With the first round of great state vouchers injecting nearly $10 million into South Australia's visitor economy, a second round will launch just in time for the peak summer holiday period to further stimulate the state's tourism sector when it needs it most.
Available to download from 5 January 2021, the second iteration of the Great State Voucher program valued at more than $2 million, will provide $100 vouchers for use at participating CBD and North Adelaide stays, and $50 vouchers to spend on regional and suburban accommodation.
The scheme will also be expanded to include:
- interstate visitors;
- an extension of the travel booking period to further drive redemption;
- The inclusion of smaller operators with five or more rooms (a change from 10 or more in the first round).
"The first round of vouchers injected millions into our state's economy, creating tens of thousands of room night bookings and most importantly, sustaining and creating jobs in our tourism industry," Premier Marshall said.
"We know the summer holidays are traditionally a peak period for our tourism operators, and we are acting now to give travellers another incentive to visit our world class regions and CBD.
"The second round of the Great State Voucher program will further bolster tourism businesses right around the state and get more South Australians into jobs."
More than 800 accommodation providers, including operators with five or more rooms, will have the chance to sign up for the scheme, which will help brighten the holidays for South Australians, and entice interstate visitation to South Australia.
"In the first round, more than 50,000 vouchers were released with nearly half of these redeemed by South Australians. With more choice for consumers in the second round about when and where to travel, this is exactly the boost our state's visitor economy needs as it navigates the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic," Premier Marshall said.
A range of tourism operators from luxury hotels in the city to cabins in caravan parks are expected to sign-up to the second iteration of the scheme, which will launch on 5 January 2021, including brand new properties – Majestic M Suites in North Adelaide, Tom's Court Hotel and Hotel Indigo in the city, and EOS by SkyCity on Adelaide's riverbank.
One of those luxury CBD hotels which will open its doors in time for the second round is Hotel Indigo Adelaide Markets – the first Hotel Indigo for Australia, part of over 126 across the world.
General Manager Hotel Indigo Adelaide Markets Thomas Zinn said the global hotel brand is excited for its launch into the country when it opens its doors in Adelaide's Gouger Street precinct in 2021, just in time to leverage the tourism stimulus scheme.
"Hotel Indigo has paved its way across the globe as a truly fascinating neighbourhood brand, and we cannot wait to bring the experience to visitors and locals in Adelaide when we open in February 2021," said Mr Zinn.
"The launch of the Great State Voucher program has been a tremendous buoy for South Australia's travel industry. The volume of uptake is a promising indicator of South Australians' enthusiasm to get out and explore their backyard again and Hotel Indigo Adelaide Markets is thrilled to be a part of it, when we open in February."
The vouchers will be available to download on 5 January 2021.
The booking period for the second round of Great State Vouchers will run 7-31 January 2021, for travel from 7 January to 31 March 2021 inclusive (excluding Saturday nights). The same process will apply in that consumers will log onto southaustralia.com/voucher for their chance to secure a voucher and will need a driver's license or proof of age card for identification purposes.
Consumers will first need to obtain a voucher on 5 January and wait until 7 January to be able to book with it, helping streamline the process for both the consumer and operators.
For more information, go to www.southaustralia.com/voucher
