At last week’s Australian Tourism Exchange in Perth Tourism Australia launched the significant National Landscapes initiative.
Three of Victoria’s regions feature including the wilderness coast of East Gippsland, our Alpine National Park and the Great Ocean Road.
This project will be an opportunity for these regions of Victoria to be represented in Tourism Australia marketing programs in both the domestic and international markets.
While the exact output from Tourism Australia is still under negotiation, the benefits for the regions will include the development of a National Landscapes website which will run concurrently with strategic public relations activity.
The Gippsland tourism sector will be boosted by the establishment of a peak body for tourism in the region. The Gippsland Peak Tourism Body, a not-for-profit organisation will drive the development of tourism in Gippsland.
The project will encourage more tourists to visit Gippsland and enhance the visitor experience by building a world-class tourism industry.
A major focus on the work will include marketing Gippsland, investment attraction, developing industry skills, product development and industry communication.
The Gippsland Peak Tourism Body project will also boost jobs in the tourism industry, up-skill tourism businesses, improve visitor experiences and products and contribute to the local economic growth.
This work will complement the strengths of Gippsland’s natural attractions and activities, touring and gourmet food and wine.
The latest tourism research released indicated that Gippsland experienced 3.2 per cent growth in overnight visitation over the past year.
The project was funded by the State Government $240,000, Tourism Victoria $120,000 and a $816,000 contribution from Parks Victoria and local tourism operators.
30,000 votes for Victoria 101
Victoria 101 tourism campaign has reached the halfway mark and since voting started in early May the RACV website has received more than 33,000 visits from RACV members and the public. The RACV campaign, which is running in partnership with Tourism Victoria, encourages all Victorians to vote for what they feel is worthy of being recognised as the best tourist experience in state. Victorians can vote online for their favourite destination, attraction, accommodation, activity, tour or food and wine experience.
The current 101 Victorian experiences are spread across the state, with only 15 per cent located in the City of Melbourne. Victoria’s regional experiences are dominating and currently no Melbourne attractions feature in the top 10.
The overall top 101 Victorian tourism experiences will be announced via a one hour prime-time Postcards special, sponsored by Tourism Victoria and RACV which will screen on Friday 26 September.
Visit http://www.101victoria.com.au/to nominate your favourite tourism experience, or vote for one that’s already been nominated. You’ll also be able to see which attractions are in the daily top 10 and write a blog about your must-do experience.
Keep up-to-date with marketing
As a marketing-focused organisation Tourism Victoria knows how vital it is to keep abreast of all marketing opportunities. We offer a range of marketing opportunities for the Victorian tourism industry.
The latest edition of the Marketing Opportunities Guide, which is updated biannually, outlines marketing activities available to regional campaign committees, local and regional tourism associations, industry sector groups and individual business owners.
Take advantage of some of the outlined marketing opportunities. These activities will help you make the most of marketing and promoting your region and your business.
The key contacts for further information on this guide are Fiona Ive on (03) 9653 9840 or email
or Anna Lafharis on (03) 9653 9759 or email
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Awards entry is wide open
If you missed out on nominating your business for this year’s Melbourne Airport 2008 Victorian Tourism Awards it is not too late to enter.
Businesses still have eight weeks to prepare their submission which are due on Wednesday 20 August.
Many tools are available to help you through the preparation process including Award workshops which are running until mid July in various locations across Victoria. Check out the website for dates and locations.
A comprehensive schedule to help you through the submission preparation process is available on online. Jacqueline and Nicole from the Awards team are also available to assist with any queries you may have and no question is too small or insignificant to ask.
For any further details on the Melbourne Airport 2008 Victorian Tourism Awards and to subscribe to the Awards e-newsletter visit www.victoriantourismawards.com.au or contact Jacqueline Barsenbach (03) 9653 9822 or email
Consider a cruising conference
Are you serious about developing your cruise business and how to gain an understanding of future projections and trends? The 12th Cruise Down Under Conference, “Cruise Shipping – Are we delivering?” is being held in Melbourne at the Langham Hotel from the 27-29 August.
The conference provides an opportunity to further your knowledge of the industry and gain first-hand understanding of this continuously expanding market.
Three top international cruise executives representing Princess Cruises, Carnival UK and Fred Olsen Line will present keynote presentations on how we deliver our destination to the cruise industry.
Other topics that will be covered include where and how we can improve in the areas of port infrastructure, intinerary planning, pre/post and shore excursion products and governance.
