Ms SACILOTTO - 2006-08-31
China is emerging as an important tourist market for Australia. Can you please inform the House on recent initiatives to increase awareness of the Northern Territory in China?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Port Darwin for her question. It is important to target new markets for our tourism. We want to keep our numbers growing. Both the domestic and international tourism market are growing substantially now, but China is a very important market. It is being targeted by Australia. Last year around 200 000 Chinese tourists visited Australia and there is a determination from the federal government and each state and territory to grow those numbers.
The Northern Territory is specifically targeting the high yielding segments of the Chinese market. We have recently started a trade campaign to raise awareness of the Northern Territory in southern China. That campaign started in the middle of this month and runs until mid-October. Critical to the Chinese market is Tiger Air. Now that you can fly so cheaply from here to Singapore, and then Singapore into southern China, there is a real opportunity to grow that Chinese tourism market for the Territory.
Tourism NT has partnered with southern China’s leading travel agency, CGZL International Travel Service. It has more than 100 retail outlets servicing the southern China economic zone. That is an area with millions of people. CGZL has agreed to trial new packages, working with our key airlines, not just Tiger but also Qantas. Two new packages have been developed, one for Central Australia and one for the Top End. The package to Central Australia is five days. It is called the Red Centre Dreaming, a journey to Central Australia flying with Qantas. The second package is a seven day Secrets of Australia’s Outback Tours, and that is flying with Tiger Air.
These packages have been developed very closely with Joseph Sze who is our tourism trade rep in China. It should be a good campaign. It has print media ads, it has online and point of sale at retail travel agents. We are also going to be on a subway in Guangzhou. We will have a subway carriage with the camel and Uluru on it. I like the idea of bits of the Territory travelling around the Guangzhou subway. It provides us with an opportunity to expose consumers to new destinations. Chinese travellers know about the east coast. With its significant destinations, particularly the Gold Coast, Sydney, Brisbane and Cairns. We need to open them up to what is the real experience of Australia, the Northern Territory.
This partnership with CGZL will be a good one I hope that awareness of the Northern Territory will grow in that important southern China market. It does not cost much money to do this. It is an investment. Overall, the campaign is $55 000, about half of that is from Territory taxpayers. It has started and I hope this is a good, first, solid step into the Chinese market.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Port Darwin for her question. It is important to target new markets for our tourism. We want to keep our numbers growing. Both the domestic and international tourism market are growing substantially now, but China is a very important market. It is being targeted by Australia. Last year around 200 000 Chinese tourists visited Australia and there is a determination from the federal government and each state and territory to grow those numbers.
The Northern Territory is specifically targeting the high yielding segments of the Chinese market. We have recently started a trade campaign to raise awareness of the Northern Territory in southern China. That campaign started in the middle of this month and runs until mid-October. Critical to the Chinese market is Tiger Air. Now that you can fly so cheaply from here to Singapore, and then Singapore into southern China, there is a real opportunity to grow that Chinese tourism market for the Territory.
Tourism NT has partnered with southern China’s leading travel agency, CGZL International Travel Service. It has more than 100 retail outlets servicing the southern China economic zone. That is an area with millions of people. CGZL has agreed to trial new packages, working with our key airlines, not just Tiger but also Qantas. Two new packages have been developed, one for Central Australia and one for the Top End. The package to Central Australia is five days. It is called the Red Centre Dreaming, a journey to Central Australia flying with Qantas. The second package is a seven day Secrets of Australia’s Outback Tours, and that is flying with Tiger Air.
These packages have been developed very closely with Joseph Sze who is our tourism trade rep in China. It should be a good campaign. It has print media ads, it has online and point of sale at retail travel agents. We are also going to be on a subway in Guangzhou. We will have a subway carriage with the camel and Uluru on it. I like the idea of bits of the Territory travelling around the Guangzhou subway. It provides us with an opportunity to expose consumers to new destinations. Chinese travellers know about the east coast. With its significant destinations, particularly the Gold Coast, Sydney, Brisbane and Cairns. We need to open them up to what is the real experience of Australia, the Northern Territory.
This partnership with CGZL will be a good one I hope that awareness of the Northern Territory will grow in that important southern China market. It does not cost much money to do this. It is an investment. Overall, the campaign is $55 000, about half of that is from Territory taxpayers. It has started and I hope this is a good, first, solid step into the Chinese market.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016