Tourism Australia Takes Out Top Awards At World Routes

Tourism Australia will spend in excess of A$100m with more than 20 airline partners in the next three years as it continues to significantly leverage its international marketing effort with key carriers serving Australia.

The commitment was made by Tourism Australia Managing Director Andrew McEvoy at this year's World Routes Marketing Awards in Las Vegas, where Australia's national tourism organisation was voted overall winner and also took out top honours in the 'best destination marketing' category.

Tourism Australia was recognised as the best in the world for its extensive marketing communications activities and joint campaigns with airlines, state tourism and Australian airport partners.

Mr McEvoy said the award rewarded the 'Team Australia' approach to aviation development, focused around longer term strategic agreements (MOUs), co-operative marketing partnerships and working with airlines, airports and STOs to support for new airline routes.

"Working collaboratively with our airline partners has been critical to the success we've enjoyed in recent years in telling Australia's tourism story to the world. This award is testament to the fact we have an approach which adds value and is working - with three consecutive years of inbound growth in numbers, nights and spending for Australia," he said.

International air capacity to Australia increased 4.8 per cent in 2012, to reach a record 29 million visitors movements.

In the past 12 months, inbound visitors grew by 5% to reach a record 6.3m (Australian Bureau of Statistics) while visitor nights increased 8% and spending by 6% (International Visitor Survey: year ending June 2013).

Mr McEvoy said that in the past 12 months seven new agreements had been reached with airline partners: Air China (A$6 million over three years), Air New Zealand (A$6 million over three years), Etihad Airways (A$6 million over 3 years), Virgin Australia (doubling existing A$6 million to A$12 million over three years), China Eastern (A$8.6 million), Emirates Airline (A$14.3 million for three years), China Southern in August (A$9 million).

"Tourism Australia now enjoys cooperative marketing relationships with most of the largest international carriers serving Australia from its key tourism markets.

Markets covered by these agreements align strongly with Tourism Australia's balanced portfolio approach, seen as critical to achieving the industry's Tourism 2020 strategic goal of increasing annual overnight visitor expenditure to up to A$140 billion by the end of the decade.

Mr McEvoy said Tourism Australia would continue to focus on the Asia region to grow additional capacity to Australia using additional funding provided under the Asia Marketing Fund.

The award was made by a panel of industry experts drawn from the Routes network as well as senior figures from the airline network planning community.