Aussie tourism representatives headed to North America recently to rebuild relationships with travel agencies and tour operators with Australia Marketplace returning to the US for the first time since 2019.
The event, held in Los Angeles from 7 to 9 August 2022, included two days of pre-scheduled appointments for about 200 buyers and sellers in attendance, as well as evening networking opportunities.
Minister for trade and tourism, Don Farrell, who attended the opening of Australia Marketplace North
America, said the event was a chance to promote Australia as a tourism destination in a key market.
“The two-day event hosted by Tourism Australia provides Australian tourism industry leaders with the opportunity to connect directly with travel agencies and tour operators in North America,” Farrell said.
“The US was Australia’s third largest source market for international visitation and the second most valuable for spend, with 818,000 Americans travelling to Australia in 2019 and spending $3.9 billion.”
Tourism Australia managing director, Phillipa Harrison, said the connections Australian tourism operators form at Australia Marketplace are more important than ever before, as we emerge from the pandemic.
“Australia Marketplace provides our tourism operators with the opportunity to establish business relationships with key qualified travel agencies and tour operators from North America,” Harrison said.
“These connections are so vital for the Australian tourism industry, as we look to rebuild after being one of the hardest hit sectors by the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“We know the recovery will take time but we want to get back to those pre-COVID levels as quickly as possible and North America will play a central role in that. In 2019 Australia welcome more than one million visitors from the US and Canada.”
Tourism Australia regional general manager for North America, Chris Allison, said Australia Marketplace, at the Westdrift Hotel Manhattan Beach, was the first time the event had been held since the start of the pandemic.
“It was an opportunity to remind the US and Canada that Australia is open for business and there has never been a better time to ‘Come and Say G’Day’,” Allison said.
“The event attracted key tourism leaders from both the US and Australia and the relationships and future business it will create will be vital for the Australian tourism industry in the future.”
Key US tourism industry leaders in attendance included Travel Answers Group president Kirk Demeter, Signature Travel Network president Alex Sharpe, Flight Centre Americas president Charlene Leiss, The Travel Corp president Brett Tollman, and Qantas sales North America VP Dave Thomas.
Key Australian tourism leaders travelled to Los Angeles for the event included Experience Co CEO John O’Sullivan, Voyages Indigenous Tourism CEO Matt Cameron-Smith, Ultimate Winery Experiences CEO Kate Shilling, YHA CEO Paul McGrath, Baillie Lodges COO Craig Bradbery, and Virtuoso Senior Vice President Michael Londregan.
Tourism Australia is also planning future Australia Marketplace events in other key tourism markets, with events planned in Japan/South Korea in September and in UK/Europe in November.
