Australia Tourism is continuing to ride the wave of success, building on the vision to make Australia the most desired destination in the world.
Opening the press conference at the Australia Tourism Exchange (ATE) in Perth yesterday, the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, Hon. Simon Birmingham, said “this year we celebrate 40 years that have seen a remarkable transformation not only in ATE the event, but in tourism in Australia as a whole.”
Tourism Australia’s commitment to the partnership that is the tourism experience and the Government expanding on air access into the country were key factors that attributed to the success.
Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, Hon. Simon Birmingham speaking at ATE19 in Perth.
Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, Hon. Simon Birmingham speaking at ATE19 in Perth.Tourism Australia, Managing Director, John O’Sullivan, noted that in 2018, Australia welcomed record 9.2 million visitors to the country, spending some $44 billion.
It was a big year for tourism in Australia. Most notably, the Dundee Campaign, which rolled out across the USA starting from the Superbowl Commercial. This was one of the most awarded creatives. The unDiscover Australia Campaign was launched across Asia to challenge perceptions and stereotypes, before being further extended into the UK, Germany and Japan. The best of Australia was showcased through the Signature Experiences of Australia program.
Tourism Australia continue to work closely with key distribution partners, ambassadors, influencers and media. There was great support of new aviation access such as the direct Perth to London route with Qantas and business events remained an important and growing sector.
Tourism Australia, Managing Director, John O’Sullivan talks about Tourism Australia’s success in 2018.
The new focus for Tourism Australia will be on the current opportunities and challenges. Fashionability is a challenge which will be overcome by providing new news and stories to entice visitors. There will be focus on creating urgency for people to travel down under, make is a must visit destination and this can be easier to achieve with greater aviation access.
There is the challenge that Australia is a complex destination, such a big country can be difficult to navigate and daunting for travellers. Therefore, there is a need to provide connectivity regionally, informative itineraries and easier processes.
In particular there will be a focus on the youth market and working holiday visitors. The launch of Australia Inc showcases the country as ‘the best workplace in the world’. Research found less and less people are taking that GAP year holiday after finishing school as they are more focused to get ahead in life. Tourism Australia has turned a different angle on market focus and encouraging the working holiday as something that add to the resume.
The Cultural Attractions of Australia (CAA), launched at ATE 2019, is an industry-led collective of iconic Aussie arts and cultural attractions which aims to present the best of Australia’s cultural offering to the world including the Australian War Memorial, Mona (Museum of Old and New Art), National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Victoria, Opera Australia, Sydney Opera House and WA Maritime Museum among others.
ATE19 Expo Floor at Perth Convention Centre.
ATE brings Australian tourism businesses, and tourism wholesalers and retailers from around the world through a combination of scheduled business appointments and networking events. It also provides international travel buyers with the opportunity to experience Australia’s tourism offering first-hand through pre and post-event familiarisations.
Around 1,500 Australian seller delegates from approximately 550 companies, 650 key buyer delegates from over 30 countries, and 70 international and Australian media attend this global event.
