The Southern Downs and Granite Belt’s budding tourism industry is set to grow according to a new report.
Southern Downs and Granite Belt: Tourism Market Research Report provides a snapshot of the region’s visitors as well as a summary of the region’s brand awareness.
The report will be used by Southern Downs Regional Council to develop tourism products and marketing strategies.
Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources and Federal Member for Maranoa, David Littleproud was in Warwick to launch the report alongside Southern Downs Mayor, Tracy Dobie.
“The report affirms much of what we already know about our stunning region – our visitors come to see family and friends, to enjoy our food and wine, natural attractions and heritage assets, and to attend our growing list of incredible events,” the Mayor said.
“The report also identifies our strengths and highlights growth opportunities we can seize to continue increasing the number of visitors to our region.
“Our Brisbane market across both overnight and day visitors has grown, on average, six percent each year in the last decade, and it’s this growth we are focusing on through our marketing efforts.”
Councillor for Regional Promotion, Tourism and the Arts, Rod Kelly, said the report would be used to inform Council’s future investment across product development, events and marketing strategies.
“Across the next decade, our visitors will grow to well over one million each year, so it’s vital Council continues to invest in the infrastructure needed to sustain these numbers.
“We know 99 percent of visitors to the Southern Downs drive to our region, so we will continue to work with all levels of government to ensure our highways, roads, tourist routes and signage are well maintained.”
The report was undertaken by leading tourism benchmarking and advisory group Earthcheck and was fully funded by the Australian Government’s Building Better Regions Fund.
