Tag: Australia

Life in Europe continues to be an emotional rollercoaster. Most European countries are starting to come out of a particularly hard winter. Hard not only because of a particularly harsh cold spell and a lot of snow, but also from spending most of the late autumn and winter in various stages of lockdown which has meant that many industries have been unable to conduct their business in a profitable way for approximately 12 months. This means that in our three core markets, Germany, France and Italy, restaurants have either been closed for months or operating under severely reduced opening times. ... Read more

The Government of Australia has announced a new $1.2 billion support package for the tourism and aviation industries. The package includes: Tourism Aviation Network Support (TANS) program, which halves the cost of up to 800,000 airfares (or around 45,000 seats a week) to drive recovery in regions reliant on international tourism. Extending the $50.0 million Business Events Grants program by three months to support the events sector. Extending the $94.6 million Zoos and Aquarium program by six months, so that zoos, aquariums and wildlife parks maintain their animal populations. A further support package for travel agents, so they can continue to process refunds and hold credits for ... Read more

The Australian Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, the Hon. Dan Tehan MP has today announced the launch of Tourism Australia’s latest domestic marketing campaign Event Here This Year to support the recovery of Australia’s business events industry. First launched in the wake of the 2019/20 summer bushfires, the dedicated Event Here This Year recovery campaign seeks to drive increased demand across the sector by promoting the value of face-to-face events and showcasing the breadth and quality of Australia’s business events offering. The new campaign, which is being delivered as part of a broader domestic strategy to aid the industry’s recovery following the ongoing impact ... Read more

Travel Japan has introduced a new range of ‘Discover Japan within Australia’ experiences to help Australians stay connected to Japan. Experiences are available in locations throughout Australia and cater to a range of interests. Japan was Australia’s fifth largest inbound market for visitor arrivals, and for total visitor spend and sixth for visitor nights. Through this initiative the participants can: ·       Take part in online virtual tours  ·       Learn and practice the art of traditional dance ·       Enjoy the beauty and refinement of the Japanese tea ceremony ·       Learn how to wear a Japanese kimono or yukata while enjoying time to pose and take photos ... Read more

Australian fire crews are battling massive bushfires on Fraser Island, the world’s largest sand island, which has been burning for six weeks, forcing tourists to flee the island off the northeast coast. The fires have razed more than 76,000 hectares (187,800 acres), nearly half of the island, which is world heritage listed for its tropical rain forests and sand dunes. Several guests were ferried off the island, also known by its indigenous name K’gari, on Tuesday as weather conditions worsened. More than 1 million liters of water and fire-retardant gel have been dropped on the fires since Saturday, the Queensland ... Read more

Australia has decided to halt all travel to the country for a period of six months. Only Australian citizens and permanent residents can come in, from March 20. All non-Australian residents will be barred from entering the country from Friday. The number of Covid-19 cases in Australia has crossed 700, with majority of cases coming in through overseas travel. Prime minister Scott Morrison said the travel ban was essential to stop the further spread of the virus. “The reason for this decision is that about 80% of the cases we have in Australia are either the result of someone who ... Read more

Travel Money, the flagship Foreign Exchange brand of FCM Travel Solutions, the Indian subsidiary of Flight Centre Travel Group, Australia has launched The Unbeatable Forex Festival to provide simplified foreign exchange solutions with best rates and better rewards to customers travelling abroad. The festival which will run from May to July 2019 coincides with the peak holiday season and will address the foreign exchange needs of Indians travelling overseas. In addition to holiday-goers, The Unbeatable Forex Festival will also be applicable for students seeking remittances to study abroad. Speaking about the new campaign, Gagan Malhotra, Brand Leader, Travel Money, Foreign ... Read more

India once again earned the distinction of being the fastest growing inbound market for Australia. Arrivals for the year-ended November 2018 stood at 352,500 – a growth of 18 per cent over the previous year. During October 2017 to September 2018, Indian tourists spent $ 1.6 billion on their Australia trip, a growth of 10 per cent over the previous year. India is now on track to achieve fifth consecutive year of double-digit growth in arrivals, as well as spend. Over the past few months, Tourism Australia executed few marketing activities to raise Australia’s appeal and attractiveness among the Indian ... Read more

