Tourism Talk FebruaryPlease select a story from the list below or scroll down to view all.
Sign up for the Tourism Talk eNewsletter to receive monthly updates - click here
 
> News from Tourism
GREAT ALPINE VALLEYS TOURISM STATISTICS
In 2010 the Alpine Shire Councils Tourism Marketing Team developed point of sale surveys (Enter & Win surveys) available through local participating operators and Visitor Information Centres. The surveys are derived from Tourism Victoria’s figures for Victoria’s High Country- Market Profile. The information presented draws together data collected throughout the Great Alpine Valleys (GAV) as well as the document ‘Tourism Insights 08/09’ (TI ) and information provided by Tourism Victoria in the ‘Victoria’s High Country Fact Sheet’ (VHC). Our aim is to provide you further information to aid business decisions and tracking of trends. Statistics from Autumn, Winter and Summer 2011 are now online. Operators should check the website seasonally to download the new set of statistics. Visit www.alpineshire.vic.gov.au/Page/Page.asp?Page_Id=1412. If you would like to participate in data collection by handing out surveys to your customers please email kateh@alpineshire.vic.gov.au.
Back to top
NEW OFFICIAL VISITORS GUIDE FOR BRIGHT AND SURROUNDS
Great news, the regions new official visitors guide is printed and available for all. As part of Tourism Victoria's jigsaw series the brochure is titled 'Bright and Surrounds' Be sure to pick up your copy or a bundle at the Alpine Shire Council offices or at the Visitor Information Centres in Bright, Myrtleford and Mount Beauty.
Back to top
EVENT WRAP UP
January has been a busy month for events and festivals! Sweet Valley Sounds took place for the first time on Saturday 21 and was a huge success with almost 700 tickets sold, many of which to families and locals. The Festival showcased a number of talented artists who catered towards a multitude of musical tastes and age groups. Children under the age of 12 attended for free and were entertained by soaker hoses strung up in trees, wand, crown and pasta necklace making workshops. The atmosphere was lovely and relaxed with good weather topping off a great inaugural event.
The Audax Alpine Classic took place 27-29 January with 6000+ participants and spectators flocking to Bright and the surrounding towns. As an accompaniment to the cycling event, Bonjour Bright; a French Influenced Festival is hosted in Howitt Park offering FREE open air family friendly films, kids entertainment, live music, food and wine and ‘Paris by Night’ a show spectacular featuring burlesque, cancan, trapeze acts and French singing. The rain put a little damper on the activities Saturday evening but the ride went off without a hitch early Sunday morning.
Back to top
UP AND COMING EVENTS
The Adventure Travel Film Festival - 24-26 Feb For the first time in Australia, Bright will be hosting The Adventure Travel Film Festival. The Festival showcases adventure and travel films from the 1920s onwards, workshops and seminars as well as presentations by notable Australian adventurers Jon Muir and Tim Cope. Seminars and workshops will focus on everything from filming your own adventure through to camp-fire cooking. The Festival takes place at the Alpine Visitor Information Centre and Bright Brewery and will be hosted by Lois Pryce and Austin Vince who are flying over from England especially for the Festival. For more info visit www.adventuretravelfilmfestival.com/australian-festival/
The Bright Rockabilly Ink and Oil Festival - 2-4 Mar
Back for its’ second year with a bigger and better lineup of entertainers and events to keep all tastes satisfied. With a Show N’ Shine, Pin-Up competition, a number of bands playing at various locations and the new addition of a Roller-Derby competition to name a few events, the Rockabilly Festival is sure to get everyone into the Kustom Kulture mood. For more info visit www.brightrockabilly.com.au
Back to top
ARE YOU KEEN TO BE A VOLUNTEER?!
A few hours of your time (whilst immersed in the cream of Australia’s Rockabilly music and culture) will gain you a weekend ticket to the rest of the festival AND entry to the ‘After Party/ Jam’ at Porepunkah Hotel on Sunday Night (4th March). We’ll even shout you a drink or two as a thank you!
