SUNNY COAST A HIT WITH DELEGATES

AN INCREASING number of domestic and international tourists, including business delegates, have been seeking out the summery climate and beautiful beaches of Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, research by Tourism Australia has revealed.

The latest National Visitor Survey (NVS) reflected a 14.8% increase in the number of domestic tourists visiting the Sunshine Coast, reaching 3.97 million for the year Sep 2018 to Sep 2019.

National visitor nights rose by a record 17.4% to hit 14.2 million, while overnight domestic visitor expenditure also broke records, up 12.7% to $2.6 billion.

Visit Sunshine Coast (VSC) attributed the year’s recordbreaking figures to the opening of the Sunshine Coast Convention Centre (BEN 28 May 2019) and the “increased and enhanced” airline services introduced between Sydney and Sunshine Coast Airport.

VSC CEO Simon Latchford said the increased capacity has “helped considerably to attract more corporate and conference travellers”, with business travel up 34.6% for the year - a trend he believes will continue once the new runway opens at Sunshine Coast Airport in May.

Meanwhile, the International Visitor Survey shows that tourists from around the globe are also splashing more cash in the Sunshine Coast, with international overnight visitor expenditure up 14% to $284.3 million, overtaking the national average international expenditure growth rate of 5%.

New Zealand upheld its status as the region’s best-performing market, while North America rose 11.7%, with the expansion of Air New Zealand services making access to the Sunshine Coast from North America “even more convenient”.

Pictured: It’s all sun and smiles for this Asian trade group on their Sunshine Coast famil.