More than 400 meetings took place today at the Signature Queensland event to allow tourism businesses to grow their relationships with key buyers and to ensure Queensland is included in more programs and itineraries for high-end customers.

The event, organised by Tourism and Events Queensland (TEQ), connected 20 key luxury trade partners with 18 Queensland tourism businesses who are members of collectives under Tourism Australia’s (TA) Signature Experiences of Australia program.

The event provided an opportunity to share Queensland’s experiences and destinations from luxury rainforest and outback lodges, exclusive island resorts, specialised fishing adventures, customised golf courses, small group wildlife tours, local wineries, cultural attractions and immersive Indigenous experiences.

The buyers (inbound tour operators, wholesalers and domestic travel agencies) in attendance were selected from both Australia and New Zealand for their specialisation in curating exclusive experiential journeys and private luxury vacations to Queensland for high-end travellers from key international markets.

Six of the eight Signature Experiences of Australia Collectives attended the event including Luxury Lodges of
Australia, Discover Aboriginal Experiences, Great Golf Courses of Australia, Australian Wildlife Journeys,Great
Fishing Adventures of Australia and Cultural Attractions of Australia.

The Signature Queensland event was created based on feedback from both the Queensland tourism industry and experiential buyers to connect more frequently at a business-to-business level and focus on securing contracts and more sales.

A familiarisation program is also being run from 3 to 7 June 2024 which will feature a number of Signature Queensland products from the event to provide a first-hand experience for a select group of buyers.

This event is part of a suite of trade activities being undertaken by TEQ to provide opportunities for the Queensland tourism industry to engage with key inbound and domestic trade partners. The next trade event on the calendar is Meeting place from 28 to 30 October 2024 on the Gold Coast, hosted in partnership with the Australian Tourism Export Council and Experience Gold Coast.

Queensland Tourism Minister Michael Healy said that the Signature Queensland event is an important building block on the tourism calendar.

“Queensland is already known for the Great Barrier Reef and our iconic beaches, but we want more people to
come and experience the vast array of other world-class experiences and destinations we have to offer, and this
event is important in getting that message out.

“We know when international buyers experience our great lifestyle and unique visitor offerings, they’ll
recommend them to holidaymakers around the globe.

“Attracting international markets is highly competitive so it’s important we continue to work together to grow our global visitor economy.”

Tourism and Events Queensland CEO, Patricia O’Callaghan said it’s great to bring Team Queensland together to work on growing our international visitor numbers.

“In the latest data from TRA, Queensland holds the leading position in the domestic holiday market, while the state also outperformed the national average in recovering international overnight visitor expenditure.

“We still have work to do, and the Signature Queensland event has connected more of our tourism operators with key buyers so that we can sell more bucket list holidays to our state”.

“Strong partnerships are critical in our growth of the Queensland visitor economy, and we are pleased to support Tourism Australia’s Signature Experiences program by delivering this event.”

Seller List

Company
Dreamtime Dive & Snorkel
FNQ Nature Tours
Frankland Islands Cruises
Hamilton Island and qualia
Jarramali Rock Art Tours
Lizard Island
Mandingalbay Authentic Indigenous Tours
Mt Mulligan Lodge (Morris Escapes)
Noosa Springs Golf and Spa Resort
Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art (QAGOMA)
Salter Brothers Hospitality (Spicers Peak Lodge)
Saltwater Eco Tours
Silky Oaks Lodge
Sirromet Wines
Tropical Sportfisher
Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia (Mossman Gorge Cultural Centre)
Walkabout Cultural Adventures

Buyer List

AAT Kings
Abercrombie and Kent Australia
All Pacific Travel Concept (APTC)
ANZCRO
ATS Pacific
Australian Geographic Travel
Beyond The Blue Australia
Butterfield and Robinson
Exclusive Travel Group
Goway Travel
Inside Australia Travel (New Zealand Fine Touring)
Insight Australia Travel
Luxury Travel Collection
Pan Pacific Travel
Ros Elite Experience
Southern Crossings Australia
Southern World Australia
The Tailor
The Travel Insiders
Touring Treasures