Tourism Talk – Industry Newsletter

Issue 271 - 29 June 2009

One Million Visitors in One Year

Tasmania has reached the historic milestone of one million visitors in a single year. This landmark achievement followed the release of visitor figures for the 2008-09 cruise ship season.

Achieving one million visitors in a year is great news for tourism in Tasmania. The figure marks the achievement of a major goal set out in Tourism 21 – the joint Tasmanian Government and tourism industry three-year business plan.

The milestone of one million visitors follows last week’s announcement that Tasmania had posted a third consecutive quarter of visitation growth.

The March 2009 results of the Tasmanian Visitor Survey (TVS) showed Tasmania was continuing to defy the national trend of a deteriorating domestic travel climate. According to the TVS, visitor numbers to Tasmania increased by seven per cent to 896,800 in the 12 months to March 2009.

Add to this the 2008-09 cruise season figures and the visits from navy ships and the total visitation for the year is just over one million people.

From November 2008 to March 2009 Tasmania welcomed 102,400 cruise ship visitors to the State – an increase of 27 per cent on the previous season. Additionally, there were 4,300 navy ship visitors in the year to March 2009.

Tasmania’s cruise ship market has experienced striking growth over the past decade. The numbers of cruise ship visitors to Tasmania has increased 600 per cent from the 16,400 people that visited on cruises ships in 1997-98. Cruise ship visitors now represent approximately 11 per cent of all visitors to Tasmania.

During the 2008-09 season Tasmania welcomed 66 separate cruise ship visits by 21 different vessels; four more vessels and 16 more visits than the 2007-08 cruise ship season.

Importantly, cruise ship visitors are also spending more while they are here. During the 2008-09 season an estimated $11.3 million was spent by cruise ship visitors in the State, which represents a 27 per cent or $2.4 million increase on the 2007-08 season.

For more information see research

New Brochure to Promote Tasmania

Tourism Tasmania recently released its new domestic motivational brochure, with the aim of motivating consumers to make Tasmania their holiday destination. The inspiring travel brochure contains captivating stories and travel information on Tasmania and its regions , as well as stories written by well known Australian writers, key experiences, itinerary suggestions, maps, events and more.

The brochure is aimed at Tasmania’s key consumer markets of New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland and will be distributed online and through consumer shows and other related business development activity.

The brochure is A4 in size and contains 36 pages printed on Envi Gloss paper, a carbon neutral paper certified Greenhouse Friendly.

A total of 150,000 copies are available for distribution and will remain in the market for 18 months or longer, given that the brochure's content is not specific about prices and so will not date as quickly as similar publications.

The brochure, Discover Tasmania; Your Island of Inspiration will soon be available from the brochure section of the Discover Tasmania website.

Tasmania to go on International Flight Shopping List

An interlining agreement between Emirates and Virgin Blue airlines, puts Hobart and Launceston on the shopping list for international travellers. The new agreement will significantly boost Tasmania’s visibility as an end-point destination for travellers in our key international markets.

Travellers sitting in London, Dubai, Munich or any of Emirates’ extensive network of over 100 destinations in more than 60 countries will be able to see the two Tasmanian destinations on the Emirates booking system and book their travel through to Hobart and Launceston.

This means that international travellers can take advantage of simple, streamlined ticketing with the two airlines.

Tourism Tasmania's Chief Executive Officer, Felicia Mariani, said that Tourism Tasmania’s strategic approach to improving aviation services to Tasmania has produced strong relationships with all major carriers servicing the State.

 “We’ve consistently put forward compelling business cases to these partners to improve air access into and out of Tasmania, and the Virgin Blue/Emirates agreement demonstrates the importance of this work in delivering real outcomes for the State. Improving and maintaining access is a strategic goal shared by Government and the tourism industry and we’re committed to working together to build vital air services to the State,” Ms Mariani said.

Driftwood Strahan Villas Wins Environmental Award

Congratulations to Driftwood Strahan Villas on winning the Small Business Sustainability Award category in the recently announced Tasmanian Awards for Environmental Excellence.

Driftwood Strahan Villas is the first accommodation business in Strahan to obtain AAA Tourism 'green stars' and the only property in Strahan to be recognised through the Golden Chair Environmentally We Care program.

Owners Dennis and Helen White paid close attention to environmental solutions throughout the planning stages of their business. They installed insulation material under floors, walls and roof spaces, and positioned windows to ensure airflow for cooling during the summer months. The business also instigated a complete recycling system, even recycling all food scraps in the on-site worm farm.

In awarding the prize to Driftwood Strahan Villas, the judges said the winner has taken every effort to incorporate sustainable practice throughout the business. The judges also paid tribute to the commitment and outstanding leadership shown by other tourist operators in Strahan.

The awards are judged by the Banksia Environmental Foundation. All category winners are automatically nominated for the foundation's national awards to be announced in July 2009.

