- Senator the Hon Jonathon Duniam, Assistant Minister for Forestry and Fisheries, Assistant Minister for Industry Development
The Morrison Government is providing $5.14 million to fund new tourist attractions in Tasmania, including mountain bike trails, rock climbing and farm experiences, to attract more visitors to the island and support local jobs and business opportunities.
The Government is providing $2.34 million for eight tourism projects plus $2.8 million to encourage agricultural businesses to develop unique tourism experiences, such as interactive farm tours, on-farm accommodations and meals, paddock to plate experiences and cooking schools., to boost the Tasmanian tourism sector.
Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Dan Tehan said the Morrison Government was investing in Tasmanian tourism, jobs, businesses and communities.
"The best thing the Morrison Government can do for our tourism businesses is to get tourists back spending money," Mr Tehan said.
"Our investment will support the Tasmanian community to further improve their tourist offering by developing new and unique attractions that draw even more visitors to the state."
"This investment is part of our Government's $13.5 million commitment to help support Tasmanian tourism."
Assistant Minister for Industry Development Jonno Duniam launched the Opening the Gate: Accelerating Agritourism in Tasmania project in Richmond today.
"With around 15 per cent of all jobs in Tasmania supported by tourism, it's vital that we continue to support the industry and set it on track to thrive again," Assistant Minister Duniam said.
"From the east to west coast, these additional projects will create new and ongoing jobs for Tasmanians, in hospitality, the arts and adventure tourism industries.
Tourism Tasmania CEO John Fitzgerald said the funding boost was very welcome news for the state's tourist sector.
"It's fantastic to see the Australian Government backing our regional operators in Tasmania with a wide range of new products and experiences," Mr Fitzgerald said.
"There's a real focus on product innovation and new visitor experiences designed to increase yield and length of stay, which we know is so important for industry recovery, particularly in regional areas.
"There are some great new additions to our mountain biking networks around the state, new nature and adventure offerings in the north, contemporary visitor interpretation in the midlands and new light show experiences at Table Cape and Bicheno.
"These projects will align with the work Tourism Tasmania is doing with its current Off Season winter marketing campaign and our ongoing Come Down for Air program focussed on generating interest and visitor demand for Tasmania."
The eight projects supported by the $2.34 million are:
- Wild Tamar Adventure Offering
- Table Cape Lightshow
- Riding the Mountain - mountain bike trail
- Blue Derby Green Flow Trail - mountain bike trail
- Heritage Interpretation - REASSIGN
- Bay of Fires Trail - mountain bike trail
- Bicheno Beams
- Wild Mersey Trail, Sky Rider and Look Out
The funding is provided through the Recovery for Regional Tourism (RRT) Program, which is part of the Morrison Government's $1 billion COVID-19 Relief and Recovery Fund.
