Industry

Industry generosity accommodates bushfire survivors

Members of the Victorian tourism industry have generously donated accommodation to provide bushfire survivors with a much needed break.

Industry has got behind the Victorian Holiday Offer donating more than 2,388 room nights to date.

To assist families on their road to recovery Tourism Victoria developed the Victorian Holiday Offer program, which offers up to two nights free accommodation to those affected by the bushfires.

Tourism Victoria Chief Executive, Gregory Hywood, warmly thanked all donors for their support of the program.

“Their contribution demonstrates the generosity of our local tourism industry along with providing a timely break for survivors,” Mr Hywood said.

For more information about the Victorian Holiday Offer, or to donate room nights, visit tourism.vic.gov.au/bushfireoffer/

2009 Victorian Tourism Awards

The Melbourne Airport 2009 Victorian Tourism Awards celebrate and acknowledge tourism businesses and individuals that have demonstrated outstanding achievements and success during the 2008/09 financial year.

In addition to the 27 business categories on offer, the panel of 21 judges award individuals/groups in three separate categories. These include:

• Outstanding Contribution by an Individual
• Outstanding Contribution by a Volunteer/s
• Young Achiever Award

The good news is that these categories only require a submission of a maximum of six pages. Consider preparing a submission to recognise individuals/groups working in the tourism industry. Submissions for these categories are being accepted until 4.00 pm on Wednesday 30 September 2009.

For more information about these categories and the Melbourne Airport 2009 Victorian Tourism Awards go to victoriantourismawards.com

Aviation

Tiger Airways takes off between Melbourne and Sydney

Victoria has welcomed a new Tiger Airways route between Melbourne and Sydney – a boost for the local economy, tourism and Victorian commuters.

The service will start with four flights daily, adding over 250,000 inbound seats to Melbourne and more choice to travellers.

Roads and Ports Minister Tim Pallas said, “Domestic and international transport links are critical if Victoria is to fully capitalise on its strong economy, outstanding program of major events and world-class scenic, sporting and cultural attractions.”

The aviation and aerospace industry is estimated to be worth $600 million to the Victorian economy, employing more than 20,000 people in over 400 businesses.

Melbourne lands major aviation conference

Melbourne has successfully won its bid to host the 2010 International Air Transport Association (IATA) Schedules Conference, one of the largest international aviation conferences held in Australia.

The IATA event will run from 7-15 November 2010 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre and is expected to draw more than 1,100 delegates from 300 airlines and 200 airports worldwide.

It is the latest in a series of aviation wins that will further help to attract more air services to the state by enhancing our global profile among key airline planners.

The conference highlights Victoria’s strengths in working collectively to attract business events with the State Government, Tourism Victoria, Melbourne Airport, the City of Melbourne, and the Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau combining to secure the event.

Conference delegates will have a first-hand look at the $330 million Melbourne Airport expansion, the new state-of-the-art convention facilities and the city’s many outstanding visitor experiences and attractions.

Melbourne

Mary Poppins to fly in with spoon full of sugar

Melbourne’s reputation as one of the world’s top destinations for theatre and musicals has been strengthened after securing the Australian premiere of the worldwide hit musical Mary Poppins.

The musical will open at Her Majesty’s Theatre in winter 2010 and tickets will go on sale later this year.

Mary Poppins builds on Melbourne’s track record of successful blockbuster musicals including Wicked, Billy Elliot, Priscilla: Queen of the Desert and The Lion King. Jersey Boys premiered in Melbourne earlier this month and Chicago is due to open in August.

Premier John Brumby said international blockbuster musical seasons ranked alongside events like the Australian Open and Spring Racing Carnival in drawing hundreds of thousands of interstate and overseas visitors to Melbourne throughout the year.

“Our theatre strategy, our other major events like Tiger Woods playing at the Australian Masters, and a new $5 million tourism marketing campaign will help to ensure Melbourne continues to buck the international trend in tourism,” Mr Brumby said.

Based on the books by Australia’s P.L. Travers and the classic 1964 Walt Disney film, Mary Poppins is produced by Sir Cameron Mackintosh and Thomas Schumacher of Disney Theatrical Productions. The musical has received critical acclaim in the West End and on Broadway, having been seen by more than 4.2 million theatregoers worldwide.

Record attendances at Victorian museums

Melbourne’s museums continue to attract visitors in droves with a record 1.6 million people attending Melbourne Museum, Scienceworks and the Immigration Museum during the past financial year.

The record year of attendance highlights the diversity and the appeal of the various museums, which remain a major drawcard for tourists and locals alike.

Scienceworks achieved its highest yearly attendance of more than 400,000, while the Immigration Museum broke a new record with over 130,000 visitors. More than 750,000 people visited the Melbourne Museum and IMAX recorded 340,000 visitors.

