Biggest stars on the planet set to deliver boom for Brisbane tourism

Brisbane’s major events industry is set to boom with new data revealing performances from some of the world’s biggest musical acts will inject tens of millions of dollars into the city’s tourism economy in the second half of 2018.

Tourism Industry Development Minister Kate Jones said performances from Celine Dion, Katy Perry, Pink, Cher and Shania Twain would draw a total crowd of more than 160,000 people – generating tens of millions of dollars for the local economy.

“This is proof that Queensland is the major events capital of Australia,” she said.

“Celine Dion lured great crowds to Brisbane. With performances from Katy Perry, Pink, Cher and Shania Twain to come this year, Brisbane is well and truly stamping its authority on the global stage when it comes to its capacity to host major events.

“The great news is that tickets are still selling quickly for Cher and Shania Twain who we know will draw strong crowds in September and December.

“We’ve just hosted the Commonwealth Games and we’re on a mission to leverage our new reputation as an events destination to lure more world-class acts to Queensland.”

Brisbane’s stellar musical line-up includes:

•          Celine Dion (July)                             18,648 attendees
•          Katy Perry (August)                          19,086 attendees expected
•          Pink (August)                                   88,010 attendees expected
•          Cher (September)                            16,000 tickets sold (still selling strongly)
•          Shania Twain (December)                 19,500 tickets sold (still selling strongly

Ms Jones said major events were a crucial part of the government’s strategy to grow Queensland’s $25 billion tourism industry.

“The Palaszczuk Government has doubled the value of Queensland’s events calendar which is tipped to generate about $780 million this year,” she said.

“We’re investing in major events because we know events like these support our economy and create tourism jobs in Queensland.”

AEG Chairman Harvey Lister said the data released today was a testament to the strength of Brisbane’s growing major events sector.

“The biggest stars on the planet want to perform in Brisbane,” he said.

“This is a sector that’s worth hundreds of millions of dollars for our tourism industry and thanks to great crowds like the ones we’ve seen at Celine Dion recently, this sector will only continue to grow.

“Tickets are selling fast for Cher and Shania Twain later in the year.

“I’ll continue to work closely with the government to ensure we keep luring the biggest stars to perform here in Brisbane.”

Mr Lister said tickets were also selling strongly for the Queensland Firebirds.

ENDS

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