REMEMBER WHEN
Wednesday, September 3, 2014
DIRECT flights between the Gold Coast and the US were on the cards, with tourism and city leaders targeting cashed-up American tourists to boost the billion-dollar industry.
On the back of a strong winter peak tourist season, the Bulletin understood attention had turned to bringing visitors from the “largely untapped” markets of the US, Middle East and southwest China.
While industry leaders were working on the US market, Mayor Tom Tate and Gold Coast Airport’s Paul Donovan announced plans to travel to Sichuan Province to negotiate a start to long-mooted direct China flights.
State bosses were focusing their research and talks on California as well as Hawaii, which are seen as a “natural fit” for the Gold Coast.
Mr Donovan, also chair of Gold Coast Tourism, supports the new direct links.
The renewed focus on the Gold Coast as a market for Americans came at a time of an increasingly strong US dollar, making Australia a cheaper alternative than it has been in recent years.
An industry leader involved in the talks told the Bulletin there was a “natural affinity between the Coast and the western US”.
The Bulletin understood the renewed interest was bolstered by the success of Hawaiian Airlines in creating direct links from the island hub to Brisbane and Sydney.
Gold Coast Tourism boss Martin Winter said direct flights were the answer to boosting the city’s international appeal.
• Nearly a decade later, direct US flights are yet to be locked in, despite long-held hopes.