Tropical North Queensland toasts the arrival of Japanese guests
Posted by editor (editor) on Apr 17 2009
2009 >>

Tourism Queensland will this weekend welcome a Continental Airlines flight carrying more than 30 key representatives from the Japanese travel industry to Tropical North Queensland.

Tourism Minister Peter Lawlor said the flight signified an important milestone for Queensland’s penetration of the Japanese market.

“Japan is Tropical North Queensland’s biggest international market with 163,000 visitors, supporting 2200 Queensland jobs and injecting almost $460 million to the Queensland economy,” he said.

“Earlier in the year Tourism Queensland together with Tourism Australia and Tourism Tropical North Queensland held discussions with major airline Continental Micronesia which resulted in the airline increasing its services from Guam to Cairns from two to four per week, commencing in May.

“Continental Micronesia has strong connections into a number of Japanese cities including Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Okayama, Nagoya, Tokyo, Niigata, Sendai and Sapporo.”

Mr Lawlor said the aim of the flight, arriving Sunday, was to enthuse key Japanese travel agents in each Continental Airline Port city to sell Cairns and Tropical North Queensland.

Tourism Queensland - in partnership with Tourism Tropical North Queensland and Tourism Australia - has handpicked influential travel industry representatives from across Japan to participate in a range of networking events and industry functions,” he said.

“This visit will strengthen links between Japan and Cairns and ensure Tropical North Queensland is top-of-mind for these Japanese agents.

“The visit will also provide an excellent opportunity for local tourism operators to build and strengthen business relationships with key Japanese stakeholders.

“International tourism is a key economic driver for Tropical North Queensland; during these challenging economic times, activities such as this are crucial to increase the visibility and presence of Queensland tourism products in our international markets.”

Last changed: Oct 06 2009 at 2:08 PM