‘Naturally inspired’ events booming on Sunshine Coast

‘Naturally inspired’ events booming on Sunshine Coast

Business Event Sunshine Coast (BESC) is expecting a massive year of growth in 2017, which also happens to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the naming of dear old Sunny Coast.

Events secured in 2016 included the Australian Smart Communities Summit, Australian Macadamia Industry Conference and Australian Event Awards, with the Australian Cruise Association and Australian Society of Travel Writers Conferences scheduled for 2017.

Tiffany Bower, business events manager said event planners are looking for something different, wanting to go beyond the standard four-wall city basement conference venue.

“The Sunshine Coast figures tell a story with a marked increase in association conferences which often attract significant numbers of international visitors,” said Bower.

“Associations are increasingly being drawn to regional destinations for a more natural experience, where they can take advantage of the region’s landscape and outdoors environment, and include healthy activities and authentic experiences to stimulate delegates.

“With hotels in many cities now charging very high accommodation rates, we can offer better value for the conference dollar, meaning event organisers can design a more dynamic and attractive program.

“We have noted strong interest from New Zealand with the presence of our Visit Sunshine Coast representative in market along with positive results from our participation in shows such as PAICE and ConveneQ.

“And of course, our international figures can also be attributed to improved air access with Air New Zealand flights, Qantas connectivity via Sydney and the wider Qantas international network as well as the Virgin connections via their international network.

“Our focus over the coming 18 months is to capitalise on the success of the past year to attract more events to the region and grow the share of business from Asia and New Zealand. A range of new proposals is expected to build the region’s conference and venues capacity over the next three years, which will coincide with the launch of the new Sunshine Coast Airport in 2020.

“The new airport, with an extended runway and new terminal will significantly increase the region’s attractiveness for international and domestic conferences and events and will help build a strong case for an iconic convention/exhibition/events space in the future.”

Following the development of a new website in 2016 with services tailored to event planners, BESC will launch their new 2017/18 planners guide at AIME showcasing latest accommodation, venues, offsite spaces, activities and signature incentive experiences.

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