Tourism Australia launches first international campaign in over 12 months

Tourism Australia launches first international campaign in over 12 months
By Travel Weekly


With a two-way trans-Tasman travel bubble kicking off later this month, Tourism Australia has launched its first international campaign in more than a year to remind Kiwis what’s waiting for them across the ditch.

The $3 million ‘Be the First’ campaign will kick off in New Zealand today and is scheduled to run until June 2021 across TV, out-of-home, online, print and radio. The campaign will also be supported by a range of PR and partner activities.

All marketing activity will be amplified via Tourism Australia’s partnerships with airlines, state and territory tourism organisations and key distribution partners who will provide tactical offers aimed at stimulating travel to Australia from New Zealand.

Tourism Australia managing director Phillipa Harrison said that she hoped Kiwis would make the most of the two-way travel bubble and enjoy being the first international travellers back to Australia.

“As one of our closest neighbours and largest inbound markets, we have long held strong tourism ties with New Zealand, so we are really excited to be exclusively welcoming our friends from across the Tasman back to Australia,” she said.

“Australia has long been the most popular outbound travel destination for New Zealanders, who spent $2.6 billion on their travels here in 2019.”

Harrison said that while the travel bubble won’t fill the void of all lost international business, it will provide an important boost to the local tourism industry by helping to drive demand to some of those areas that need it most.

“After a year of almost no international travel, there is a real opportunity for us to capture pent up demand by encouraging the 1.7 million New Zealand travellers who normally travel to other destinations overseas to instead choose Australia for their next holiday,” she said.

“That is why we’re calling on New Zealanders to take the opportunity to relax, reconnect with loved ones, and discover – or perhaps rediscover – some of the lesser-known parts of Australia that make us such an incredible holiday destination.”

“Quarantine-free travel between our two countries is also an exciting and important step in rebuilding international tourism to Australia, and will also provide a framework for the resumption of inbound travel from other key international markets in time.”

You can find out more about the campaign and watch the video here.

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