Qantas partnership to lure more visitors to Queensland

Queensland has struck a new deal with Qantas to attract even more international visitors to the state.

Minister for Tourism and Major Events Kate Jones today announced the three-year agreement with Qantas would help promote Queensland in growing international markets.

Ms Jones said Tourism and Events Queensland’s partnership with Qantas would focus on Asia, the United States, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

“We are thrilled one of the world’s iconic airlines will continue to partner with Tourism and Events Queensland across international and Australian markets to ensure Queensland is the first choice for travellers,” she said.

“TEQ and Qantas will work together to further enhance Queensland’s global reputation as the best destination on earth through strategic marketing and digital campaigns, cross-promotion activity and media and trade opportunities.

“The agreement will promote Queensland as Australia’s premier tourist and major event destination, growing inbound and domestic traffic to major cities and regional areas.

“This in turn will maximise the economic impact of visitors to Queensland and create local jobs.”

Ms Jones said international and domestic tourism in Queensland was booming with visitors spending a record of close to $20 billion in the last year with more than 22 million visitors coming to the state.

“International visitors are coming in record numbers and growth is predicted to continue for years to come – particularly from China where we know the middle class is set to grow exponentially in the next decade,” she said.

Qantas International CEO Gareth Evans said the national carrier serviced more destinations in Queensland than in any other state in Australia, bringing millions of business and premium leisure visitors to Queensland every year.

“As the largest private investor in Australian tourism, it’s a really exciting time for us to be investing to attract more visitors to Queensland, particularly with the relatively low Australian dollar and the number of visitors from markets like Hong Kong, China and the US at an all-time high,” Mr Evans said.

“In the last three years, we have seen a double digit percentage increase in the number of travellers from Asia to Queensland. Over the last 12 months in particular, the number of tourists from Japan have increased beyond our expectations following the introduction of direct daily flights between Brisbane and Tokyo.

“We know that online and social media campaigns are really effective at inspiring more people to travel to Australia, so that will be a big part of our focus.”

The new agreement includes joint domestic and international marketing activity between TEQ and Qantas including intensive campaigns in Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Japan, USA, UK and Indonesia.

Media: Matt Jutsum 0408 998 940