Tourism sans frontiers
Latest news from the Premiere of Queensland.
Anna Blighs writes that "Queensland and New South Wales will set aside our State of Origin rivalry to become an irresistable destination for international tourists with a new campaign. The 'tourism ceasefire' will see the blues and maroons join forces in a landmark marketing partnership to drive more international visitors to the two states. As far as tourism is concerned we're on the same side. We want people to come from overseas and enjoy our two great states. This $8 million, three year partnership means we can dominate the international tourism market in Australia- just like we do with rugby league" said Mrs Bligh. International visitors interested in Australia don't recognise state boundaries. When they think of Sydney and the Opera House , the Gold Coast and the Great Barrier Reef. They aren't bothered which state they are in. What this deal will do is package great destinations like these together to guarantee a smooth interchange of tourists between our states. This agreement will give us more bang for our marketing buck and ultimately will help both states grow our share of the international visitor pie. It's a win-win!
Meanwhile Queensland's best job in the world winner, Ben Southall, has showcased Queensland to the world on the Oprah Winfrey Show when he spoke to her by satellite from Hamilton Island. His great appearance was seen by about 7.4million viewers in the US alone and the show was broadcast to another 145 countries.
This is another major coup for tourism Queensland during what has been a very challenging time for operators. Ben is doing a great job and, since January, more than 8.4million vistors have logged on to www.islandreefjob.com
taken from p.13 issue 173; 3 November 2009 issue of bmag:Brisbane's largest lifestyle magazine; free publication.
Benefit from events; travel and tourism.
The are now, perhaps more than ever, ever increasing economic, environmental and socio-cultural impacts of major sporting and cultural events on the people and industries that both contribute and particpate in the events industries.
To gain an appreciation of the framework and background to this social phenomena it is important to include the study of tourism and travel industries.
Travel and tourism has been the subject of academic interest for well over fifty years. since the 1970's academics have formed several frameworks and models for tourism and travel. Sharpley (2006.p.5) writes that "Travel and tourism is often claimed to be the worlds largest industry. Although it is debateable whether the term industry is appropriate, there is no doubting the enormous global economic value of travel and tourism. It is a major social phenomena. As ever-increasing numbers of people become tourists, it is important to understand why and how people travel".
Sharpley (2006 p.7), also states that "Travel and tourism has significant economic, environmental and socio-cultural consequences for destinations. Not only must these be understood and managed, but also they should be considered within broader global change and development. More generally, travel and tourism is an integral part of modern life and, therefore, deserving of academic study".
Tourism is, "essentially, a social acivity; it is about people travelling, for whatever reason, to destinations away from the place where they normally live and work and their activities during their stay in these destinations. The starting point for the study of travel and tourism is the tourist, or the social activity of tourism"(Sharpley 2006). As the word implies, the action of 'Tour -ism'. (Kind of like what Tiger Woods did in coming to Australia and playing this year).
The impact of events like sporting, cultural and political, all have a dollar value to the destination hosts, their staff and communities. There are many benefits that countries, towns and cities gain from the production of events and tourism attractions. Sharpley 2006 expresses that "it is the through the process of travelling and staying in destinations that, collectively, tourists spend huge sums of money, making travel and tourism one of the world's largest economic sectors and for many countries, a vital industry, it is through that process that tourists interact with local people and impact on the local environment, it is through that process that tourists seek satisfying experiences.
The relationship between host and guest is an important factor in the process of travel and tourism. The study of travel and tourism is concerned with exploring how, why and where people travel as tourists. Sharpley (2006.p6), points out that "it is through studying and understanding that process that those who cater for tourists - the travel and tourism industry can better (and profitably!) meet tourists' needs, that the widely publicised problems or impacts of tourism can be better managed, and that destinations can optimise the benefits from tourism.
On the other hand, " as international tourism grew in both scale and scope, so too did awareness of its negative consequences or impacts. As a result, academic attention turned increasingly towards the study of social, cultural and environmental impacts of travel and tourism. Sharpley adds that "travel and tourism is an environmentally dependent activity. In other words, the environment is the very basis of travel and tourism. As tourist we seek out different and distinctive environments, and our overall tourism experience very much depends on our interaction with the destination environment. He also implies a "word of warning, when studying tourism and the environment. It is all to easy to just list and give examples of the negative and positive impacts on the environment. However, not only is it a complex topic, but it is also better to focus on ways of managing the impacts of travel and tourism. The topic is not as straightforward as you might first imagine because:
- It is not always clear whether environmental change has been directly caused by tourism or by other human activities.
- The environmental impacts of tourism may not always be immediate or obvious.
- Tourism development may result in indirect or induced environmental impacts, sometimes in locations other than the destination.
- Frequently, baselines for measuring the environmental consequences of travel and tourism do not exist.
Moreover, it is also important to recognise the extent to which particular environments are perceived differently by different stakeholders. That is, local communities may view their environment as a resource in very different light from visitors, while visitors themselves may have varying attitudes towards the destination environment, from a place to be exploited to a place to be conserved. It is, of course, necessary to be aware of the positive and negative impacts of travel and tourism on the environment. These impacts include;
- depletion of natural resources,particularly water.
