Australian and overseas visitors will be encouraged to stay longer and return to regional areas following the Australian government’s new $48.5 million Tourism Industry Regional Development Fund, according to minister for tourism, Martin Ferguson.
Australia’s $35 billion tourism industry is set for a makeover with the industry-matching funding to assist businesses to upgrade their accommodation and build new tourism attractions.
Competitive, merits based grants are open for applications from this week for funding amounts of between $50,000 and $250,000 matched dollar for dollar taking the total investment to almost $100 million.
Mr Ferguson said that the program will help boost innovation and quality in Australia’s tourism industry.
“This fund is about bringing the beauty of Australia’s outdoors indoors. A major focus of this program will be on improving the quality of accommodation and attractions in regional areas so that the tourism facilities match the beauty of Australia’s regions,” Mr Ferguson said.
Tourism operators outside Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne metropolitan areas are eligible to apply for grants to 14 December.
Accommodation Association of Australia’s CEO Richard Munro said, the fund is a tangible incentive for investment in this business sector.
“One of the central goals in the Tourism 2020 strategy is lifting the quality of tourism accommodation rooms in regional Australia and the Tourism Industry Regional Development Fund will give this process a big push,” Mr Munro said.
Mr Munro said targeting businesses in regional areas where visitor numbers can often fluctuate depending on the time of year is particularly positive.
AccomNews is not affiliated with any government agency, body or political party. We are an independently owned, family-operated magazine.