Maritime vision for Melbourne’s bays

Melbourne’s bays infrastructure will receive immediate and future upgrades as a result of $4 million in State Government funding, creating jobs in the tourism, marine services and aquaculture industries.

Immediate upgrades include improvements to car and trailer parking at boating facilities, maintaining safe navigation and access at popular launch locations and the reconstruction of the wall and wharf areas at locations such as St Kilda, Patterson River and Queenscliff.

Remaining funds will be used to develop a network of maritime precincts at Frankston, Geelong, Hastings, Hobson’s Bay, Mordialloc, Mornington, Patterson River, Portarlington, Queenscliff, St Kilda, Stony Point/Cowes and Wyndham.

More information is available at parkweb.vic.gov.au

First Australian Paralympic Youth Games to be held in Melbourne

Victorians can look forward to cheering on the best and brightest junior sporting talent in October at the first Australian Paralympic Youth Games.

The Games, to be held in Melbourne from 5 – 10 October 2009, will be open to under 20s Australian and International athletes and will host several sports including athletics, handcycling, swimming, table tennis, wheelchair tennis, 7-a-side football and wheelchair basketball.

For more information about the 2009 Australian Paralympic Youth Games visit wsv.org.au

New Heritage Council members appointed

Three new members have been appointed to the Heritage Council of Victoria, the statutory authority for Victoria’s non-Indigenous cultural heritage.

The new inductees – Dr Keir James Reeves, Emma Russell, and Marita Foley – were appointed by the Governor-in-Council on the recommendation of the Planning Minister, Justin Madden.

The Heritage Council’s functions, as set out in the Heritage Act 1995, include determining which places and objects are included on the Victorian Heritage Register, advising the Planning Minister on heritage issues and promoting public understanding of Victoria’s cultural heritage.

Victoria’s regions

Grampians on board

Grampians Tourism has welcomed two new industry based members to its board of local government, Parks Victoria and industry partners.

The new board members are: Aaron Davis, a director of outdoor adventure company, Bashukway Travel, and Andrew Dyer, owner of Jallukar Ridge Vineyard, Ararat.

Chairman, Ross Hatton, said Grampians Tourism was continuing to work solidly in the areas of destination marketing, industry and product development for the region's tourism industry and valued the input of all board members to set and monitor its strategic direction.

Visit the Grampians Tourism corporate website at grampianstourism.com.au for updates.

Gateway to Benalla tourism boost

Benalla regional tourism is set to benefit from a $50,000 grant to develop a community precinct gateway for visitors to the Mokoan wetlands.

Benalla was identified as the first point of call for wetland visitors and entry for up to 300,000 people a year.

A new integrated visitor information centre will be constructed to boost opportunities for the region’s Ned Kelly related tourist attractions and fine food and wine under a $100,000 master plan.

The grant is being provided under the Government’s Provincial Victoria Growth Fund through Regional Development Victoria.

Better travel to regional Victoria

Victoria’s popular V/Line regional train services will receive a boost with 1000 extra seats on the network following the addition of the 14th VLocity carriage.

Passenger trips on the V/Line system are expected to hit 12 million for the past financial year – the highest ever number of passengers on the Victorian regional network.

Regional train services will be further lifted with the completion of the $4.3 billion Regional Rail Link which will increase capacity on the Ballarat, Bendigo and Geelong lines.

The increased train capacity is great news for regional passengers and tourists who can take advantage of extra services, better frequencies and new trains.

This announcement coincides with the news that Victorians travelling between Heathcote and Bendigo will soon benefit from a more convenient bus service with cheaper bus travel.

The integrated bus network means passengers will have the convenience of only needing to buy one ticket that will be valid for use on any Bendigo Transit, Davies Bus Service, Comet Tours bus or scheduled Heathcote taxi-bus services.

A new timetable will include improved connections to Bendigo Railway Station and Bendigo Transit buses to benefit workers, students, shoppers and tourists travelling into and around Bendigo and Heathcote.

Media & trade visits

Tourism Victoria continues to support tourism operators across the state by coordinating ‘familiarisation’ visits for Australian and international media and the travel trade.

A picture of perfection: Macedon Ranges and Daylesford region

Journalists from Deliciousmagazine and Yahoo!7recently explored the picturesque towns of Macedon Ranges region and Victoria’s Spa Country, ahead of an upcoming spa and wellness campaign.

Media familiarisations covered the towns’ thriving artistic, historic and culinary offerings, incorporating visits to the Kyneton Farmer’s Market, Pizza Verde – The Age Cheap Eats Best Regional Restaurant winner, DECO Restaurant, and the Cobaw Ridge and Granite Hills wineries.

