International travel agents visit Eurobodalla

A group of Chinese tourism buyers got a taste of the Eurobodalla region last week when they visited as part of Tourism Australia’s Corroboree Asia 2018.

The Corrobboree invites ‘qualified Aussie specialists’ from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Korea, India, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore to strengthen their knowledge of products across Australia.

The specialists are a mix of frontline retail, wholesale and online travel agents, who actively sell Australia as a preferred long-haul destination to Asian travellers.

Council’s Tourism Marketing Coordinator Kerrie-Anne Benton said 13 Chinese specialists visited Eurobodalla thanks to a partnership with Visit Canberra.

“The group went to Pebbly Beach and met kangaroos, stayed at Lincoln Downs, did a kayaking oyster farm tour and got up close and personal with animals at Mogo Zoo, where they experienced the animal encounters,” she said.

“They had an amazing time – it was particularly exhilarating for them to get out on the water on the kayaks and they loved eating our fresh local oysters.

“The best part is we now have 13 Aussie experts who will go back and sell their experiences on en masse to their colleagues and clients.

“This is the first time Visit Canberra has ever had a dedicated famil so we felt privileged to be involved as Canberra’s coast.”

A second Malaysian group also visited Tilba, Narooma, Bodalla and Batemans Bay, hosted by Destination NSW, with a private local guide.

Close to 300 specialist travel sellers visited Australia as part of Corroboree Asia, which also included training workshops, business appointments and networking functions at the Gold Coast