers of time and distance by showing people the unique Australian experiences they could be enjoying ‘This Time Tomorrow’. Popular news and travel websites such as USA Today and Travelzoo will feature inspiring holiday ideas while wholesale partners Aspire Down Under, About Australia and Down Under Answers and new partner Flight Center have also put together Australia itineraries.

Indian superstar Parineeti Chopra showcases Australia

Bollywood actress Parineeti Chopra has showcased many of Queensland and the Northern Territory’s greatest tourist spots to her 11 million followers on Instagram as part of Tourism Australia’s ambassador program to encourage more Indian tourists to Australia. Parineeti’s itinerary has also been published on Australia.com with links to products and experiences giving inspired readers the opportunity to book their own holiday Down Under. In the year ending August 2017, India was Australia’s ninth largest inbound market based on visitor arrivals. India was the fastest growing market based on expenditure over the 12 months to June 2017, which saw it jump three places in the rankings of international market on expenditure.

Australia’s premium tourism experiences highly rated by US travellers

More than 300,000 Conde Nast Traveler readers in the US submitted ratings and feedback from their recent travel experiences for the publication's Readers' Choice 2017 Awards released this week. In the Best Cities in the World category Sydney ranked number six and was deemed “the ideal getaway, no matter the season” with Melbourne ranked 14 and noted for its “sophisticated, stylish and seemingly free spirited nature and an incredible art scene”. In the category of Top Resorts in Australia and The South Pacific , qualia on Hamilton Island in Queensland was number seven, Southern Ocean Lodge on Kangaroo Island in South Australia came in at number 10, Longitude 131º at Uluru ranked in 11th place and Hayman Island in Queensland is number 17. Como The Treasury, Perth was ranked number 12 in the 50 Best Hotels in the World category.

Corroboree West 2017 wraps up

Aussie Specialists from key Western markets are venturing out on famil trips around the country hosted by State and Territory Tourism Organisations after completing the inaugural Corroboree West on the Gold Coast last week. Over 30,000 business appointments took place between 126 Australian tourism operators and almost 300 Aussie Specialist Agents from United Kingdom, Europe and The Americas. Tourism Australia has published a short highlights video as well as an online photo album from Corroboree West 2017.

New immersive Indigenous culture tour through North Queensland

Hands On Journeys has launched a new tour spanning five days and four nights and focusing on empowering local Indigenous communities. The tour aims to educate guests on local history and Indigenous culture whilst sightseeing across North Queensland’s unique landscapes, including the Great Barrier Reef and Mossman Gorge.

Wineglass Bay track upgrade complete

One of Tasmania's most iconic tourism experiences, the walk to Wineglass Bay from the lookout to the beach, has been re-opened after a $500,000 upgrade initiated through the State Government's Tourism Infrastructure in Parks Fund. The reconstruction has greatly improved step levels to improve visitor comfort and safety.

Greg Norman reveals plans for championship golf course

Champion Australian golfer Greg Norman has revealed plans for an 18-hole championship golf course which will be the centrepiece of the Visionary Investment Group’s new Silkari development in Avondale, New South Wales. Situated in bushlands near Wollongong, the 556-hectare site will undergo a $1 billion re-development and will also feature a clubhouse with restaurants and function centre, 290-key resort hotel and two high-end spa lodges.

Wildflowers in full bloom across Australia

Spring has sprung in Australia, with many parts of the country transformed by carpets of wildflowers. The state best known for wildflowers is Western Australia, with more than 12,000 different species, 60 per cent of which are found nowhere else on earth. Other hot spots include Maree in South Australia and The Grampians, Victoria.

European Product Workshop 2018

Seller applications for the European Product Workshop 2018 are open until Friday 27 October. Hosted by Tourism Australia and Tourism New Zealand the event is an opportunity for new tourism product from Australia and New Zealand to meet with key buyers from the United Kingdom and Continental Europe. The European Product Workshop will be held in London from 19 to 21 March 2018.

