Caravan and Camping Supershow a great opportunity!

The Whitsundays will be front and centre at the Caravan Camping Holiday Supershow in Sydney this week (April 24 to 29).

Now in its 50th year, the show brings together more than 300 exhibitors and thousands of products at the Rosehill Gardens Racecourse.

Visitors to the Supershow will see a huge range of exhibitors, hundreds of brands and a great range of displays showcasing the latest in caravans, campervans, motorhomes, tents, camper and tent trailers and, of course, holiday parks and destinations.

Tourism Whitsundays will be flying the flag for the region and its many caravan and camping sites and related products.

Tourism Whitsundays General Manager Tash Wheeler said it was a fantastic opportunity for the organisation to showcase the region’s holiday parks to a very engaged audience.

“It’s the ultimate way for potential visitors to check out what caravan and camping is all about in one great location,” she said.

“There’s something for everyone, whether new to caravan and camping and wanting to discover what’s available or an avid enthusiast wanting to update their equipment. It’s the perfect place for attendees to talk to an expert, compare products and plan their next holiday, which hopefully will be in one of the many great spots across the Whitsundays if we’ve got anything to do with it!

“Tourism Whitsundays attends the Caravan Camping Holiday Supershow every year, as well as shows in Melbourne and Brisbane, with the aim of not only getting people to come to the Whitsundays but getting them to explore many of the great spots a little further afield.

“Whether that be the beautiful beaches of Bowen, a spot of fishing at Lake Proserpine and a stop at the Proserpine Museum and many great boutiques, discovering the mining history of Collinsville or exploring Airlie Beach and the Islands.

Tourism Whitsundays' Kylie Forgione will be
flying the Whitsundays flag at the Caravan
Camping Holiday Supershow in Sydney

“We distribute the Whitsundays Visitor Guide and Holiday Planner to potential travellers at the shows, which features all our members and areas of the Whitsundays to inspire the consumer to put the Whitsundays on their travel itinerary.”

Attending the caravan and camping shows aligns with the Queensland Government’s ‘Drive Tourism Strategy’ (2013-15), which outlines ways to grow the state’s drive tourism market.

The drive tourism market is very important for Queensland’s tourism industry, accounting for approximately 70 per cent of the overnight leisure market, with the drive market tending to stay longer and have more stopovers per trip.

Drive tourism is also vital in facilitating regional dispersal and access to the Whitsundays’ many and varied visitor experiences.

Research into the economic contribution of touring visitors to Queensland found:

• Tourers directly contribute approximately $1.9bn to the Queensland economy per year ($1.2bn for domestic and $737m for international)
• Touring supports approximately 15,000 jobs annually (or 12 per cent of all tourism jobs) in the state
• 950,000 domestic visitors tour Queensland by road (6 per cent of all domestic visitors) and 360,000 international visitors take to the road (18 per cent of all international visitors to Queensland)
• Domestic tourers spend an average 11.8 nights in Queensland and spend an average $113 per night
• International tourers spend an average of 26.4 nights in Queensland and spend an average $76 per night

“The above figures show very clearly why this is such an important market for us,” continued Ms Wheeler.

“Attending the caravan and camping shows is one way Tourism Whitsundays can position the region as a premier drive destination, with excellent facilities, and secure our slice of this lucrative market segment.”