Ballot to unlock more vouchers, Illuminate Adelaide in region, workforce survey & more...
South Australians have another reason to get out and explore our state’s tourism regions with round four of the Great State Vouchers kicking off later this week.
Giving a much-needed shot-in-the-arm for our city and regional hotels, pubs, clubs and restaurants and businesses, the latest round aims to drive visitation in the traditionally quieter winter months.
A ballot will open the door to more hotel rooms across more of South Australia, including special rates for mid-week stays in the CBD. Lucky recipients will score a $100 voucher for use on participating CBD and North Adelaide hotels or a $50 voucher for use across suburban and regional SA.
We know the first two rounds of accommodation vouchers made a significant impact to the sector. During the last voucher travel period, regional South Australia had its best occupancy rates for a three-month period ever recorded and CBD hotels hit the highest occupancy of any mainland Australian city.
Eligible consumers can enter the ballot at southaustralia.com/voucher anytime from 9am ACST Friday 28 May until 5pm ACST Tuesday 1 June 2021.
The vouchers are getting South Australians and interstate visitors staying longer, booking overnight stays, spending money in our regions and – just as important – telling their friends about it.
We’ve been working with participating operators following the last two rounds for accommodation, seeking to continuously evolve and improve the program. Bookings for round three of the vouchers – targeted to tours and experiences – closed last night. We're very pleased with the uptake and the last minute rush on bookings over the weekend.
I want to thank all operators who have so far participated in our voucher scheme, and I look forward to seeing the increased travel rounds three and four bring during the winter months.
I was with our SATC Board and executive team in the Limestone Coast last week – there is a great deal of energy and optimism in the region. Thank you to those who took the time to meet with our Board, as well as attend our industry networking meeting in Robe.
I look forward to sharing more updates as we continue to support the sector and drive economic growth.
Read on for more news and opportunities for our tourism industry.
Rodney Harrex
Chief Executive
Illuminate Adelaide lights up the Limestone Coast
It was terrific to be in Mount Gambier last week to help launch a unique Illuminate Adelaide event at the iconic Cave Garden. Illuminate Adelaide, together with the SATC and City of Mount Gambier, is excited to bring the new winter festival to the region.
Digital Garden in Mount Gambier is the first of three South Australian regional activations in Illuminate Adelaide’s extensive program of events. Cave Garden will be transformed by local and international collaborations, and immersive experiences exploring the union of future technologies and the creative industries. It runs from 9 June until 4 July, ahead of the inaugural Illuminate Adelaide event, which will kick off on 16 July 2021.
In even better news for regional SA, two additional Illuminate Adelaide events are scheduled for later this year: Tumby Bay (13 August – 21 August 2021) and Renmark (16 September – 9 October 2021) with details to be announced closer to the time.
More information in the media release.
Businesses to be invited to complete workforce survey
As part of the work the SATC is doing with the tourism sector, the agency has engaged Deloitte Access Economics to survey tourism and hospitality businesses, to find out more about the difficulties currently being experienced, particularly with finding and keeping skilled staff.
This survey is designed to understand the nature of workforce issues across tourism in South Australia and to provide insight to the sort of solutions that might have the most benefit for businesses.
Relevant businesses will be sent a link and introductory email by Deloitte. Businesses are being sourced from ATDW and other industry membership lists. If you have any queries, please contact the SATC’s Research and Policy Manager Joanne Davidson.
A reimagined look at tourism – have your say
A new expert panel has been appointed to provide advice to the Federal Government and the tourism industry to help drive the economic recovery of the sector and ensure its long-term success. Former federal Tourism Minister, the Hon Martin Ferguson AM, will lead the Reimagining the Visitor Economy Expert Panel over the next six months.
The panel has been asked to help shape a policy framework that can guide the sector through longer term transformation to sustainable growth. It has released a Discussion Paper to support consultations. Stakeholder feedback is encouraged via written response to [email protected] by 5pm Friday 11 June 2021.