‘Growing tourism is a collective effort and the latest visitation results reflect the work of many people across the region.  Surpassing 7 million visitors is a significant milestone for Gippsland however there are still many opportunities to improve as we compete with other regions.

Our new Destination Management Plan will provide the roadmap and inspiration to continue to drive Gippsland’s strong visitor economy.  Thank you to everyone who provided feedback on the draft DMP.  The final plan will be released in August and featured in our next newsletter.’

Terry Robinson

The Gippsland tourism industry saw a significant increase in visitation and overnight visitors in recent figures released by Tourism Research Australia.

Total visitation to Gippsland has increased by 11.4%, or an extra 721,000 visitors, bringing the total to 7.06 million in the year ending March 2019. This is the first time our region has recorded more than 7 million visitors in a year.

In the same period, visitor nights increased by 7.7%, or an extra 554,000 bed nights, to 7.7million which was also the highest ever recorded for the region.

For more details on the latest visitation data please see here.

Eat.Drink.Gippsland is a guide to Gippsland’s best food, wine, beer, gin, produce, cafés, restaurants, farm gates and everything in between!

Work is under way to finalise the second edition of the guide. Should you wish to be part of this successful guide then you need to act now as advertising space is strictly limited.

For more information please contact Kelly McCarthy on kmccarthy@destinationgippsland.com.au

Victoria’s regional communities are invited to have their say on the future of tourism across the state following the release of the Regional Tourism Review discussion paper.

The review will assist the Government to understand how to leverage local strengths, support communities and increase visitation.

As a Tourism Industry stakeholder, you are invited to make comment on the discussion paper online or attend an industry conversation.  Please see our blog post article here.

The discussion paper consultation is open until 6 September 2019.

To access the paper and dates for the conversations to contribute  please see the details here.

The purpose of the Ken Hore Tourism Mentoring Program is to honour the contribution made by Ken Hore to the Gippsland and Phillip Island tourism industry. It does so by providing an annual career development opportunity to young tourism professionals or new entrants in the Gippsland and Phillip Island Tourism Industry. Specifically, it will:

• Promote skills and excellence among young people and new entrants into the tourism industry extending tourism networks and providing a broader understanding of the industry;
• Contribute to the continued development and growth of tourism in Gippsland and Phillip Island; and
• Perpetuate the memory, skills and contribution of Ken Hore.

Applications are now open and will close on Monday 12 August at 9.00am.  For further information please see here. 

Gippsland has been featured in a variety of publications over the past few months.  These include The Age, Outdoor Australia, Concrete Playground, The Weekly Times, The West Australian, Let's Travel Magazine, The Urban List, Beat Magazine, Elite Daily (USA), Which Car - Channel 10, GQ Magazine and RACV Royal Auto.

The Age reaches more than 3 million people across desktop, mobile, tablet and print each month. Pictured above (courtesy of the Age) artist Simon White who relocated to Loch Sport with some of the locals he has captured in lively murals around town.

If you have a great story PR story to pitch about your business or new development then contact Kelly McCarthy on kmccarthy@destinationgippsland.com.au

Our last Gippsland Tourism Forum for 2019 will be held in South Gippsland on Tuesday 17th September. 

Program details will be released shortly. 

Please save the date for an industry afternoon of networking and learning.

Ideas or suggestions for the upcoming forum are most welcome.

For further details please contact Janine Hayes on jhayes@destinationgippsland.com.au

The Victorian Visitor Information Services (VIS) Summit is the yearly meeting place for all VIS personnel, economic development staff and regional tourism bodies. The Summit will be held from 21 to 23 August 2019.

Delving deep into the customer experience, the Summit program features professional development sessions, case study presentations, keynotes and opportunities to learn from others.

For information see here.

Check into Social Media by tagging us in your posts.  To share using Gippsland Hashtags read more HERE.  To see what is trending in the social media world see HERE.

• Baw Baw Shire 
• Bass Coast Shire
• East Gippsland Shire
• Latrobe City 
• South Gippsland Shire 
• Wellington Shire Council 

Visit Destination Gippsland for a list of industry links to local and regional tourism associations and local government.  Industry Links.

The Gippsland Visitor Economy generates an estimated $1.2b in Gross Regional Product (11% of the total Gippsland economy). It supports 12,400 jobs (12% of all Gippsland employment) in over 3,000 businesses across every community in Gippsland. Tourism in Gippsland is everyone’s business.

Find out more about our Board of Directors here

Contact our team here