Itineraries also included time to enjoy treats at Life’s Sweet (Kyneton), Sweet Decadence at Locantro (Daylesford) and The Chocolate Mill (Mount Franklin) and indulgent spa experiences at Hepburn Bathhouse and Spa and the Lake House.

Campaigns

Wine down in Victoria’s High Country

Tourism Victoria and Virgin Blue have launched a Blue Holidays High Country campaign, offering travellers exclusive bonuses from local tourism operators when booking a Blue Holidays deal to Victoria’s High Country.

Visitors are encouraged to visit Australia’s most celebrated wineries, tour the King Valley to meet innovative Italian winemakers, savour specialty cheeses and sample the finest regional produce from award-winning restaurants.

The trade marketing campaign includes online advertisements on the Yahoo, Channel 10 and Sydney Morning Herald websites, followed by print advertising in Sydney Morning Herald, Sunday Herald Sun and inserts in Delicious and Good Taste magazine. Radio advertising will take place on the Australian Traffic Network across several stations, in addition to a Nova News sponsorship that commenced on 13 July.

Additional Tourism Victoria campaigns scheduled to take place during the remainder of this month include:

Food and Wine – print advertising in Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
Goldfields – tactical print advertising in SA Weekend and Canberra Times, and search engine marketing on Google.
Yarra Valley – tactical print advertising in Herald Sun.
Gippsland – billboard advertising at universities in Melbourne and surrounds. Syndicated radio advertising on Fox FM, 3AW, 3MMM, Gold FM, Mix 101.1, 3MP, Magic, SEN, Sport 927, Nova, and Vega. Online brand campaign on BigPond, and Fairfax Digital sites.
Ski – tactical online advertising on BigPond News and Weather, and qantas.com.

Federal Government initiatives

UK says g’day to Victoria’s best

The very best of Victoria was recently on display in London when the inaugural G’day UK roadshow dropped in.

Victoria’s presence at the week-long event showcased the state’s strengths across areas including trade and investment, tourism, fashion and design, and food and beverages.

Guests at the event included high-level players in the global fashion field, food and wine buyers, media, migration agents and global recruitment consultancies.

G’day UK is a joint promotion supported by the state governments of Victoria, NSW, Queensland, SA and WA, the Australian Trade Commission, Qantas and Tourism Australia in conjunction with the Australian High Commission, Wine Australia, Australian Business and key private sector sponsors.

Tourism leaders convene to set course for recovery

Industry heavy-weights, government policy-makers, academics and tourism professionals will convene for a crucial round of talks at the annual Tourism Futures conference on the Gold Coast from 17–19 August.

Despite being a major contributor to the national economy the tourism industry has been stifled by global economic pressures and stiff competition from the Asia-Pacific, making this year’s Tourism Futures conference critical for industry and government to convene and develop tourism survival strategies.

Issues addressed at this year’s conference include engaging with Asia-Pacific, responding to climate change, shortages in new product development in Australia, destination advancement and the need to embrace online technology.

For further information, and to read the Program Brochure, visit tourismfutures.com.au

International

Tourism Victoria and China UnionPay join forces

A new partnership between Tourism Victoria and China UnionPay (CUP) credit cards will give Victorian tourism businesses the chance to promote their products to the holders of more than 1.8 billion CUP credit cards throughout China through a range of joint marketing initiatives.

The partnership will also make it easier for Chinese travellers to explore key tourism destinations, experience Melbourne’s shopping culture and withdraw cash, by increasing the recognition and acceptance of China UnionPay in Victoria.

CUP card holders can withdraw cash from more than 7,000 ATMs in Australia and make purchases at nearly 30,000 merchants while saving card holders as much as two per cent in foreign exchange fees.

CUP entered the Australian market in 2006 in co-operation with National Australia Bank (NAB) and Australia’s largest independent ATM operator Cashcard.

According to official statistics, China is now Victoria’s third largest inbound tourism market. Chinese visitor arrivals in Victoria have increased steadily over the years, making it one of Australia’s fastest growing tourism markets.

What’s on

Last chance to get the inside run on destination development

Destination Melbourne and The Inner Melbourne Tourism Group are hosting a special industry forum at the Melbourne Town Hall this Wednesday 22 July at 6.00 pm.

The keynote speaker is Clive Geddes, Mayor of the Queenstown Lakes District Council in New Zealand. He will share insights on how Queenstown has become an outstanding global visitor experience.

Secure your place by contacting Destination Melbourne on 03 9869 2444 or email There is a small cost associated with the event to cover refreshments.

Upcoming events

• Creating a Vibrant and Sustainable Destination, 22 July, Melbourne
• Tourism Futures conference, 17-19 August, Gold Coast
• Australian Tourism Export Council / Tourism Victoria Famil and Workshop, 20-24 August, Victoria more information