Published Thursday, 04 December, 2008 at 10:30 AM
Minister for Tourism, Regional Development and Industry
The Honourable Desley Boyle
Tourism Whitsundays receives $79,000 State Government Christmas present
A pre-feasibility study for an upmarket safari style camp at Jonah Beach, new tourism opportunities for Proserpine and Bowen and a report exploring strategies to secure reliable air access will be the focus of a $79,000 special funding grant awarded to Tourism Whitsundays, Tourism Minister Desley Boyle announced today.
Ms Boyle said the grant, part of $1 million in State Government funding allocated to the state’s 14 regional tourism organisations, would be used for a range of projects.
“Tourism product in Airlie Beach and on the islands is well-developed and of a high standard,” Ms Boyle said.
“Our aim is for visitors to stay longer and travel further afield and there are numerous opportunities worth exploring along the Whitsunday mainland.
“These include identifying new tourism opportunities for Proserpine and Bowen and undertaking a pre-feasibility study for an upmarket safari camp or lodge at Jonah Beach.”
Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism and Member for Whitsundays Jan Jarratt said recent air capacity cuts to the Whitsundays had impacted heavily on the local tourism industry and, as part of the grant funding, Tourism Whitsundays would prepare a report providing insights and strategies to ensure reliable and continuing air access into the region.
”Both government and industry need to continue to raise the bar by looking for new opportunities and better ways of doing things,” she said.
Ms Jarratt said in the year to June 30 2008, 505,000 domestic and 228,000 international visitors spent time in the Whitsundays.
Of these, 338,000 domestic and 223,000 international visitors came specifically on holiday.
“Tourism is one of the key economic drivers for the region so it’s important for the local industry to continually look for ways to improve and develop fresh, new product,” she said.
“The $1 million in grant funding is a State Government commitment to fund tourism development initiatives regional tourism organisations would otherwise be unable to undertake.
“Regional tourism organisations across the state will use their allocations for a whole range of projects from new product feasibility studies to industry education programs.”
Ms Boyle said the funding was part of the State Government’s Queensland Tourism Strategy commitment to an additional $4 million in funding over four years for regional tourism organisations.
“Competition for the tourist dollar is increasingly fierce and it’s important for destinations to constantly look at ways to improve their visitor experience – be it investigating new product opportunities, increasing customer service levels or providing business advice and support to operators,” she said.
“I was pleased to see so many high-quality submissions and look forward to seeing these projects come to fruition.”
Further information:
Minister’s office – 3225 1005 or 0419 025 326
Tourism Queensland – 3535 5010
Ms Boyle said the grant, part of $1 million in State Government funding allocated to the state’s 14 regional tourism organisations, would be used for a range of projects.
“Tourism product in Airlie Beach and on the islands is well-developed and of a high standard,” Ms Boyle said.
“Our aim is for visitors to stay longer and travel further afield and there are numerous opportunities worth exploring along the Whitsunday mainland.
“These include identifying new tourism opportunities for Proserpine and Bowen and undertaking a pre-feasibility study for an upmarket safari camp or lodge at Jonah Beach.”
Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism and Member for Whitsundays Jan Jarratt said recent air capacity cuts to the Whitsundays had impacted heavily on the local tourism industry and, as part of the grant funding, Tourism Whitsundays would prepare a report providing insights and strategies to ensure reliable and continuing air access into the region.
”Both government and industry need to continue to raise the bar by looking for new opportunities and better ways of doing things,” she said.
Ms Jarratt said in the year to June 30 2008, 505,000 domestic and 228,000 international visitors spent time in the Whitsundays.
Of these, 338,000 domestic and 223,000 international visitors came specifically on holiday.
“Tourism is one of the key economic drivers for the region so it’s important for the local industry to continually look for ways to improve and develop fresh, new product,” she said.
“The $1 million in grant funding is a State Government commitment to fund tourism development initiatives regional tourism organisations would otherwise be unable to undertake.
“Regional tourism organisations across the state will use their allocations for a whole range of projects from new product feasibility studies to industry education programs.”
Ms Boyle said the funding was part of the State Government’s Queensland Tourism Strategy commitment to an additional $4 million in funding over four years for regional tourism organisations.
“Competition for the tourist dollar is increasingly fierce and it’s important for destinations to constantly look at ways to improve their visitor experience – be it investigating new product opportunities, increasing customer service levels or providing business advice and support to operators,” she said.
“I was pleased to see so many high-quality submissions and look forward to seeing these projects come to fruition.”
Further information:
Minister’s office – 3225 1005 or 0419 025 326
Tourism Queensland – 3535 5010