Cairns Regional Council has won the Local Government Award at the Queensland Tourism Awards in Brisbane.
This followed receipt of a similar award at the Tropical North Queensland Tourism Awards.
The Local Government category is open to all local government authorities and recognises excellence in tourism planning, provision of tourism facilities and services, marketing, event development and management, and the overall contribution made both locally and overall to the state’s tourism industry.
Three key events have been highlighted as the basis for the latest award: Cairns Airport Adventure Festival, Mountain Bike World Cup 2014 and the hosting of the Australian Tourism Exchange (ATE).
“It’s been an exciting year for our tourism industry,” Acting Mayor Councillor Terry James said.
“The ATE was a coming of age for Cairns.
“No longer is our region just a beautiful place to visit, it has the sophistication to host Australia’s largest tourism expo.
“This was the first time a regional city had been selected to host the event and Council was right behind the proposal from the start.
“We’re proud to have been involved in making this happen.”
Council was also a major partner in two of the region’s largest sports tourism events (Cairns Airport Adventure Festival, Mountain Bike World Cup), which brought thousands of interstate and international visitors into Cairns.
As part of its ongoing involvement in tourism, Council provides significant financial and in-kind support to local tourism marketing bodies such as Tourism Tropical North Queensland, Tourism Palm Cove and Trinity Beach Tourism, as well as toward individual events.
“This is just a small cross-section of the activities by Council that support our tourism industry,” Cr James said.
“A thriving tourism sector has a dynamic flow-on effect for our local economy and our community.
“Council is committed to increasing visitation by showcasing and developing our many and unique tourism experiences and we will continue to look for opportunities to grow our industry.”