Don’t put it off – commit NOW to a fabulous weekend! Give Susie Ross a call on 5752 2942 (Susie is on the RIO Committee) and help your school, your community and your social life!
Back to top
NORTH EAST VICTORIA TOURISM BOARD UPDATES;
- NEVTB’s Strategic Plan was signed off at the last meeting of the board for 2011, and will be rolled out to industry in February.
- NEVTB is coordinating Digital Marketing Training sessions around the region for tourism operators from 14 – 23 February (various dates and locations). More information available on the overview Korinne has sent to Indigo Shire or operators can contact us at info@nevtb.com.au. These hands-on training sessions will be designed with tourism operators in mind.
- North East Victoria’s comprehensive Seasonal Indulgence Guide is currently in design phase and will be printed and distributed in early autumn.
- Mark your diaries: The new High Country Harvest (18 - 27 May), a 10-day region-wide program of food, wine and beer events, will be launched on 1 March (www.highcountryharvest.com.au – live from 1 March). Accommodation providers should start thinking about how they might leverage this opportunity?
Back to top
PARKS VICTORIA UPDATE
Mount Buffalo National Park
Summer holiday program
Staff are currently winding down from a very successful summer period, including a jam-packed and well attended summer holiday program. As part of that program, there were ten Mount Buffalo Chalet Tours held, all of which were fully booked. Also fully booked throughout January was Lake Catani Campground; however there is now availability in the Campground, so to book your site, please visit www.parkstay.vic.gov.au
Why not visit Mount Buffalo today?
In the 48 hours to Tuesday 31st January, 2012, Mount Buffalo National Park has received around 130mm of rain! So the Park is looking fresh, clean, green and the waterfalls are raging with power, so it is an awesome time to go up and visit the wonderful walks and falls of Mount Buffalo National Park. At this stage, staff are not aware of any damage from the rain, but please do keep in mind that trees and branches may have come down on walking tracks, however these will be cleared as staff can get to those tracks.
Upgrades throughout the Park
Staff are currently planning for, and working towards, the upgrade of five lookouts on the plateau of Mount Buffalo National Park. These will include the Horn, Mount Dunn, View Point, Wilkinsons and Marriots lookouts. Work is scheduled to commence on Wednesday 7th March, 2012 and is to be concluded by winter.
Meanwhile, tenders will be advertised shortly for works to commence on the upgrade of the entrance precinct into the Park – around where the entrance station was located. The new precinct will be more user friendly, easier to keep up to date and interpretive information will be more interactive. Stay tuned for updates and the final product!
Audax Alpine Cycling Challenge
The Audax Alpine Cycling Challenge was held on the weekend of 28th and 29th January 2012 and saw cyclists ride a circuit from Bright to Omeo, Omeo Highway to the Bogong Alpine Way, up to Falls Creek, to Mount Beauty, Tawonga Gap, Mount Buffalo and back into Bright. There were around 2700 participants completing the various event options, while passing through Mount Buffalo and Alpine National Parks. With this number of participants and support people, it proved for a busy Sunday on Mount Buffalo. Staff are happy that there were no significant incidents to report and a great day was had by all.
Dingo Dell Cafe
The Cafe is open every day between 10am and 5pm for your refreshments and basic camping suppliers. So go and enjoy a relaxing lunch or snack while you take in the peace and quiet at Dingo Dell.
Spotted Tree Frogs hop back to top spot
260 captive-bred Spotted Tree Frogs are being released back into Mount Buffalo National Park in an effort to re-establish the species in a former stronghold. A small number of frogs that were rescued from a nearby site have been used in a captive breeding program over the past six years. The frogs being released come from that population. This release forms part of a comprehensive National Recovery Program lead by DSE in partnership with agencies and groups from Victoria and NSW. Part of this Program has seen hard work over a considerable period of time to eliminate weeds from the frogs’ habitat to ensure the habitat is as favourable as possible for the survival of the species.
