The New South Wales government has vowed to increase support for tourism, nightlife and major events in the state budget, announced on Tuesday, marking a positive outcome for the hotel sector, according to Accommodation Australia NSW General Manager, Stacey McBride.
Destination NSW will receive AU$324.5 million in funding to support the development of a ‘Foundation Events’ category, recognising the role that key events play, while the new Department of Creative Industries, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport will have a focus on growing the creative and tourism industries in the state.
“Time and time again we have seen the huge impact major events have on the wider accommodation and hospitality sectors,” said McBride.
“We saw it with one off events like World Pride, the Taylor Swift tour and the FIFA Women’s World Cup and we see it each year with recurring events like the Sydney Festival and Vivid.
“Events boost occupancy and visitation and flow on through food, beverage and retail. Any investment in events is an investment in the visitor economy.”
The budget also includes AU$1.66 billion in measures to support the arts and nighttime economy, including AU$26.9 million for the development of nighttime precincts across the state.
On the tourism and transport front, AU$5.5 billion has been allocated to the Sydney Metro-Western Sydney Airport, including the delivery of Stage 1 of a Rapid Bus Project which will link Penrith, Campbelltown and Liverpool with the new airport.
“A big thank you to the NSW Government for recognising the importance of the tourism economy and listening to the needs of the industry,” said McBride.
“We look forward to working with them to further drive tourism’s value to our sector and the broader economy of NSW.”