- physical damage; errosion of footpaths, sand dunes and ecologically fragile areas
- damage caused by inappropraite/illegal activities
- disfigurment or damage to historical sites or monuments through graffiti or theft
- infrastructural development on sensitive sites(i.e ski-lifts)
- Impact on wildlife; disruption of feeding or migration patterns. hunting and fishing.
- Pollution; physical pollution, noise pollution, architectural pollution
"Tourism is frequently used as a scapegoat, being blamed for a variety of environmental and other impacts. The environmental consequences of travel and tourism have long been in evidence, as have proposals and policies for their management. Some solutions have been more radical than others while, more recently, approaches such as sustainable tourism development have attempted to balance the needs of all stake holders. However, such 'blueprint' schemes have been criticised for not recognising the individual characteristics of destination environments or the needs of local people who understand and depend on those environments. Perhaps there is a need, therefore, for local communities to decide how their environment should be managed".
Posted on by Carlos Negrete
(Richard Sharpley, 2006. Travel and Tourism, Sage publications London)
AFL Grand Final
The AFL Grand Final is an iconic event, it brings in people from all over Australia who watch the sport, it is very important as in 2006 it put $36 million into the local economy.The AFL Grand Final which was a one day celebration has turned into a six day event, influencing visitors from interstate to stay longer, spend longer, and socialize longer in Melbourne which is
also another boost to the economy thanks to the national sport.
This yearly event is great for communities as they get behind they're teams and support them wearing their teams jerseys, priding themselves in displaying their team colours and coming together to watch the event, not only those who go to watch it live, but those who watch it at home on the TV.
This year 2009, the AFL Grand Final has been able to put in even more money from tourists/visitors into the local economy, this is a very positive step into making Victoria have a better quality of life, promote the best interests of the community by putting on this event create
ting a good social impact, and by attracting more visitors so that they put money into local shops which promotes economic growth in turn.
As well as coverage Nationally, the game was televised internationally.
Some ticket prices range up to $1,300 or more depending on the packages, $160 for a standard adult ticket.
This year it was Geelong Cats vs St Kilda Saints, Geelong won by 12 points 80- 68 to end the game a 4th quarter, in a show stopping event which means that Geelong had won 2 out of 3 years, last year losing to Hawthorn Hawks. Mark Thompson the coach for Geelong was riveted by this great win.
The negative aspect to the AFL Grand Final is the economic strain it places on Melbourne, both in over stretched policing, road authorities and emergency services. The Melbourne major events team works closely with the AFL to make sure this strain is as minimal as possible, the economic benefits of national and global broadcasting as well as sponsorship and merchandising opportunities, not to mention the influx in visitors from interstate to the city of Melbourne all injecting money into the local hospitality economy far out way the negative economic aspects.
The negative aspect to the AFL Grand Final is the economic strain it places on Melbourne, both in over stretched policing, road authorities and emergency services. The Melbourne major events team works closely with the AFL to make sure this strain is as minimal as possible, the economic benefits of national and global broadcasting as well as sponsorship and merchandising opportunities, not to mention the influx in visitors from interstate to the city of Melbourne all injecting money into the local hospitality economy far out way the negative economic aspects.
Next year will be even bigger, with more and more people being drawn to the sport as I have been, I'm hoping to make it to Melbourne and hopefully support my team the Geelong Cats at another massive event the AFL Grand Final 2010.
Site of interest:
http://www.afl.com.au
Picture (Sources)
First picture: Zimbio
Second Picture: Zimbio
Third Picture: AFL Official website
Sound Relief
Sound Relief was two concerts with live bands playing at both the MCG and SCG on Saturday March 14th, 2009.
Sound Relief was hosted in both Sydney and Melbourne simultaneously in the hopes of raising $5 million for victims of the Queensland floods and Victoria bush fires, as as community's united Australia came together to raised over $8 million for those victims, with around 450 people volunteering as event staff and over 120,000 people attended the two concerts.
As the Natural disasters which happened in Queensland and Victoria left many people homeless, having to rebuild their lives, their communities and their homes, it came at a costly price to rebuild. Michael Gudinski came up with the idea to have two music concerts to help raise the money for those victims, so a special thanks to him for doing so.
Sound Relief had a positive economic impact as it created resources for communities that had been effected by the Queensland floods and Victorian bush fires, as $7,159,760 was donated to the Red Cross Victorian Bushfire Appeal and $874,416 to the Queensland Premier's Disaster Relief Appeal.
As stated previously Australia came together to help support the victims of these natural disasters, this event created a great social impact as family, friends, communities and people rallied together to
give their support and take part in a good cause to raise money, as well as the event staff who worked for free, the music artists and the attendees who paid $75 per ticket.
As Sound Relief gained a great deal of media attention, Victoria's and Queensland's crisis was heard globally, internationally Australia has be thought of as "big hearted" as they have come together to rally support, donations and spirit to help those in need, Australian society came together in an uplifting and co-operative way at these two events.