Alpine National Park
Flood recovery works completed
Resurfacing of the tracks near Wallace Hut and Cope Hut has been completed following damage by a severe flood event in 2010. The track surface has been improved and provides a more accessible walking surface which links the huts on the Wallace Cope Heritage circuit.
Wallace Hut restoration
A group of dedicated volunteers will commence restoring Wallace Hut - beginning on the weekend of 11th & 12th of February. The volunteers have been previously involved in the rebuild of Ropers and Westons Huts. The restoration will be completed under the supervision of a heritage architect and by permit from Heritage Victoria. The work will involve
replacement of rotten wall plates, slabs and posts, and will also include a complete rebuild of the chimney. While the works are taking place visitors will be restricted from entering the Hut as it will be a construction site. Visitors will however still be able to access the visitor site and appreciate the setting.
Bushwalking Victoria willow weekend
A group of thirty volunteers assisted Parks Victoria staff in locating and controlling willow on the Bogong High Plains on the weekend of 28th – 29th January. Bushwalking Victoria has been involved in willow control since 2004 and has removed many thousands of willows from the Alpine National Park. Willows have the potential to invade large areas of the Bogong High Plains, particularly the wetlands and the work done by parks staff, volunteers and contractors helps to maintain the biodiversity of the Bogong High Plains.
West Buffalo information shelter
The Victorian Mobile Landcare Group rebuilt the information shelter on the West Buffalo Track in the Barry Mountains over the Australia Day weekend. The $6000 shelter had been destroyed by vandals shortly after its construction and installation.
Even small park facilities and structures can be expensive to construct and maintain as many are in remote areas. Volunteer groups play a valuable role in managing park facilities and are disturbed and disappointed when these facilities are damaged. You too can help by reporting any acts of vandalism or damage to parks Victoria staff.
>TOURISM VICTORIA NEWS
Click here to go to the Tourism Victoria Corporate site
HAVE YOUR SAY ON THE 2020 TOURISM AND EVENTS INDUSTRY STRATEGY
Tourism Victoria has commenced the consultation phase for Victoria's 2020 Tourism and Events Industry Strategy, which outlines the government's vision and long-term strategic direction for tourism and events.
In identifying the potential growth for Victoria, we will reference projections estimated in the National Long-Term Tourism Strategy. This potential is ambitious and represents a 'stretch' beyond business as usual.
Tourism Victoria will be holding a number of consultation sessions on the discussion paper with industry and government leaders. We welcome additional input from industry members.
Please click here to view the discussion paper and forward any comments or suggestions by 29 February 2012 to strategyfeedback@tourism.vic.gov.au .
26 WINNERS READY TO REPRESENT VICTORIA AT NATIONAL TOURISM AWARDS
As the final preparations take place for the tourism industry's largest and most prestigious event, the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards, 26 Victorian award winners are ready to join another 200 state and territory finalists at the gala ceremony next month in Cairns.
This is the 27th annual Australian Tourism Awards, which recognises tourism businesses that strive for excellence in every area of their operation. For both the industry and the consumer an Australian Tourism Award is recognised as a mark of tourism excellence.
In 2012, Victoria also has Mornington Peninsula Tourism vying for the Hall of Fame Award in the Specialised Tourism Services category.
The full list of Australian finalists can be viewed on the new Australian Tourism Awards website australiantourismawards.com.au. For enquiries regarding tickets, please contact the National Tourism Alliance on 02 9264 2185.
FEEDBACK SOUGHT ON SKILLS SHORTAGE TEMPLATE LABOUR AGREEMENT
As part of the Tourism 2020 strategy, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship has developed a discussion paper on a proposed template labour agreement. The template is intended to simplify access to overseas workers in critical skills shortage areas.
The paper is now open for comment, to help ensure the template meets tourism industry needs. To review the discussion paper, please click here.
