Capital earns top international tourism ranking
[size=0.92em]LINDA SMITH
[size=0.85em]September 22, 2008 12:00am
[size=0.85em]HOBART has beaten some of the nation's top tourist drawcards to be named one of the best Australian destinations for international visitors.
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[size=0.85em]A new national report has ranked Greater Hobart the 11th best tourism region in Australia, ahead of acclaimed destinations like Queensland's Whitsunday Islands and New South Wales' Hunter Valley.
Released by the National Tourism and Transport Forum, the report ranks tourism regions in terms of export dollars and not surprisingly the larger cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane took the top three rankings.
The report revealed that, in the March quarter last financial year, international visitors spent more than 1.76 million visitor nights in the Greater Hobart region, spending an average of $130 a night.
This equated to $228.9 million being injected into the local economy.
The majority of visitors were from Asia, Europe, North America and Britain.
Canadian visitor numbers more than doubled in the past year and British visitors stayed longer – each visiting for an average two weeks and spending $959 per person.
Treasurer and Acting Tourism Minister Michael Aird said the report findings were great news for Tasmania.
"Once again Tasmania is punching above its weight when it comes to our tourism performance internationally," he said.
"It's very reassuring that independent data can support that Tasmania is doing very well."
Mr Aird said Tasmania faced stiff competition from interstate and overseas destinations as well as from changing consumer spending patterns.
He said a decision by budget airline Jetstar to boost flights, with an extra 1000 seats a week between Sydney and Hobart to start next month, was a further vote of confidence.
"Air travel now is just so fantastically cheap," Mr Aird said. "The greater the availability, the more people spontaneously book a flight."
Tourism Council of Tasmania chief executive Daniel Hanna said it was impressive that Greater Hobart had beaten some high-profile tourist spots.
He said almost a million visitors came to Tasmania each year and about 15 per cent were from overseas.
Currently 3 per cent of international visitors who come to Australia visit Tasmania but Mr Hanna hoped this would soon jump to 5 per cent.
He said visitors flocked to Strahan, Cradle Mountain, Freycinet and Port Arthur, and it was good to see Hobart was not left off the itinerary.
Mr Hanna hoped the Museum of Old and New Art and the redevelopment of the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery would further entice visitors and help Tasmania become a destination for arts and culture.
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