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Tourism Port Douglas Daintree has received a welcome report card from strategic consultants Destination Think! showing the region has topped its audit of tourism destinations globally for the second consecutive year.

Tara Bennett, chief executive officer of Tourism Port Douglas Daintree, said to be the top-scoring destination by consumers from 700 destinations globally, validated the efforts of the industry to continue to innovate, expand and meet growing consumer demand for nature based eco-tourism experiences.

“We know our visitors have been going home happy and are posting their messages and photos online as enthusiastic word-of-mouth ambassadors for our region.

“This is great news for our operators who, this research tells us,  deliver inspiring travel experiences and sustainable practices, and should give us confidence about life after Covid-19.”

Ms Bennett said the Tourism Sentiment Index (TSI) report provided a comprehensive analysis of what people were saying about the Port Douglas Daintree destination online.

“Insights from this data help guide our strategic planning, marketing and destination development to enable us to identify opportunities and gaps in destination delivery to shape the way people talk about Port Douglas Daintree in the future.”

Ms Bennett said the results of the report were based on millions of online chats from more than 500,000 sources, including media sites, forums, reviews and social media networks such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, YouTube and TripAdvisor.

In addition to the text and image-based algorithm focused on conversations about the Port Douglas Daintree tourism region, five comparative destinations were included in the analysis. These were the Whitsundays, Queenstown, Byron Bay, Noosa and Tasmania.

The top drivers of conversation for Port Douglas Daintree were Nature Photography and Beaches and Shoreline, but the standout activity was snorkelling and diving, receiving a consumer sentiment score of 86, increasing 26 points from the previous year’s index report.

“This is the highest asset score recorded to date, and reflects the callibre of operators in the Port Douglas Daintree region and the experience they are offering for visitors through the master reef guide program, advanced eco-tourism certification and leading research and sustainability practices.”

Mike Duffield, Research Lead, Think X Innovations, said seven out of 10 conversations taking place around Port Douglas Daintree’s tourism offering in 2019 were actively promoting the region.

“At the core of it, no matter where you are in the world, a tourism destination brand is the sum of all stories people tell about it, and the #1 influence on travel purchase decisions is what our friends, our families and our peers share.

“The TSI captures this sentiment and provides access to monitor the success and overall perception of a destination.”

Mr Duffield said Destination Think! analysts had observed an upward trend over the past three years in the sharing of beautiful natural environments across all social platforms.

“Port Douglas Daintree, with its stunning rainforest and access to the Great Barrier Reef, is well-positioned to benefit from this. That said, with great reputation comes high expectations,” he added.

Mossman River

“It is critical for destinations to not only build a reputation but to deliver consistently on it. Travellers aren’t shy to voice their opinion when their expectations haven’t been met, and that can be detrimental to a destination’s overall reputation.

“What we have seen with Port Douglas Daintree, is nearly three years of consistently high sentiment, illustrating that it is a destination that can walk the walk.”