Queensland and Uber partner to promote the Great Barrier Reef

The world’s first rideshare submarine was launched last week in a landmark partnership between Tourism and Events Queensland (TEQ) and Uber to showcase the diversity and wonder of the Great Barrier Reef with the world. From 27 May to 18 June, riders can book a ride on scUber through the Uber app to explore world's largest coral reef system at depths of up to 30 metres. “The Great Barrier Reef remains one of Australia’s strongest tourism draw cards, attracting almost three million visitors each year and ranked highly in appeal amongst international visitors,” said Tourism Australia Managing Director John O’Sullivan. TEQ has published a guide for industry on how to leverage the campaign.

TA social media updates

Tourism Australia’s social media team is preparing a series of video updates for industry and is inviting Australian tourism businesses to nominate topics of interest. The survey is open until Friday 7 June.

Training workshops held for top US travel advisors

Top travel advisors from across the western United States received training on selling Australia at the annual GTM West (Global Travel Marketplace) in Las Vegas this month. The training sessions used Dundee themed content to engage the agents and destination highlights from the Aussie Specialist Ambassadors who recently visited Australia were also presented. The event also provided an opportunity for Tourism Australia’s distribution team to meet and gain insights from the highly vetted advisors, most of whom are home-based. In particular, there was strong interest in Corroboree West 2019 and positive feedback for the Aussie Specialist Program planning tools.

Americans invited to visit the set of Dundee with Virgin Australia

Virgin Australia and Tourism Australia have teamed up to entice Americans to go behind the scenes and ‘visit the set of Dundee’. The campaign draws people who are considering Australia for a holiday to Australia.com/fly to get inspired and discover more while users who show intent to book a trip are directed to VirginAustralia.com/Dundee . Consumers can find travel deals from About Australia, Aspire Down Under and Goway on both sites. The campaign will be promoted across digital, out of home and email marketing throughout June.

WA's eye-catching Pink Lake to entice French travellers Down Under

A large and striking image of Western Australia’s Lake Hillier, also known as the Pink Lake, has been placed on the outside of the Australian Embassy in Paris. A reference to the famous Edith Piaf song “La Vie en rose” has been used with the remarkable image of the lake. The banner on the Embassy is updated twice a year and is meant to entice Parisians and visitors to think about Australia, ideally research the location and take photos and share. The project is a joint initiative between the Australian Embassy Paris and Tourism Australia and was originally initiated during the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

An exciting upgrade for Village Roadshow Theme Parks on the Gold Coast, QLD

Village Roadshow Theme Parks  have announced an upcoming $50 million spend to their popular Gold Coast theme park portfolio including Sea World, Movie World and Wet’n’Wild. The upgrade will include thrilling new attractions for the Gold Coast parks, enhanced guest experiences and maintaining the current high standards of animal welfare, technology and plant integrity across the portfolio. The highlight of the upgrade will be the thrilling New Atlantis precinct for Sea World, featuring three new multi-million-dollar attractions by late-2020.

Sydney’s CBD set to be voco Hotels latest home, NSW

InterContinental Hotel Group have announced the opening of a new voco Hotel in the heart of Sydney’s CBD. Scheduled to open in 2020, the voco Sydney Central Hotel will include 301 premium guest rooms designed around the concept of ‘me time’ and an eye-catching ‘green waterfall’ falling from the rooftop of the 17-storey tower. The new hotel will be conveniently located on Pitt Street and marks the fifth voco property to open in Australia since the brands global launch in June of 2018.

Shene Estate in the spirit of World Gin Day with free tastings, TAS

In celebration of World Gin Day on 8 June, family-owned and operated Tasmanian distillery Shene Estate will open their road side stall for free tastings. From 10am-4pm visitors can enjoy a tasting of Shene Estate’s Poltergeist gin while learning about the unique distilling process from members of the family. Tours of the estate are also available for those looking to explore the historic charm of the convict-forged property. Shene Estate is Australia’s first distillery to be awarded Platinum status at the San Francisco World Spirit Competition (2019) and is a 30-minute drive north of Hobart.

Don’t miss the colours and creativity of Vivid Sydney, NSW

The bright lights and colour of the highly anticipated Vivid Sydney Festival are finally here. Operating until the 15 June, the iconic harbour festival will place a spotlight on Sydney and reinforce its position as the home of light, creativity, courting edge music and engaging conversation. Guests can purchase tickets to exclusive Vivid events, explore the hidden gems at The Rocks Night Market or simply take a stroll around the harbour and be amazed by Sydney’s vibrant city lights. 

