Tourism Australia attracts China's top agents

Tourism Australia attracts China's top agents
By admin


More than 200 leading travel agents from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan will flock to the Whitsundays next year as part of Tourism Australia’s annual Corroboree Greater China event.

The ‘Aussie specialists’ will be welcomed to Hamilton Island from May 12 to 15 next year, and will participate in a three-day workshops, followed by an exploration of the Great Barrier Reef and Whitsundays.

The agents will then spend another five days on famil trips, between them all visiting every state and territory.

Tourism Australia’s managing director John O’Sullivan said the majority of international travel out of China was still booked through agencies, making the event key to its strategy of attracting more independent, big-spender Asian visitors.

“To tap into this market it’s critical that we are working with agents who are familiar with what our country has to offer and are trained how best to put together and sell high quality holiday packages,” O’Sullivan said.

"These agents are all frontline retail travel agents, already actively selling Australia as a preferred long-haul destination to Chinese travellers. This event provides a professional forum for our industry to train these agents and further strengthen their product knowledge.”

Tourism Australia recently appointed a group of 31 China-based travel agencies and distribution partners who would work on a distribution network focused on selling high quality Aussie holidays to China’s growing middle classes.

Tourism and Events Queensland (TEQ) chief executive Leanne Coddington welcomed the return of Corroboree Greater China to the state.

“With a presence in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, TEQ is continually looking for opportunities to promote Queensland as a premier leisure destination to the Chinese visitor and we are proud to support Corroboree in 2015,” she said.

TEQ is also set to lead a trade mission to both Wuhan and Guangzhou in March next year to allow tourism businesses to connect with wholesalers, retail agents, airlines and media.

The Whitsundays will be on display during the event, with executive director of Whitsundays Marketing and Development Limited (WMDL) Jeff Aquilina saying visiting delegates will be “spoilt for choice” on their visit.

“The Whitsundays is renowned for its 74 island wonders, offering iconic landscapes in the heart of the Great Barrier Reef surrounded by rainforest and a vibrant coastal atmosphere.”

The 2015 Corroboree Greater China event is being organised by Tourism Australia, Hamilton Island and WMDL, with the support of Queensland Government through TEQ.

Over 400 people will attend the event, which represents one of Australia’s biggest international trade events, with this event of particular importance given the 1.1 million visitors down under from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan in the past 12 months.

Together, these visitors generated A$7 billion in total expenditure in the 12 months ending September 2014, up 15%.

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