Qantas and Destination NSW have signed a new three-year marketing agreement designed to attract more tourists to the State.
The joint agreement, worth almost $25 million, will focus on promoting New South Wales across Australia and key international tourism markets including the USA, United Kingdom and Singapore.
The new agreement follows the success of similar partnerships that began in 2013 and focuses on digital and social media platforms, trade partner campaigns, public relations activities, and trade and media visits.
In the year ending March 2019, New South Wales welcomed over 4.3 million visitors from overseas and 35.6 million overnight visitors from around Australia, up seven per cent from the previous year.
Qantas Domestic CEO Andrew David said Qantas was the largest private investor in Australian tourism and was pleased to promote New South Wales on the global stage.
“As the national carrier, we know the importance of tourism in Australia and the value of partnerships like this to the tourism industry and the state economy,” said Mr David.
“Through this partnership we’re continuing our efforts to encourage more people from around the world and Australia to experience everything that New South Wales has to offer.
“This partnership is designed to increase visitor numbers and spending throughout the State. Our international customers arriving in Sydney can connect to our flights to popular destinations like Lord Howe Island and Byron Bay or explore the wineries of the Hunter Valley.”
NSW Minister for Tourism Stuart Ayres said: “We are delighted to be continuing this partnership with Qantas, which will provide both Qantas and Destination NSW with unprecedented opportunities to leverage each other’s marketing assets both domestically and internationally.
“The NSW Government values the significant role tourism plays in our State’s economy, and a partnership of this scale will go a long way in helping us work towards our goal of reaching $55 billion in overnight visitor expenditure by 2030.”
Qantas works with state and territory tourism bodies to promote Australia, including the recently launched Passenger Perks, offering customers travelling to Australia access to exclusive discounts on hand-picked local experiences.
Qantas operates up to 2,200 flights in and out of NSW each week, offering close to 19 million seats a year in both directions. The Qantas Group’s presence in NSW supports more than 22,900 local jobs and contributes more than $4.4 billion to the State’s economy.