As the warmth of summer draws near, Bundaberg Tourism is excited to launch our annual Summer Campaign.

The Southern Great Barrier Reef (SGBR) was on show at this year’s Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) Meeting Place, held on the Gold Coast.

Join us for an exclusive series of Destination Management Plan workshops as we embark on a new chapter for the visitor economy across the Southern Great Barrier Reef (SGBR) region.

In a joint statement issued today, the two Boards of Bundaberg Tourism and Gladstone Area Promotion and Development Ltd (GAPDL), announced a milestone agreement to form a new tourism entity for the two regions.

The Southern Great Barrier Reef (SGBR) has been announced as a finalist in "Partner of the Year" category of the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) Awards for excellence in destination marketing for the second year running.

The past few months have been extremely busy for BT's marketing team, with Connie working with Wide Bay Kids to roll out the Bundaberg Region Inclusive Tourism Legacy Building project.

Bundaberg Tourism and the regional tourism industry were delighted to host Tourism and Events Queensland (TEQ) Group Executive of Marketing Kim McConnie and Racheal Klitscher, Destination Partnerships Director to spend some time in the Bundaberg region understanding the destination and our operators.

Combining an incredible close-up encounter with the region’s population of nesting turtles with leading sustainable design, operations and First Nations-guided tours, Turtle Sands is set to deliver a new breed of nature-based experiential holidays for guests.

Guardian of the Reef campaign by Tourism Tropical North Queensland and Expedia is putting eco-certified operators from the Southern Great Barrier Reef on a global stage

As the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef and home to the most significant loggerhead turtle nesting population in the South Pacific, we pride ourselves on being a community that takes Great Care in protecting and conserving our natural experiences for future generations, especially our turtles!

Emerging agribusinesses across the Southern Great Barrier Reef (SGBR) are planting their way to a successful future through the region's first Agritourism Mentoring Program, delivered with funding from the Queensland Government.

From unearthing Northern Tasmania's UNESCO City of Gastronomy to visiting farmers renowned for their quality produce and enriching on-farm visitor experiences, catch up with Team BT after their extensive 5-day immersive study tour across Tasmania’s north and north west - all part of the Southern Great Barrier Reef’s 2023 Agritourism Mentoring Program. 

The Southern Great Barrier Reef (SGBR), one of Australia's most ecologically significant and exciting emerging leisure destinations, has been announced as a finalist in "Partner of the Year" category of the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) Awards for excellence in destination marketing.

From international journalists and content creators to industry peers and production crews – Team BT are busy turning up the heat behind the scenes, curating bespoke itineraries, envious media famils and detailed production schedules, so the region’s stories, experiences and people can be shared with the world!

Team BT works with you, our tourism industry to strike whilst the irons hot to get holidays in the Bundaberg Region selling like hotcakes and letting the world know about the newest experiences that are hot off the press!  (Hot enough for you?? Get ready for a regular dose of puns!)

Check out our monthly lowdown on Who’s Hot In Region, and how you can get a slice of the action!

Members of Queensland’s 13 Regional Tourism Organisations (RTOs) met in Gladstone yesterday to collaborate on future tourism priorities for the State and continue to grow tourism across all regions.

Their ‘happy to help’ philosophy and love for all things local has seen Bundaberg awarded as the states Visitor Information Centre of the Year at the 2023 Queensland Information Centre Association Awards in Agnes Water this week.

Summer holidays are officially on the horizon in Bundaberg as tickets for the 2023-24 Mon Repos Turtle Encounter go on sale at 10am Friday 1 September.

With Turtle Season just around the corner, Bundaberg’s Destination website is getting ready for to welcome a mass influx of visitors, with tickets for the Mon Repos Turtle Encounter Tours going on sale 10am Friday 1st September 2023.

Bundaberg Tourism joins a prestigious list of nominees including national tourism organisations including Destination Canada, Japan National Tourism Organization, Qatar Tourism, Singapore Tourism Board, Switzerland Tourism and Tourism New Zealand | Manaakitanga Aotearoa.

Tourism Research Australia has this week released visitation data for the year ending March 2023 with record results for the Southern Great Barrier Reef.

The Bundaberg Rum Visitor Experience is the first tourism operator in Australia to achieve a global standard sustainability certification for tourism through Ecotourism Australia’s new Sustainable Tourism Certification.

Over the past few months, Bundaberg Tourism have been collaborating with local contemporary First Nations artist, Lili Jacobsen of Wattle Woman to design a new uniform for our Visitor Information Centre team.

Tourism leaders from across the state will come together in Bundaberg on 2 June to celebrate the 50th anniversary of World Environment Day.

