Tag Archives: Tourism Australia

Tourism Australia, the Australian Government agency responsible for attracting international visitors to Australia for leisure and business events, this year celebrates five decades of promoting Australia in key markets across the globe. On this occasion, Tourism Australia announced the tourism programme for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, in the presence of ace shooter and former Olympic and Commonwealth Gold Medalist, Abhinav Bindra. The Games will be held in Gold Coast. To celebrate Tourism Australia’s 50-year milestone a number of key distribution partners in India have developed special the 50th Anniversary packages, offering significant value-adds to travelers. Tourism Australia Managing Director, John O’Sullivan said, “Our global consumer campaigns such as ‘There’s Nothing Like Australia’ – most recently brought to life with its ‘Aquatic and Coastal’ and ‘Restaurant Australia’ iterations – continue to evolve to showcase some of the very best attractions, experiences and food and wine options Australia has on offer for travellers. However, Australia’s success would not be possible without the incredible support and passion of our trade partners with whom we work with across the globe. In India, we are amplifying our marketing initiatives to reach and attract our growing target audience of prospective travellers to Australia. India is currently the 8th largest inbound market for Australia, and is expected to be within the top 5 markets by 2025, with around 500,000 Indian visitors annually. The increasing visitor numbers from India confirms that we are well placed to achieve our long-term Tourism 2020 targets for arrivals and out of region market share for India, well ahead of time.” Fanatic Sports was also present at the event which is the authorised ticket reseller for the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Raghav Gupta, Founder …

The 15th edition of the India Travel Mission (ITM) by Tourism Australia started today in Pune. The four-day event will take place from August 16-19 at JW Marriott Pune. This year’s ITM witnessed 84 sellers including 14 new sellers and 110 buyers. Tourism Australia plans to target three lakh Indian tourist arrivals this year. India currently is at 9th position in terms of passenger arrivals and 8th in terms of market spend.

Tourism Australia, in partnership with Destination New South Wales, marked the 38th year of its annual travel and tourism business-to-business event – the Australian Tourism Exchange (ATE) at the brand new ICC (International Convention Centre) in Sydney. The event took place from May  15-18, witnessing an attendance of over 2,500 travel industry delegates from over 30 countries with participation from 20 Indian travel companies. This is also marked Tourism Australia’s 50th anniversary. Commenting on the occasion, Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia, said, “ATE plays a critical role in facilitating productive links between Australia’s tourism providers and the global distribution network and has an enormous economic impact. Arrivals from India have seen a significant hike in the last few years and platforms such as the ATE play a huge role in making that happen. Over 20 buyers representing as many companies from India attended ATE17 providing them an incredible opportunity to connect with Australian tourism businesses. We believe this platform will help them curate the best of Australian holiday experiences for our Indian travel enthusiasts. We’re confident that ATE will continue to bolster Australia’s inbound tourism sector and grow visitor economy.” India is currently Australia’s ninth-largest inbound tourism market, with over 260,000 visitors spending A$ 1.24 bn as on December 2016. Companies such as Ascon Travels, Cox & Kings, Cutting Edge, Discover your World, FCM Travel Solutions, Grand Travel Planners, Pathfinders Holidays, Peekay Holidays, Pristine Travels, SOTC, Vibrant Holidays, Voyageur Lifestyles, among others, represented India at ATE17, a testimony to the growing popularity of Australia as a tourism destination for Indians. ATE is Australia’s annual business-to-business tourism travel trade event, focussed on building future tourism opportunities for …