Stroll along the streets of the City of Greater Dandenong at Melbourne in Australia, and it will amaze everyone. The street pillars showcases the traditional mural art of Kerala. The street pillars were painted in hues  of yellow, orange and red by Yogeshwari Biju, a trained Kerala Mural Artist from South India who has vast experience in conducting painting workshops, art exhibitions and art sale. Yoge has used traditional Kerala mural colour palette including deep yellow, orange and red ochre colours that are warm and welcoming. The carefully chose colours also depicts the friendly, welcoming and warm-hearted characteristics of South Indian ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: thefabulousscript.com Tourism Australia and Singapore Airlines have signed a three-year strategic marketing deal worth USD 7.93 million, reiterating their commercial ties. As per the agreement the two parties will jointly fund a range of tourism campaigns and promotional activities in eight of Australia’s key inbound markets – Singapore, as well as China, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia and the UK. “The renewal of the strategic cooperation with Tourism Australia underscores its commitment to Australia’s tourism and travel industry,” said Mak Swee Wah, Singapore Airlines’ Executive Vice President Commercial. “Singapore Airlines has been bringing visitors to Australia for over ... Read more

Tourism Australia has launched a new tourism promotion campaign in India and South East Asia, targeting high value travellers in India, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. The latest chapter in Tourism Australia’s evolving There’s Nothing Like Australia campaign, UnDiscover Australia, challenges perceptions and stereotypes of what Australia offers as a tourism destination by showcasing unusual, unfamiliar and unexpected attractions and experiences. The campaign is being backed by Australia’s state and territory tourism organisations, airlines, and a range of other key distribution partners. India is currently Australia’s fastest growing market for arrivals and spend, achieving a fourth consecutive year of double-digit growth. ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: Gizmodo Tourism Australia has launched a campaign in South and South East Asia to crack the typecasts of what Australia has to offer and challenge common misconceptions. The campaign will cost around $10 million. The campaign consist promotional videos explaining what else Australia has to offer to the tourists, other than the stereotypes like Kangaroo, beaches etc. The videos are created by Clemenger BBDO Sydney and UM, with a tagline ‘Undiscover Australia.’ The campaign targets travellers from India, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia by showing unexpected activities and experiences Australia has to offer. Each video shows a cliched activity ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: scmp.com Tourism Australia’s (TA) Business Events Australia Greater China Showcase 2018 will be held in Melbourne, Australia from 25 to 28 November 2018. The Event is designed to provide Australian industry with a platform on which to develop their relationships with incentive buyers from the China market, and to provide insights into market trends and customer behaviour. In 2018, the showcase will be held in Australia for the first time, providing incentive buyers from the China market with an opportunity to experience Australia’s offering first-hand. The 2018 showcase format will include face-to-face meetings with agents and corporate buyers. ... Read more

In mid-2017, the Department of Home Affairs (HA), formerly the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, extended online lodgement of visitor visa applications to all Indian nationals. The online application process provides a more convenient option for Indians looking to visit Australia, by allowing them to apply for their Australian tourist visa within the comfort of their home, without any biometric requirement or physically submitting their passport to the Department. In an age where travellers are increasingly self-reliant in planning and booking holidays, the e-lodgement facility allows tourists greater independence when planning a trip to Australia and has proved to ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: thefabulousscript.com As per the recent reports from the Australian tourism authorities, the country has received around 277,100 Indian tourists during the period from June 2017 to May 2018. This is 19 per cent more than that of the previous year. India has become the eighth largest inbound market for Australia, after China, New Zealand, the US, Britain, Japan, Singapore and Malaysia. Average spending by Indian tourists increased by 14 per cent between April 2017 and March 2018, with visitors spending AUD 1.53 billion (around Rs 7,650 crore) in Australia. Last year it was AUD 1.33 billion. In terms ... Read more