Yesterday a post was made on the NewsMail Facebook page entitled Inside the run down island off Bundaberg. The article is written about islands hundreds of kilometres north of the region, and in no way refers to Bundaberg or any of our islands.

From international journalists and content creators to industry peers and production crews – Team BT are busy turning up the heat behind the scenes, curating bespoke itineraries, envious media famils and detailed production schedules, so the region’s stories, experiences and people can be shared with the world!

Team BT works with you, our tourism industry to strike whilst the irons hot to get holidays in the Bundaberg Region selling like hotcakes and letting the world know about the newest experiences that are hot off the press! (Hot enough for you??  Get ready for a regular dose of puns!)

Check out our monthly lowdown on Who’s Hot In Region, and how you can get a slice of the action!

Queensland’s Bundaberg Region, the southern-most destination on the Great Barrier Reef and the home of the nation’s most significant endangered loggerhead turtle rookery, has been awarded ECO Destination Certification from Ecotourism Australia.

Bundaberg and the Southern Great Barrier Reef is back on the world stage with the region on show at a number of major international tourism trade missions and events.

Bundaberg Tourism has been invited to join the Australian Tourism Export Council’s South Queensland Leadership Group, with Trade & Industry Development Executive, Loni Hammond to be the voice of the Bundaberg region and our dedicated tourism operators.

You are invited to attend a free face-to-face training session delivered by Get Skilled Access on behalf of the Department of Tourism, Innovation and Sport as part of the Accessible Tourism in Queensland project. The sessions includes a 90-minute presentation for Queensland tourism businesses and local government areas, covering all aspects of disability inclusion and accessibility for frontline tourism staff and provide the skills to welcome guests with disability at your service, attraction or business.

There is no doubt about the level of commitment and work involved in achieving ECO Tourism Certification.

The long-term thinking businesses who have built sustainable and responsible practices into their operations have long enjoyed the benefits of cost savings when using more sustainable energy, the efficiencies the ECO Certification process brings, the point of difference in the marketplace plus the reward that the business is leaving a positive legacy. This commitment and ongoing investment into their businesses is now turning into sales with tourism distribution partners now recognizing and supporting ECO Certified operators.

In the years since COVID, the tourism industry has felt the brunt of the enormous global disruptions, both physically and psychologically.  The rulebook was thrown out in 2020 as the world went into lockdowns, and with state and national borders now open, and people able to travel to almost anywhere in the world, we once again face a massive shift in our industry and the shape of global tourism.

Representatives from Bundaberg Tourism and Bundaberg Regional Council attended the ECO Think | Destination Forum in March, where leading destinations from around Australia contributed to the national strategy to develop a more sustainable approach to destination management and tourism.

With border closures and restrictions no longer being a concern for travellers, the wider distribution of our destination’s product is now more vital than ever.

We have been extremely fortunate here in Bundaberg, Southern Great Barrier Reef (SGBR) with the Southeast Queensland market turning out in force to explore and support in their home state due to the pandemic. Building on our many years of successful destination marketing throughout Queensland, most operators reported record occupancy since June 2020 to December 2021 as our state rediscovered our epic backyard.

Tourism trade is playing a vital role in the Bundaberg visitor economy, with operators recommitting to the tourism distribution system by developing pricing structures. Many new products are also taking up trade mentoring to ensure they are ready for distribution in the coming months.

The opportunities to work with tourism trade have never been stronger for the Bundaberg Region. COVID-19 has forced Australians to holiday at home, so agents across Australia are desperate for product with availability to sell to their clients. As a destination so easily accessible from Brisbane and with fewer crowds Bundaberg is well placed to take advantage of these distribution opportunities.

Against all odds, the Bundaberg region’s tourism industry has established itself as a force to be reckoned with over the past year, with 12 months of tireless tourism trade work culminating in some of our leading operators attending the nation’s top tourism trade event, the Australian Tourism Exchange.

Australian Tourism Exchange (ATE) is the largest tourism trade event in Australia. This year the event includes an in-person event held at the International Convention Centre, Sydney from 6 – 9 June with up to 65, 13-minute appointments connecting buyers from Australia and New Zealand to Australia’s leading tourism products. A virtual event is also being held from 10 -17 June connecting the rest of the world buyers to Australian tourism product to exchange knowledge and make business connections.

Bundaberg Tourism and the regions trade active operators have continued to promote the destination virtually to Key Distribution Partners both domestic and international, despite border closures, ensuring agents around the world are familiar with Bundaberg and the Southern Great Barrier Reef and how to include our region in their client’s itineraries when they start traveling again.