The tourism industry is a key employer in Queensland. Photo: Luis Baneres.
The Crisafulli Government in Queensland has introduced a new policy aimed at enhancing regional tourism and expanding the flight network across the state.
Connecting Queensland intends to create flight networks between the state’s disparate towns and cities, and help travellers coming into the state to visit more destinations with more direct flights.
With the 2032 Olympic Games in mind, the government said the strategy would make it easier for domestic and international travellers to see the Sunshine State.
However, details were sparse in the announcement and more information is expected in the next state budget.
At the core of the policy is a fund meant to attract more direct air services to create new routes.
Connecting Queensland has three key focuses:
- Increasing the frequency of services.
- Connecting regional areas to each other as well as to the cities.
- Supporting local jobs.
The initiative comes as the State Government proudly announced that pre-pandemic flight numbers had returned for Queensland. The government hopes it will expand on the annual 1.1 million inbound seats, which support more than 12,000 jobs and generate $2.4 billion in visitor spending.
“New connections will support jobs and opportunities in our great tourism businesses, especially in regional areas,” Premier David Crisafulli said.
“More than 90 per cent of tourism businesses in Queensland are small businesses and every new flight connection brings more visitors, more investment and more support for our tourism operators.
“We’re maximising the opportunity from the global opportunity of the 2032 Games to grow our economy and develop more travel options for Queenslanders.”
The policy is part of a broader, 20-year tourism plan that aims to make Queensland’s many attractions more accessible to international and domestic travellers.