Tourism Australia has commenced a fresh phase of its marketing initiatives across the television, digital and print platforms. At the helm of the campaign is a television commercial (TVC) featuring a glorious montage of stunning locales, scenic coastline and incredible tourism experiences Down Under. The TVC showcases the pristine Great Barrier Reef, Kangaroo Island, Great Ocean Road, Sydney Harbour Bridge and much more with its enchanting visuals highlighting the beauty and natural landscape of Australia. The commercial will be rolled out across 30 television channels including English entertainment, infotainment, lifestyle, news and select Hindi General Entertainment channels. Tourism Australia will also capitalise on the upcoming India – Australia cricket test series through various media initiatives. In addition to television, high impact advertisements will be featured in the print space in collaboration with key distribution partners, including SOTC, Mercury Travels, TUI, Flightshop, D Pauls, Kulin Kumar Holidays, among others. Another major focus of the tactical, offer-driven campaign will be on digital, consisting of regular display ads and content, with aspirational destination imagery and creative renditions, all inviting travel enthusiasts to book a holiday to Australia at unbeatable prices. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager – India & Gulf, Tourism Australia said, “Our latest campaign showcasing Australia’s aquatic and coastal scenery has truly captured the attention of the Indian traveller, and reaffirmed our research indications that international visitors enjoy our aquatic or coastal environments in some way – from snorkeling to simply going to the beach. In our upcoming marketing activities, we will leverage uniquely Australian experiences to entice more travellers to choose Australia as their next holiday destination.”

Tourism Australia and Singapore Airlines have joined hands with the Australian States of Queensland, South Australia, Victoria and Northern Territory, to offer Indian travel enthusiasts subsidised airfares to Australia. The offer features an all-inclusive return economy fare from India starting at Rs. 60,000, with an additional S$20 Changi shopping voucher redeemable during transit, and an A$30 voucher redeemable at Brisbane airport for the first 150 passengers to fly into the city. Aimed at driving visitation to Australia, the campaign will be promoted across television, print and digital platforms. The tactical offer will be live until 15 March 2017 for travel between March 1, 2017 and February 15, 2018, subject to applicable terms and conditions. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia said “We at Tourism Australia have always perceived air connectivity as one of the strongest pillars for tourism growth, and this has led us to continually focus on our relationship with our airline partners. Singapore Airlines, one of our strongest long standing airline partners, with a significant market share, is indeed a strong partner to promote Australia as a preferred holiday destination, and the campaign devised with them successfully showcases Australia’s myriad of tourism offerings as well as Singapore Airline’s extensive flight network. This initiative is sure to entice Indian travellers to book their next trip Down Under.” Singapore Airlines connects India to key Australian gateways such as Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. The campaign also involves a tie up with SilkAir, the regional wing of Singapore Airlines (SQ), which provides connectivity to Cairns and Darwin. Australia has witnessed a continued growth trajectory in tourist arrivals from India. For the year ended (YE) November 2016 …

Tourism Australia has yet again witnessed noteworthy growth statistics from Maharashtra, retaining the State’s position as a key tourism source market in India. As of year ended (YE) September 2016, Maharashtra has recorded an increase of 25 per cent in tourist arrivals, and a remarkable increase of 18 per cent in spend. The state witnessed 53,800 visitors to Australia, contributing A$232 mn (Rs. 1,160 crores) to the Australian economy, with an average spend of Rs 2.15 lacs per person. Total arrivals from India for the year ended November 2016 were recorded at 256,400, an increase of 11.5 per cent relative to the same period the previous year, making India the 9th largest inbound market for Australia. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia, said, “We are extremely delighted that all our focused consumer and distribution initiatives in Maharashtra have paid off, resulting in a stupendous increase in arrivals and spend from the state. Going forward, we are positive that our extensive analysis of the market, in tandem with our key distribution partners and airlines, will provide us with the requisite insights to modify and transform our approach to cater to the requirements of travellers from Maharashtra. We will continue to reach out to our audience through a mix of traditional and evolving communication platforms. Maharashtra has undoubtedly been our fastest growing market and we will put in our best efforts to keep up the momentum and further drive visitation to Australia.” Tourism Australia has undertaken several focused activities in Maharashtra. One such successful association was that with Veena World. As part of the collaboration, eminent Marathi television and film stars who travelled to Australia for MAAI (Marathi Achievers …