Tasmania Unbottled

This year's Tasmania Unbottled will be the largest ever showcase of Tasmanian wines held on mainland Australia. Visitors at events in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane will be able to taste world-class wines, sample some of Tasmania’s finest seasonal produce and meet some of the island’s winemakers.

Featuring over 130 award-winning and new 2009 vintage releases from 30 of the island’s established and emerging wine companies, Tasmania Unbottled will include tastings, masterclasses and wine 'flights' (extended tastings) alongside some of Tasmania’s freshest seasonal produce.

Sparkling wines from producers including Bay of Fires, Clover Hill, Freycinet, Jansz and Stefano Lubiana will feature alongside sassy sauvignon blancs and vibrant rieslings. Velvety pinot noirs, cabernets and some remarkable late harvest stickies will also make the leap across Bass Strait, including the recent international award winning 2006 Tamar Ridge Kayena Vineyard Botrytis Riesling.

Tasmania Unbottled will be held in Melbourne on Tuesday 4 August at the Intercontinental Melbourne The Rialto, in Sydney on Tuesday 11 August at the Museum of Contemporary Art and in Brisbane on Thursday 13 August at The City Hall.

Pre-registration for all three shows is essential. Tickets from $40. Registration comes with a chance to win an exclusive Tasmanian holiday.

For more information see www.winetasmania.com.au

Hotel Accommodation Sector Up in May

The Tasmanian Branch of the Australian Hotels Association (AHA) recently released the results of the AHA Hotel Occupancy survey for May 2009. The survey showed improved occupancy levels for the month compared with previous years, with the south of the state recording a 5.25% increase on the same period last year.

The Australian Hotels Association's monthly survey of AHA member accommodation uses a population sample of around 70,000 room nights per month.

AHA Tasmania General Manager, Mr. Steve Old, said that the Tasmanian hotel accommodation sector had experienced a very solid start to the year based on occupancy numbers but the industry was starting to slow down due to the notorious slower winter months.

"Although the occupancy levels were improved, the average room rates for the state for May were unchanged from the previous year, with the overall yield for May for the state increasing by $3.98 a room - a positive result overall.

"Much of the credit for our improved figures goes to Tourism Tasmania, TT Line and the tourism and hospitality industries for their combined efforts in promoting Tasmania as a holiday destination in what is becoming an extremely tough market” Mr. Old said.

New TravelSECURE Website

The Australian Government has a new traveller-friendly website, TravelSECURE, to help travellers better navigate the security checks at airports and ensure that they are adequately prepared for their trip.

TravelSECURE is an easy-to-use resource that consolidates traveller and transport security information, videos and fact sheets in one easy-to-find place. The website includes information about prohibited items, passenger and baggage screening, and liquids, aerosols and gels (LAGs) restrictions. Travellers will also find recommendations about travelling with children, laptops, medicines and sports equipment.

For more information visit http://travelsecure.infrastructure.gov.au

Planning a New Website

What are some of the essential things to do when creating or re-developing a website? And what's important when planning a website?

To find out about creating or planning your own website take a look at the tutorial Web Strategy: Cost and Timings [PDF 293KB], in the Tourism e-Kit.

The Tourism e-kit is a tourism-specific online marketing resource that helps operators benefit from online marketing opportunities in order to remain competitive. It contains information on e-marketing, search engine optimisation, website strategy and more.

The Tourism e-kit can be downloaded free of charge as separate tutorials or as an entire publication. Hardcopies of the Tourism E-kit can be purchased online from the TAFE South Australia website.

For more information contact Rebecca.King@tourism.tas.gov.au (North), Wayne.Bolton@tourism.tas.gov.au (North-West) or Dan.Sapier@tourism.tas.gov.au (South).

Tas e-Connect Update

As of 15 May 2009, a total of 200 operators across the State are now connected to the Open Booking Exchange (OBX) with 50 in Launceston, Tamar & the North, 33 in the East Coast, 25 in the North West Coast, 81 in Hobart and Surrounds and 11 operators in the Western Wilderness.

The Tourism e-kit, available on the Tourism Tasmania corporate website, has been invaluable in supporting these operators and others with their Tas e-connect decisions. Visits to the main tutorial index page have grown from 280 in January 2009 to 335 in April 2009.

In April, the most popular tutorials were Online Booking Systems [PDF 231KB], Web strategy: cost and timings [PDF 92KB] and Organising hosting for my site [PDF 100KB].

TigerTOUR Update

Recent additions to TigerTOUR.

Accommodation:

  • Southerly Tourist Accommodation – Clifton Beach
  • Country Style Cabin – Ross
  • Cherryblossom Cottage – Ross
  • Beachcomber House – Coles Bay
  • Dulverton Park – Oatlands
  • Woodbridge Hill Cottage – Woodbridge.

Tourism Tasmania’s Product Consultants can assist you to update your business details, email: TigerTOUR@tourism.tas.gov.au or phone: (03) 6230 8229.

Coming Events

Festival of Voices
09 - 12 July
A mid-winter gathering of singers and a celebration of the human voice.

See all events

 

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