Tourism support
The Tasmanian Government has recognised delays to the operational launch of the new Spirit of Tasmania vessels is concerning for the tourism and hospitality sector, particularly in Tasmania’s north and north-west.
The Government will continue to support the state’s tourism industry while working with stakeholders to ensure businesses and the economy can continue growing so that when the new vessels arrive, their benefits can be felt immediately.
A comprehensive tourism and hospitality support package delivered across peak and off-season periods will drive visitation, support our regional communities, and boost Tasmania’s economy.
The support package includes:
- $6 million to subsidise passenger fares to boost demand and provide additional day sailings.
- $500,000 on top of the existing $5 million Aviation Fund, to increase aviation capacity across the Tasmania to attract more visitors. This investment will support new routes and increased frequency on existing routes across the state.
- $500,000 for air and car hire packages to encourage those arriving by air to get out and enjoy the regions.
- $5 million in the Spirit Preparedness Fund. This will support the development of new products and offerings, enhance existing attractions, and support councils to deliver key infrastructure such as signage and charging stations. This fund will work off a 50:50 co-contribution.
- A $10 million voucher program. The Eat Local, Stay Local vouchers will encourage Tasmanian to travel and eat out.
- $800,000 of additional funding to Tourism Tasmania to lead an interstate marketing campaign showcasing what the state has to offer, while encouraging more intrastate travel for Tasmanians.
- $5 million for a fund to secure more events for the state.
The Department of State Growth and Tourism Tasmania is working through the parameters and timing of each component and will be leading a working group to oversee the delivery of the package.
Update - 6 January 2025
The Tasmanian Government continues to work closely with the tourism and hospitality industry, together with TT-Line and Tourism Tasmania to progress the comprehensive support package that was announced in October 2024. The $28 million package aims to boost visitation around the State and support our local tourism and hospitality sectors, while the berthing infrastructure for the new Spirit of Tasmania vessels is completed.
The delivery of the package is being overseen by a Working Group that includes representation from airports, Regional Tourism Organisations, Tourism Tasmania, Tourism Industry Council Tasmania, Events Tasmania, Spirit of Tasmania, and Business Events Tasmania.
Below is an update on the status of each component of the package.
$780,000 Tourism Tasmania intrastate campaign
Tourism Tasmania launched a new intrastate campaign on 4 November 2024 to inspire Tasmanians to make the most of the longer days and enjoy our tourism, hospitality and event experiences across the state this summer.
To date, 219 operators and 55 events across the state have been featured in campaign activity. The campaign results to date, have seen over 30,000 unique Tasmanian visitors to discovertasmania.com.au (up 24 per cent from same time last year) and 16,000 direct clicks through to industry website or email address from the website.
The campaign includes a partnership with Tasmanian-born Olympic swimmer Ariarne Titmus, to highlight some of her favourite spots and will run until mid-March across a range of local media and digital channels.
It complements Tourism Tasmania’s Come Down For Air campaign encouraging Australians to visit Tasmania through the summer months with campaign activity running in NSW, VIC, QLD, SA and WA.
$5 million Tasmanian Festivals and Event Support Fund
This program is designed to boost regional visitation and strengthen the Tasmanian economy during the shoulder and winter months (from March to November 2025 and 2026) by providing funding for events across the following streams:
- Event development
- Event sustainability
- Emerging events
- Significant events.
Applications for the Tasmanian Festival and Event Support Fund are open from 2:00 pm Thursday, 19 December 2024 to 2:00 pm Friday, 30 May 2025.
Applications will be assessed in order of receipt of a submission and will continue until the program closes or all funding allocated to this program is exhausted – whichever occurs first.
Please refer to the guidelines for the Tasmanian Festival and Event Support Fund.
$5 million Spirit Preparedness Fund
This program will be available for both council and operators to support the development of new products and offerings, enhance existing attractions, and support Councils to deliver key infrastructure such as signage and charging stations.
This fund will work on a 50:50 co-contribution basis. Guidelines for the program will be released on 4 March 2025.
Guidelines will be live for six weeks to give operators plenty of time to prepare required documentation for when applications open in the first week of April.
$10 million voucher program
A new voucher scheme, Eat Local, Stay Local, will encourage Tasmanians to travel and eat out, during the shoulder and winter seasons
To ensure a fair playing field, we are proposing that a ballot will be run for the vouchers, with registrations to open in mid-April 2025. We are proposing that Vouchers will then be randomly allocated in the first week of May. To receive a rebate, voucher recipients will be able to undertake eligible activities across dates over the shoulder and winter season in 2025.
More information on the process will be available soon.
$6 million Spirit subsidised fee
Investing $6 million to subsidise passenger fares to boost demand and provide for additional day sailings
TT-Line has recently promoted a Black Friday retail campaign for travel in shoulder seasons of February to June 2025.
During the two-week campaign period, more than 30,000 passenger fares were sold— more than double the fares sold during the same period last year.
Forward bookings for TT-Line have surged, with year-to-date totals now more than five per cent ahead of last year.
TT-Line is currently working on a plan for how to best deliver subsidised fares, which industry will provide feedback on early in the new year.
Aviation Fund boost
Investing an additional $500,000, on top of the existing $5 million Aviation Fund, to increase aviation capacity into Tasmania. The guidelines this program are nearing finalisation, with more information coming soon.
Air and Hire Car Packages
To support increased visitor dispersal, air and car hire packages are being developed to encourage those arriving by air to get out and enjoy the regions.
Tourism Tasmania is working to finalise partnership programs with travel trade partners with campaign activity planned to be in market from late Feb to May 2025. A second burst of campaign activity will be planned in FY 25-26.