Travellers from India continue to be enticed by the diverse attractions and stunning tourism experiences on offer in Australia. In 2015, the destination achieved a milestone when it welcomed over 200,000 Indian travellers during the year. Adding another feather to it’s cap, Australia has now notched an impressive 253,100 arrivals from India as of year ended (YE) October 2016. This number reflected a growth of 11.3 per cent vis-a-vis the same period last year, making India the ninth largest inbound market for arrivals to Australia. The month of October 2016 alone saw 20,400 Indian arrivals to the destination, an impressive growth of 24 per cent over the same period in 2015. Most importantly, the holiday purpose of visit have driven the overall market growth with an impressive 20 per cent and 19 per cent increase in arrivals and spend respectively. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia, said, “Marketing activities, in collaboration with key distribution and airline partners, an increased thrust on digital initiatives, integration on leading television shows, and improved air connectivity between the two countries, have been key factors in boosting travel to Australia.” The Tourism Forecasting Committee (TFC) has predicted 265,000 visitors from India for the Jul 2016 – Jun 17 period, a 9.6 per cent increase over 2015-16. Arrivals from India are expected to perform well with an average annual financial year growth rate of 6.4 per cent through to the financial year 2021-22.

The latest IVS report released by Tourism Australia revealed that the expenditure made by Indians on their visits to South Australia has jumped up to a total of AUD 23 million as of June 2016 from AUD 21 million in June 2015. The State saw 13,000 Indian visitors during the year with an average spend of approximately AUD 1,799 per traveller. The healthy growth in expenditure by almost eight per cent indicates a growing interest among Indian travellers for South Australia as a holiday destination. Dana Urmonas, Regional Director-Southeast Asia & India, South Australian Tourism Commission (SATC) says, “India as a market holds great potential for us. We had a record number of visitors last year, by hosting the ICC World Cup Match between India and Pakistan in Adelaide. We are happy to see that Indian travellers are starting to recognise Adelaide as a holiday destination and are keen to leverage the momentum built. With the on-going marketing initiatives planned for India we are extremely positive about a progressive growth in visitor and expenditure numbers over the next few years.”

Looking at the increased number of Indian tourists to Australia, Tourism Australia is planning to increase direct flights to the country from major Indian cities as part of their marketing campaign in metro cities. Indian arrivals to Australia continued to reflect the positive trend with 21 per cent growth in year ending June 2016 as compared to June 2015, making India the ninth largest inbound market for Australia in terms of tourist arrivals. Australia witnessed the maximum number of tourists from Delhi, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. John O’Sullivan, Managing Director, Tourism Australia, said, “Australia will lobby for more flights connecting India. The promotion with regard to India will be focused on three points – lobbying for more flights, designing tourism products that will give more value for the tourists and to integrate content of promotion by adding local flavor.” Scoot Airlines, which offers competitive fares and quick connection from Singapore, has eased the travel woes a bit. This has also increased the volume of tourists in recent months. However, there is very little scope to increase flights via Singapore, because Singapore Airlines has almost exhausted their quota of flights into India. Source: Times of India

The recently-concluded India Travel Mission (ITM) 2016 organised by Tourism Australia every year saw a record number of new suppliers from Australia. This year, which was the 14th edition of ITM, there were at least 17 suppliers that had never participated in any sales mission to India before. This included several participants like Scoot, Visit Canberra, Tourism Barossa, Australian Wine Tour Company, Featherdale Wildlife Park, Sand Dune Adventures, Fire Truck Tours, and Wildlife  Coast Cruises, among others. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia, said, “Over the last few years, ITM has proven to be a great learning tool for us to grow and strengthen our travel trade outreach in the country. The new Australian products participating at the ITM this year signifies the growing importance of India as a key market for Australia. Tourism Australia is focusing on the Indian market with increased marketing initiatives to reach out to our target audience. The increasing tourist arrivals from India validates that we are heading in the right direction to achieve our India 2020 Strategic goals.” The destination welcomed over 241,700 Indians as of year ended June 2016. Tourism Australia also used this platform to promote the destination through its virtual reality assets, thus showcasing its latest global campaign on Aquatic and Coastal to the Indian trade attending ITM 2016.