As the negative economic impact of natural disasters, it cost over $1 billion Australian dollars to start to rebuild homes, pay emergency services as well as devastating local Victorian tourism and hospitality industry, Sound Relief was a great success and was fantastic in being able to raise $3 million more than what was expected for the bush fire relief fund.
Sound Relief is an example of how a major event can work positively for the local and national economy, contributing something back to a needy cause as apposed to the usual strain major event project on local communities.
Sound Relief is an example of how a major event can work positively for the local and national economy, contributing something back to a needy cause as apposed to the usual strain major event project on local communities.
Site of Interest:
http://www.soundrelief.com.au
Photos (Source)
First image: Sound Relief website
Second image: The Age
Australian Masters Golf
The Australian Masters Golf is currently being held at Kingston Heath in Melbourne.
The event is attracting millions of viewers world wide and has made Australia the national focus due to a high profile draw card, Tiger Woods.
Victoria state premier John Brumby negotiated Tiger to attend the Australian Masters for an appearance fee of $3 Million, this sparked outrage at the Victorian government spending this kind of money just for a golfer. Could the money be spent better else where?
To understand this expense we need to break down the economic impact of an event like the Australian Masters Golf and the revenue it will bring back into the state and country.
Firstly Premier Brumby announced "Of the 100,000 tickets sold 30% of these have been sold to interstate or international guests", if the average traveler only spend $1000 on their entire trip to the Australian Master the will have contributed $30 Million to the Victorian and Australian economy, not a bad investment for outlaying $3 Million for Tiger Woods to play.
Additionally the broadcasting rights and sponsorship and marketing opportunities for an event broadcasts to over 300 Million people world wide are worth millions for the local economy, the merchandise stand alone at Kingston Heath Golf Course is expected to raise over a million dollars in four days.
Locally hotels, motels and restaurant's are full every night this week and guests visiting Melbourne are spending there time off shopping and visiting our tourist highlights. This all adds a strong economic burst to the Victorian and Australian economy.
It is important to to recognise the negative impact this event has had on Melbourne, traffic congestion is up and the focus has been taken away from the Australian Open, running just two weeks after the Australian Masters and is considered our premier golf event.
Peter Thomson, a five-time British Open champion "In my view it's going to do a lot of damage to our national Open which comes two weeks after this one in Melbourne, The Australian Open is our national championship, it is the most important event that we have".
Tiger Woods will not be competing in the Australian Open and having all of the media attention focused on the Australian Masters just two weeks before is sucking important sponsorship and media opportunities away from the Open.
A final thought on the $3 Million appearance fee commanded by Tiger Woods, although this is a small expense for an economic return of over $30 Million we can also take solace in the fact that he has to pay Australian tax on this appearance fee before it leaves the country.
Sites of Interest:
http://www.australianmasters.com.au/
http://www.kingstonheath.com.au/welcome/index.mhtml
The event is attracting millions of viewers world wide and has made Australia the national focus due to a high profile draw card, Tiger Woods.
Victoria state premier John Brumby negotiated Tiger to attend the Australian Masters for an appearance fee of $3 Million, this sparked outrage at the Victorian government spending this kind of money just for a golfer. Could the money be spent better else where?
To understand this expense we need to break down the economic impact of an event like the Australian Masters Golf and the revenue it will bring back into the state and country.
Firstly Premier Brumby announced "Of the 100,000 tickets sold 30% of these have been sold to interstate or international guests", if the average traveler only spend $1000 on their entire trip to the Australian Master the will have contributed $30 Million to the Victorian and Australian economy, not a bad investment for outlaying $3 Million for Tiger Woods to play.
Additionally the broadcasting rights and sponsorship and marketing opportunities for an event broadcasts to over 300 Million people world wide are worth millions for the local economy, the merchandise stand alone at Kingston Heath Golf Course is expected to raise over a million dollars in four days.
Locally hotels, motels and restaurant's are full every night this week and guests visiting Melbourne are spending there time off shopping and visiting our tourist highlights. This all adds a strong economic burst to the Victorian and Australian economy.
It is important to to recognise the negative impact this event has had on Melbourne, traffic congestion is up and the focus has been taken away from the Australian Open, running just two weeks after the Australian Masters and is considered our premier golf event.
Peter Thomson, a five-time British Open champion "In my view it's going to do a lot of damage to our national Open which comes two weeks after this one in Melbourne, The Australian Open is our national championship, it is the most important event that we have".
Tiger Woods will not be competing in the Australian Open and having all of the media attention focused on the Australian Masters just two weeks before is sucking important sponsorship and media opportunities away from the Open.
A final thought on the $3 Million appearance fee commanded by Tiger Woods, although this is a small expense for an economic return of over $30 Million we can also take solace in the fact that he has to pay Australian tax on this appearance fee before it leaves the country.
Sites of Interest:
http://www.australianmasters.com.au/
http://www.kingstonheath.com.au/welcome/index.mhtml
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