Nsw In Bid To Lure Tourists

The Age

Wednesday June 11, 2008

Annabel Stafford, Sydney

MELBOURNE may soon have more competition for the tourist dollar after the NSW Government announced plans for a body dedicated to marketing the charms of Sydney and a massive injection of funds into the struggling sector.

Following years of criticism about NSW's falling share of the tourism market, Tourism Minister Matt Brown yesterday promised an extra $40 million over three years to lure more visitors.

Just how the money will be spent will be decided over three months of consultations with the NSW industry, but the minister flagged a new "promotional entity" to boost Sydney's image and new efforts to brand the Harbour City.

The announcement coincided with the release of a long-awaited report by Australian Rugby Union chief John O'Neill, which confirmed NSW had lost ground on tourism since the 2000 Olympic Games and warned the NSW Government to set new targets to ensure it does not lose any more market share to other states.

The report warns that not only is NSW losing market share of Australian tourism, but that "weaknesses in the tourism promotion effort of NSW" is contributing to a loss of Australia's share of international tourism.

Mr Brown denied Sydney had lost ground to Melbourne when it came to tourism.

Asked about recent figures showing that in 2007 overnight domestic visitors to Melbourne had - for the second time on record - spent more money than visitors to Sydney, he said: "Melbourne might get a few little ticks here or there . . . (But) as far as actual visitors both domestically and internationally and how much they spend, Melbourne can only dream of what we have."

© 2008 The Age

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