All feedback on the discussion paper is welcome, as well as any specific information about occupations in demand and current challenges in attracting and recruiting staff. Industry associations are also encouraged to forward the discussion paper to their members.
Please provide comments on the discussion paper by Friday 16 March 2012 to labour.agreement.section@immi.gov.au . For more information on Labour and Skills Working Group initiatives visit tourism.gov.au/labour.
HIGH COUNTRY AND YARRA VALLEY FEATURED IN NATIONAL TELEVISION SERIES
With support from Tourism Victoria, the High Country and Yarra Valley regions were featured in a national television series as part of Tourism Australia's No Leave No Life initiative.
"The No Leave No Life initiative is about encouraging more Australians to take a break from work and get to know their own backyard by planning holidays closer to home," Minister for Tourism and Major Events Louise Asher said.
The High Country's Lindenwarrah Hotel, Brown Brothers, Dal Zotto Wines and Pizzini Wines, along with Domaine Chandon and Chateau Yering Historic House Hotel in the Yarra Valley were filmed as part of the episode, which aired on the Seven Network.
INFORMING TRAVELLERS ABOUT BUSHFIRE SAFETY
Tourism Victoria has recently released a new suite of free materials available to tourism businesses and booking agencies to inform travellers about bushfire safety.
Developed in conjunction with the Country Fire Authority (CFA), these materials provide important bushfire safety tips for people staying in high bushfire risk areas.
Research conducted by Sweeney Research in October 2011 found that despite an increase in bushfire safety awareness since the 2009 bushfires, more visitor education is needed.
Tourism businesses and booking agencies can order a kit which includes brochures, fridge magnets, key tags, Fire Danger Rating displays and local Township Protection Plans. To order a bushfire safety resource kit or find out more, please click here.
Back to top
|
> News from Economic Development
GREEN YOUR BUSINESS, GROW YOUR BUSINESS SEMINAR
Wednesday 22 February 2012, 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Get greener, save money and tap into new markets.
This seminar helps you find ways to run your business more efficiently, save money, reduce your environmental impact and offer better solutions to an increasingly aware market. You can expect to leave this seminar with a clear understanding of energy efficiency, water conservation, waste reduction and much more. You will also be armed with a whole host of resources and contacts to help you achieve and expand your green business goals.
For more information, please download the flyer .
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
$20.00 per person (light supper provided). This seminar is subsidised by the Alpine Shire and DBI. All seminar material will be provided.
HOW DO I PARTICIPATE?
Simply log onto the Business Victoria website to register and make payment. Alternatively you can register and pay at the Alpine Shire office, 2 Churchill Avenue (just off Great Alpine Road), Bright.
LOCATION: Alpine Shire Council Chamber, 2 Churchill Avenue (just off Great Alpine Road), Bright
CONTACT: Sara Bailey on 03 5755 0522 or sarab@alpineshire.vic.gov.au
Back to top
NEED ADVICE FOR YOUR BUSINESS? MHBEC CAN HELP
The Murray Hume Business Enterprise Centre (MHBEC) would like to introduce their services to the Alpine Shire business community. The MHBEC is a not-for-profit community organisation providing a variety of services to assist those intending to start or buy a business, and those in existing businesses wishing to expand or diversify. These services would be an ideal way to expand on skills learnt in workshops and seminars or simply get some independent advice to make sure your current business or new business idea is on the right track. MHBEC offers one on one sessions and access to a wide range of resources.
The team from MHBEC want to provide you the opportunity to access these services and would like to gauge interest from the Alpine Shire business community so they may develop a suitable program for the area. Please refer to the MHBEC website for more information (http://www.mhbec.com.au/) and if you believe your business may benefit from their services please respond to Sara Bailey via email (sarab@alpineshire.vic.gov.au) by February 5th or contact the team at MHBEC directly on 02 6024 0400.
|
|
|
| |
|
