Mr Lawlor said in addition Tourism Queensland had been inducted into the NTIA hall of fame.
“The AFTA Awards were nominated and determined by travel agents and industry suppliers nationally on the basis of who they believe provided the best service,” he said.
“To be named the leading state tourism organisation for the third year running and being inducted into the hall of fame is a fantastic achievement and Tourism Queensland couldn’t be happier.
“More than 3000 votes were cast and this acknowledgment from industry peers is one of the greatest honours Tourism Queensland can receive.”
Mr Lawlor said in the year ending March 2010 more than 17 million international and domestic tourists visited Queensland and spent more than $15.6 billion.
“The hard-working staff at Tourism Queensland deserve a big thank you and this award caps off a big year.
“Their hard work supports a tourism industry which is worth $9.2 billion to the Queensland economy and directly employs 122,000 people.”
The awards top off an outstanding year for Tourism Queensland, which included one of the most successful and innovative tourism marketing campaigns of all time – the Best Job in the World.
This ground-breaking campaign has received a long list of prestigious international awards and spawned a host of copycat campaigns around the world.
Most recently the campaign has won a coveted 2010 Golden World Award for excellence in public relations – in the ‘international PR campaign’ category.
The campaign has generated more than $410 million globally in estimated public relations value for Queensland. During the campaign, more than 8.6 million people visited the website and viewed 56 million web pages.
Media contact: Minister’s Office 3225 1005
