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The Australian Tourism Industry Council (ATIC) and its thousands of tourism enterprises are fully behind the defining re-entry of Tourism Australia into domestic visitor marketing, seeking us to holiday at home in 2020 to boost both community and industry recovery from the devastating bushfires.

As the first sortie from the Federal Government’s $76 million Tourism Recovery Package announced just last weekend, ATIC welcomes TA’s speed to market approach, the genuine partnership orientation of the campaign between Federal and State tourism agencies and its strategic driver to encourage fellow Australians to #holidayherethisyear.

ATIC Executive Director Simon Westaway said:

“A thrust of the Federal Government’s Tourism Recovery Package was to tackle the seismic drop in domestic holiday numbers over this summer as a result of the bushfires and start turning the tide to get people back out into the great Australian backyard,” Mr Westaway said.

“We firmly believe this $20m campaign and its direct, easy-to-understand call to action will be enthusiastically partnered and make an important impact in people’s minds that our many tourist locations and communities along the journey are again open for business!

“This is why ATIC has been a historic supporter for a strategic role for Tourism Australia in our domestic visitor marketing activity given local tourism represents 75 per cent of the nation’s current visitor economy.

“There is no better time for Australians to support their neighbouring communities, many who are doing it hard. This is so demonstrably achieved through the social and economic impetus that touring, visiting, recreating and overnighting in our regions delivers.”

Mr Westaway said this campaign’s rapid rollout and scale would deliver a timely shot of confidence back into the Australian domestic tourism market and would in time benefit many small to medium tourism operators as domestic visitor numbers lift.

“As an important, initial step in the direct recovery of Australian tourism this is the kind of stimulus activity that’s now necessary – but of course there is so much more to do,” Mr Westaway said.

“Tourism Australia’s short-term return into domestic marketing and promotion of our wonderful country is both strategically sound and necessary at this time. ATIC will continue to encourage future marketing collaboration including direct funding for TA to engage Australians to holiday more into and through our wonderful country.”

In encouraging Australians to commit to holidaying at home, ATIC is spreading the word using the hashtag #holidayherethisyear to get out and explore! A range of resources are now available for consumers at www.australia.com/holidayhere to help those planning trips in and around Australia.