Walkabout Japan 2018

Seller applications for Walkabout Japan 2018 are open until Tuesday 31 October. Walkabout Japan is Tourism Australia’s premier trade event for Australian tourism businesses to engage with key Japanese travel agencies from Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka. Thirty Australian tourism businesses will be selected to represent cross-section of Australian experiences that are attractive to the Japanese market. State, Territory and Regional Tourism organisations will also attend. Walkabout Japan 2018 will be held in Karuizawa, 70 minutes by fast train from Tokyo, from 27 February – 1 March.

Industry Briefings in NSW, SA, TAS and ACT

Tourism Australia has opened registration for four free-of-charge industry briefings: in Sydney on Thursday 9 November from 9 - 11.30am at the Hilton, Sydney; in Adelaide on Friday 10 November from 2 - 4pm at the Playford; in Hobart on Friday 10 November from 2 - 4pm at the Hobart Function and Conference Centre; and in Canberra at Hotel Realm from 2 – 4pm on Friday 17 November. The briefings will involve senior executives from Tourism Australia and state tourism executives providing an update on current and future activity and sharing research and insights from key international markets.

Travel habits of American and Canadian travellers

Most American and Canadian travellers look for deals before making a travel decision according to a study from Expedia Media Solutions. Appealing imagery in advertising and informative content from destinations and/or travel brands also helps influence the decision-making process of approximately half of all travellers, with slightly higher influence on American than Canadian travellers. For more research and trends related to international and domestic tourism and travel visit Tourism Australia’s Insight Files.

The Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation has confirmed the successful nominees who have been selected to carry the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Queen’s Baton.

The Qantas Australian Tourism Awards will be held at the new Perth Stadium on Friday 23 February 2018.

The South Australian Tourism Commission has published a short video recapping the third quarter of 2017 with Chief Executive Rodney Harrex.

Tourism and Events Queensland has published its Annual Report 2016-17.

The South Australian Government is currently inviting proposals to help develop 18 selected parks and gardens into viable nature-based tourism attractions for the state.

Tourism Tasmania has released the latest edition of its quarterly Tourism Info Monitor that outlines the decision-making stages of holiday travellers to the State.

Claire Savage has been appointed the new CEO of the Margaret River Busselton Tourism Association.

The Tasmanian Cycle Tourism Fund is currently receiving applications.

The 2018 Queensland events calendar is forecast to generate more than $780 million in economic benefit to the State’s economy.

Registration is open until Thursday 19 October for the Australian Regional Tourism Network's (ARTN) annual Australian Regional Tourism Convention to be held from 23 – 26 October at QT Canberra.

Tickets are on sale for the 2017 RACV Victorian Tourism Awards on Thursday 23 November at Palladiam Crown in Melbourne.

Tourism Whitsundays has announced its new board representing a cross-section of tourism operators and also non-tourism businesses.

Tickets are on sale for the 2017 Canberra Region Tourism Awards on Friday 17 November at the National Museum of Australia.

Tickets are on sale for the 2017 South Australian Tourism Awards on Friday 10 November at the Adelaide Convention Centre.

Tickets are on sale for the 2017 Queensland Tourism Awards on Friday 10 November at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre.

Tickets are on sale for the 2017 NSW Tourism Awards on Thursday 16 November at the International Convention Centre Sydney.

Registration is open for the Youth & Backpacker Travel Week Australia 2017 on Queensland's Gold Coast from Monday 6 November to Friday 10 November.

Tourism Australia’s fourth annual Destination Australia Conference (DestAus18), the top tourism marketing conference Down Under, will be held in Melbourne on Thursday 15 March 2018. Register your interest for DestAus18.

Applications are open until 1 October for round one funding the NSW 2018 Incubator Event Fund open to organisers of new or second-year events in rural and regional NSW which are planned for January to June 2018.

AccorHotels has signed an agreement to acquire Mantra Group Limited.