- 300 international travel agents sample the best of Tropical North Queensland
- Part of Tourism Australia's G'day Australia international tourism recovery
- The agents' familiarisation tours predicted to generate an immediate $2 million for TNQ's visitor economy.
International travel agents have touched down in Cairns for a week-long familiarisation tour of Tropical North Queensland's world-class tourism experiences.
Tourism Australia's G'day Australia is one of the first major trade events at the Cairns Convention Centre following a $176 million Palaszczuk Government expansion.
The event includes 300 international agents and holiday wholesalers taking 30 familiarisation tours of Queensland including 26 visitor experiences here in the Tropical North.
Specialising in selling Australian destinations to long-haul overseas holidaymakers, the 300 agents are predicted to generate an immediate $2 million for the visitor economy during their week-long stay in Cairns.
Familiarisation tours with Tropical North Queensland-based tourism operators include:
- Floating down a rainforest river with Back Country Bliss
- Scenic flights over the Great Barrier Reef with Nautilus Aviation
- Snorkelling with Calypso Reef Cruises
- Gourmet local produce tasting with Outback Tasting Tours
G'day Australia is the second significant tourism trade event to be held in Cairns in the last year, following ATEC Meeting Place in November and May's Australian Tourism Exchange.
This week's familiarisation tours were secured through the Palaszczuk Government's partnerships through TEQ with Tourism Tropical North Queensland and Tourism Australia.
Member for Cairns and Assistant Tourism Minister Michael Healy said:
"This week puts the best of Cairns, the Tropical North and Queensland on show to some of the world's most influential international travel agents and holiday wholesalers.
"We know right now international tourism is highly competitive.
"Having Tourism Australia's week-long G'day Australia trade event based here in Tropical North Queensland is an incredible head-start for rebuilding our international visitor economy.
"We want to make this week in the Tropical North an unforgettable experience for the travel agents who sell our world-class visitor experiences to international holidaymakers.
"It gives agents the first-hand knowledge they need to package reef, rainforest and cultural bucket list itineraries.
"Major events like G'day Australia are exactly why the Palaszczuk Government invested $176 million in additions to the Cairns Convention Centre."
Tourism Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said:
"Every one of the 300 travel agents in the Tropical North and Queensland are an important opportunity to show the world why this State is Australia's favourite holiday destination.
"Together with Queensland's ongoing international marketing partnerships, G'day Australia in Cairns is part of building an $11 billion-a-year international visitor economy.
"Maximising Queensland's international tourism opportunities ahead of the 2032 Games is a clear goal of the industry led Beyond Tourism 2032 roadmap and that's exactly what this week is about."
Tourism Australia Executive General Manager of Commercial and Business Events Australia, Robin Mack said:
"The travel agents taking part in G'day Australia already know a lot about Australia through the Aussie Specialist Program, but there is nothing like experiencing the breadth and depth of our tourism offering first-hand, to give them confidence to sell more, and that is what the familiarisation program does."
"When our Aussie Specialists have joined events like this in the past, 100 per cent of agents have walked away saying they intended to sell more of Australia and that is what we need as we work to encourage even more travellers to plan and book an Australian holiday."
Tourism and Events Queensland CEO, Patricia O'Callaghan said:
"This is the trifecta for Queensland in hosting the industry's biggest trade events and Cairns is ready to roll out the welcome mat for the second time in 12 months.
"Events like G'day Australia are essential in growing our international market and we will continue to build on strong partnerships to maximise opportunities for Queensland."
Tourism Tropical North Queensland CEO Mark Olsen said:
"Today these front-line travel agents are taking part in diverse itineraries experiencing the Great Barrier Reef, the Wet Tropics rainforest and Indigenous culture highlighting the region's spectacular World Heritage Areas and world-class tourism infrastructure.
"We are sharing as much as we can of the region's 2500 products and experiences to enable the Aussie Specialists to understand the destination's story and share it with the travellers they advise."
