Benefits of Wine Tourism in Australia

One of the world's fastest growing industries is 'Wine Tourism'. What is it? How can we best benefit from it?

Firstly, let's keep it simple. If tourism is simply the provision of goods and services that attract tourists, then 'wine tourism' is the same but has the added influence of wine. Wine tourism is not only associated with cellar door wineries, rather all business that are involved in the wine, tourism and associated industries with the wine region. This includes accommodation houses, tour operators, gift shops, national parks etc.

If the desired outcome of 'wine tourism' is attracting more tourists then the real secret to success is having a clear understanding of the needs of your potential customers. Once this is clear you can focus on attracting tourists to our wine regions, improve business and target specific customers to your region.

Queensland has the advantage of already having an established tourism industry. Many wineries don't appreciate how involved they are in the tourism industry. An area that most regions have identified as important to meeting customer expectations is the need to integrate wine with quality food. There is no question that food plays an important part in adding to a region's ambience and unique character.

To obtain long-term success, each region needs to focus on really defining their point of differences, rather than trying to out perform another region. Identifying and consistently delivering a unique wine experience is what each region must strive to achieve. This fits well into both Tourism Queensland's and the Department's strategy to promote regional tourism. Global trends indicate that tourism is one of the most dynamic growth sectors and the demand for a quality experience is rising rapidly.

Irrespective of the way tourism is formally defined, it is first and foremost a 'people industry' involving the development and supply of a range of facilities, services and experiences to meet the needs, aspirations and expectations of visitors. Tourism is complex and diverse, involving many different forms of commerce. Most tourism businesses are part of the much larger services industry. At the local and regional level, the industry comprises tourism operators, businesses not directly involved in tourism, local and regional tourism organisations, community groups, residents and local government. By working together destinations have the capacity to attract visitors, satisfy their leisure needs and expectations, and generate economic and other benefits for the whole community.

In Queensland more people are employed in tourism than in agriculture, forestry, fishing and mining combined. Queensland Treasury estimates that close to 10 % of the workforce, or 135,000 people, are working in tourism. And the outlook is bright: international visitor numbers are expected to double over the next eight years (Tourism Forecasting Council, 1999). Latest figures also show that domestic visitor nights in Queensland have increased by more than 20% over the year to June 1999 (Bureau of Tourism Research, June Quarter 1999). Treasury recognises the importance of the industry to Queensland?s economy. The strength of the State?s services sector continues to be underpinned by tourism and related services which have contributed 7.9% of Gross State Product in 1998-99 (Queensland Treasury, Annual Economic Report 1998-99).