State Government’s Cairns trifecta delivering a world destination

Three adjoining Cairns State Government projects are set to ignite the tourism and convention industry in the Tropical North, Tourism Industry Development Minister Kate Jones said today.

Ms Jones will meet with Cairns Regional Council Mayor Bob Manning in coming weeks to discuss progress of the state’s Global Tourism Hub opportunity on Ports North’s Cityport land.

But Ms Jones said a GTH would be part of a wider infrastructure spend by the Palaszczuk Government including the adjoining Trinity Inlet upgrade and the Convention Centre expansion – all set to give the local tourism industry a major boost in coming years.

“These projects will transform the face of Cairns,” she said.

“It’s an exciting time for the Tropical North to have three side-by-side state-sponsored projects progressing at the one time.

“Combined, these initiatives will see millions of dollars in new infrastructure which will make Cairns an international hub for tourism and events.

"Tourism injects about $2.5 billion a year into the Cairns economy and supports 23,300 jobs – that’s more than 17 per cent of the workforce in Tropical North Queensland. We know these numbers will increase greatly in coming years and infrastructure is an important part of growing this industry.”

Mr Dick said environmental approvals recently given by the Coordinator-General for a major upgrade of the Cairns port would allow a significant increase in the size and number of cruise ships travelling to Cairns.

“Overseas experience suggests the cruise ship project will deliver an $850 million boost to Far North Queensland tourism, with up to 100 extra cruise ships to berth annually in the Port of Cairns by 2031,” he said.

“This will potentially result in a tripling of the number of passenger days spent in Cairns each year due to cruise ship tourism – an increase of 225,000 passenger days each year by 2031.

Tourism Industry Development Minister Kate Jones said Global Tourism Hubs were an important part of the Palaszczuk Government’s strategy to deliver world-class tourism infrastructure for Queensland.

“Our GTH opportunity sits right in the middle of the State’s $120 million upgrade to the Port of Cairns and the $176 million expansion of the Cairns Convention Centre,” she said.

“These projects will be game-changers for Cairns and for Far North Queensland tourism.

“Backed by the ever-improving Cairns Airport and our efforts to secure more international carriers, these projects are about attracting more visitors to the Tropical North - that means more jobs for locals.

Cairns Regional Council Mayor Bob Manning said given cooperation and support between the State and council, the big winner will be Cairns and tourism development.

“This is backed up by MOU between the Tourism Industry Development’s Special Projects Unit and the Council in relation to progressing the GTH’s development,” he said.

“We’ve received strong interest from local and international firms seeking to create a world-class and visionary GTH in the Tropical North.

“Tourism in Queensland is a $25 billion industry and projects like the Tropical North Global Tourism Hub will create new jobs and attract investment.”

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