A new $600,000 campaign to promote regional tourism in NSW demonstrates the Government's determination to enhance the economy of the State's regions, Deputy Premier Andrew Stoner and Minister for Tourism and Major Events George Souris said today.
27 June 2013This latest funding is in addition to the $20m in the 2013-14 Budget and the $21 million in regional funding over the next three years.
The campaign, entitled ‘IT’S ON! in Regional NSW’ has been devised by Destination NSW, the Government’s tourism and major events agency and is a comprehensive 36-page, colourful newspaper insert, appearing from 30 June.
It features the fourteen areas of regional New South Wales, focusing on places to visit, nature, dining, family, driving and adventure experiences, as well as the natural beauty of the regions and their unique events.
“Regional NSW is home to lively and welcoming communities, which stage more than 1,200 exciting events each year. From tasting delicious local fresh produce, listening to live music, experiencing amazing sights, festivals and sporting - if it’s worth seeing or doing, it’s on in Regional NSW,” Mr Stoner said.
The insert called ‘Your Guide to Regional NSW July - December 2013’ - is appearing in Sydney and regional NSW titles, Melbourne, North East Victoria, South East Queensland, Perth and New Zealand. It was developed in consultation with NSW Regional Tourism Organisations, and aims to drive bookings during July through to December. The campaign also includes partnerships with lastminute.com.au and wotif.com to drive sales leads to the travel industry.
“The importance of tourism in regional NSW should not be underestimated. With visitor expenditure in regional NSW worth more than $12.8 billion in 2012, and overnight visitation increasing to 73 million visitor nights, it is vital to our economy,” Mr Souris said.
“This new campaign urges visitors to put regional NSW at the top of their holiday list.
“There’s an array of stunning natural attractions to explore including four World Heritage Areas, 900 national parks and 236 ocean beaches, and I encourage everyone to get to our regions.”
Destination NSW CEO, Sandra Chipchase, said: “We’ve had great success with recent marketing and promotions campaigns. Our South Coast campaign which is still in market until the end of June, has already generated some 62,000 sales leads to the travel industry from visitors wanting to book a short break to the region.
Regions featured within the ‘IT’S ON! in Regional NSW’ campaign and ‘Your Guide to Regional NSW’ include:
- Blue Mountains
- Central Coast
- The Hunter
- Southern Highlands and Tablelands
- Mid North Coast
- Northern Rivers
- New England and North West
- Central NSW
- South Coast
- Snowy Mountains
- The Riverina
- The Murray
- Outback NSW and
- Lord Howe Island.
For more information see www.visitnsw.com
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