Australia Marketplace South East Asia 2019

Seller applications are open until Thursday 13 June for Australia Marketplace South East Asia 2019, formerly known as Walkabout South East Asia. The event will be held in Kuala Lumpur from 30 September to 2 October and includes pre-scheduled appointments between buyers and sellers, and opportunities to network at the official event functions. Australia Marketplace South East Asia is an opportunity for the Australian tourism industry to establish business relationships with key qualified travel agencies and tour operators from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

Australia Marketplace UK & Europe 2019

Applications are open until Friday 31 May for Australian tourism businesses to participate in the inaugural Australia Marketplace UK & Europe 2019 from 30 to 31 October in London. The event is an opportunity to establish relationships with key qualified travel agencies and tour operators and includes two days of pre-scheduled appointments as well as a dinner and awards night. This event replaces the European Product Workshop as well as Tourism Australia’s presence at World Youth and Student Travel Conference and World Travel Market. A Youth and Adventure Roadshow 2019 will follow the event from Friday 1 to Thursday 7 November.

Tourism awards nominations open

Nominations are open for 2019 tourism awards in Tasmania, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, Northern Territory, Victoria, New South Wales and the Canberra Region. Tourism Australia is a sponsor of the State and Territory Tourism Awards as well as the national Qantas Australian Tourism Awards. The Australian Tourism Awards programs along with the Australian Tourism Accreditation Program (ATAP) and Star Ratings now all come under the Quality Tourism Framework.

Advance Program applications open

Applications are now open until 1 July for the 2019/20 Advance Program. The program offers the Australian business events industry the opportunity to leverage Tourism Australia’s international marketing expertise to grow the number of delegates to confirmed business events taking place in Australia as well as the number of international business events secured for Australia. Tourism Australia’s dedicated business events unit Business Events Australia manages the program.

Youth and Adventure Roadshow 2019

Applications are open until Friday 14 June for 32 Australian tourism businesses to join the Youth and Adventure Roadshow 2019 that will visit London, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Munich from Friday 1 to Thursday 7 November. While youth product is a focus of this event, adventure suppliers of all demographics are invited to apply due to the variety of travel agencies and wholesalers who will be attending. The roadshow follows the inaugural Australia Marketplace UK & Europe 2019 from 30 to 31 October in London. Tourism Australia has appointed Real Aussie Adventures to organise the event.

The 2019 theme for National Reconciliation Week, which runs from 27 May to 3 June, is "Grounded in Truth, Walk Together with Courage."

SuperYacht Group Great Barrier Reef was named Australian superyacht industry service provider of the year at the Australian Superyacht Industry Marine Awards.

Applications are open for ATEC’s Emerging Leaders of Inbound Tourism Excellence (ELITE) program for both Emerging Leaders as well as Mentors.

The Accommodation Association of Australia has appointed Dean Long as Chief Executive Officer to replace the outgoing CEO Richard Munro.

Parks Australia is seeking requests for tender until Friday 31 May for a consultant to develop a tourism master plan for Kakadu National Park.

Destination NSW is holding free Aboriginal Cultural Tourism Experience Development Workshops in partnership with the NSW Aboriginal Tourism Operators Council (NATOC) on 29-30 May in Dubbo, 3-4 June in Moree and 17-21 in Broken Hill.

TEQ's annual Conversations with Industry series will commence around the state again next month, starting on the Fraser Coast on Thursday 6 June.

Registration is open for the Exhibition & Event Association of Australasia Leaders Forum and Conference to be held on Wednesday 5 and Thursday 6 June at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Registration is open for Queensland's Future Tourism Conference on Thursday 13 June in Brisbane.

Registration is open for the Australian Tourism Export Council's National Wine Tourism Conference, Beyond the Barrel, from Tuesday 18 to Thursday 20 June in South Australia.

Registration is open for the VIC Tourism Conference on Wednesday 17 and Thursday 18 July in Geelong.

Australian tourism operators can use the promo code BKTOAUS19 to receive a 20% discount to attend the Arival Conference, an event for the creators and sellers of tours, activities and attractions throughout the APAC Region to be held from 24–26 June in Bangkok.

Registration is open for ATEC Meeting Place to be held from Monday 25 to Wednesday 27 November in Brisbane.