Australia bats first at CAPA India Aviation Summit

Tourism Australia is the country partner sponsor at the CAPA India Aviation Summit this week, leading a 20-strong ‘Team Australia’ delegation to showcase opportunities and establish why India - Australia is the next big thing in travel with over 200 influential attendees. Tourism Australia’s Managing Director John O’Sullivan attended the event and was involved in various speaking engagements and panel sessions including a ‘fireside chat’ with special guest cricket commentator and ‘Friend of Australia’, Harsha Bhogle. Last night the delegates were also treated to an Australia-inspired dinner curated by Indian celebrity chef Vicky Ratnani who has developed a passion for the land Down Under from his recent visits supported by Tourism Australia’s media hosting program.

Destination Australia Conference 2019

Registration is open for Australia's top tourism marketing conference to be held on Thursday 14 March at the new Howard Smith Wharves in Brisbane. Tailor-made for Australian tourism businesses the Destination Australia Conference will delve into the big issues and tackle today’s most important tourism marketing questions.

Discover Aboriginal Experiences welcomes new members

Seven businesses have joined the Discover Aboriginal Experiences already this year taking the collective to 43 members that between them offer over 130 Aboriginal guided experiences. All the experiences are Aboriginal guided and span the breadth of the Australian continent in both urban and regional locations. A full overview of all the members and resources are available at www.tourism.australia.com/aboriginal. Discover Aboriginal Experiences is a part of Tourism Australia’s Signature Experiences of Australia program that promotes outstanding tourism experiences within a variety of special categories.

UnDiscover Australia launches in the United Kingdom

High value British travellers are being given compelling new reasons to take a holiday Down Under with the launch of the UK version of Tourism Australia’s UnDiscover Australia campaign in partnership with Singapore Airlines. The promotion showcases slightly more unusual, unfamiliar and unexpected attractions and experiences as well as offering itinerary suggestions and special offers with Trailfinders, one of Tourism Australia’s key distribution partners in the UK. The content is supported by a broader digital campaign and print advertorials.

Parrtjima – A Festival of Light to shine in the Red Centre

The Red Centre will light up for the annual event Parrtjima – A Festival of Light, set to take over the outback town of Alice Springs from April 5 – 14. Visitors and locals will have plenty to look forward to with a spectacular ten-night celebration of art and culture, based on the theme ‘Language Expressions’ which recognises the UN Year of Indigenous Languages. A completely free event, Parrtjima is the only authentic Aboriginal light festival of its kind, showcasing the oldest continuous culture on the planet through the latest technology.

The wait is almost over, Hayman Island by InterContinental to open in July 2019

The highly anticipated Hayman Island by InterContinental Hotels and Resorts is now taking reservations from July 01 for 2019. Located on a pristine 400-hectare private island, the 166-room luxury resort has undergone a spectacular, multi-million-dollar refurbishment where guests will experience a truly immersive stay in one of the world’s most unique and iconic destinations. The luxurious hotel will feature new, world-class restaurants and bars alongside a plethora of bespoke experiences including a spa and remarkable event and meeting spaces. Hayman Island will officially open in July 2019.

A mix of modern art and history at Ballarat’s new Provincial Hotel

Ballarat’s 109-year old heritage listed Provincial Hotel has been transformed into a boutique hotel with adjoining restaurant, Lola. Inspired by a combination of relaxed coastal vibes with the sophistication of Victorian heritage, the two-level hotel is decorated with a mix of local antiques and contemporary art pieces. Head chef Shaun Thompson, who has previously worked at renowned restaurants Quay, Rockpool and Flying Fish will bring his talent to Lola’s European inspired kitchen offering a relaxed and elegant dining experience.

Scott Picket reimagines the dining experience with new venue, Estelle

Estelle by Scott Picket (ESP) and Estelle Bistro have been united to create a single restaurant and wine bar venue, Estelle. New to Melbourne’s Northcote suburb, Estelle celebrates relaxed and flexible dining where guests can indulge on a six-course tasting menu or just ‘pop in’ for a wine and a plate of food. Offering unique Modern Australian dishes like Kangaroo with Davidson plum, endine and macadamia, Scott Picket has been inspired to ‘mix it up’, have fun and cook from the heart with the rebirth of his newest project.

National tourism strategy consultation

Consultations are open until Friday 8 March on Australia’s next national tourism strategy, with industry stakeholders encouraged to have their say on a draft report developed by the Beyond Tourism 2020 Steering Committee. To assist industry with key points from the Report, an on-demand webinar has been published and registrations are currently open for a consultation meeting on 1 March in Launceston ahead of the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards.

Tourism Australia Industry Briefing VIC

Registration is open for the 2019 VTIC Visitor Economy Forum and Tourism Australia's Industry Briefing Victoria on Tuesday 26 February. The combined events will be held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. A fee applies for attending the morning VTIC Visitor Economy Forum. Attending Tourism Australia's Industry Briefing in the afternoon is free-of-charge.

Australian Accommodation Report December 2018

Tourism Australia has created a snapshot of Australian accommodation performance for the last year, providing an overview of the occupancy, average daily rates (ADR), revenue per available room (RevPAR) and room supply for each of Australia’s major hotel markets. Australia’s accommodation sector recorded growth in ADR and RevPAR for the year to December 2018, with the supply of rooms (up 2 per cent) just outpacing demand (up 1.8 per cent). Sydney and Melbourne continued to be the top two markets in terms of RevPAR over the period, while the highest rate of RevPAR growth (9.4 per cent) was seen in the Gold Coast.

The Northern Territory is being billed as ‘The world’s biggest art gallery’ in a new campaign featuring itineraries, experiences and events as well as special offers to encourage bookings in 2019 at www.territoryartstrail.com.au.

Tourism and Events Queensland is hosting Great Barrier Reef forums across Queensland throughout February to engage directly with tourism operators to share consumer insights as well as TEQ’s strategic focus.

New South Wales has delivered a Statewide Destination Management Plan which is designed to provide a high level framework to achieve alignment across NSW and assist coordinated delivery of the vision and goals for the NSW visitor economy.

Applications are open until Friday 22 February for Destination NSW's 2019 United Kingdom & Europe Roadshow taking place from Monday 13 May to Wednesday 22 May in Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg, Liverpool, Leyland, Manchester, London and Paris.

AirAsia will commence a new service four times per week between Bangkok and Brisbane in June and All Nippon Airways' new daily direct flight between Perth and Tokyo went on sale last week.

Adventure Tourism Victoria, the newly launched youth and backpacker industry association in Victoria, is hosting its launch event on Monday 25 March in St Kilda.

The South Australian Government has launched more than $3 million of wine tourism campaigns designed to attract international visitors to the state’s famous wine regions.

The Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) and Wine Australia have released their schedule of Growing Wine Tourism workshops for new and experienced wine businesses starting in March.

Brisbane Airport Corporation and Brisbane Marketing have teamed up for a campaign which will provide further benefits to the state's tourism industry as it looks to attract more visitors by promoting Brisbane as the gateway to Australia.

Destination Southern Highlands and the Southern Highlands Food & Wine Association have launched a new website, www.shcorporate.com.au, aimed at making key information for the region's tourism and food and wine sector industries more accessible.