A new Tourism Australia trade show is to be held in London in the autumn.
Up to 130 sellers, including inbound operators, airline partners, new Australian products and established tourism businesses, are due to attend the first Australia Marketplace – UK & Europe.
Around 100 buyers will be able to organise face-to-face meetings, with the show catering for specific market interest and segments such as youth travel, premium experiences, wildlife and adventure travel.
Australia Marketplace – UK & Europe will be held annually over two days in the last week of October at a central London venue with an evening gala event at Australia House.
The exact dates for the 2019 event and venue details are due to be confirmed in May.
The Australia Marketplace will be accessible for product managers, marketing managers and frontline sellers. The event will have a UK focus, with European buyers also invited to attend.
Tourism Australia will continue to maintain a presence at the ITB trade show in Berlin each year.
Tourism Australia UK and Northern Europe regional manager Sally Cope said now was the perfect time to launch an Australian-focussed industry event for the UK trade.
She said: “The new Australia Marketplace will highlight the very best of what Destination Australia has to offer and with visitor numbers from the UK and wider Europe at near record levels, it is the right time to launch this event and build on current momentum.
“The UK remains one of Australia’s largest tourism markets and continues to show resilience in the face of current local uncertainty.
“Tourism Australia sees this as a key moment to work closely with the travel trade to create new and lasting opportunities for visitation from this market.”
She added: “The UK trade has remained highly engaged with Australian industry partners and the new Australia Marketplace, alongside our Aussie Specialist Training Programme and will allow these strong ties to continue to flourish.”
