Research shows Victoria’s tourism investment pipeline accounting for one quarter of Australia’s total

The Victoria Tourism Industry Council (VTIC) has welcomed new research from Tourism Research Australia that indicating that, in 2018/19, the tourism investment pipeline in Victoria consisted of 49 projects with a collective value of $11.3 billion, accounting for 25% of Australia's total investment.

VTIC Chief Executive Felicia Mariani stated “once again the tourism sector has demonstrated its value as a major economic contributor, not only to the state, but also to Australia.

“This strong investment pipeline of 49 projects is working to narrow the gap between supply and demand in Victoria and support the experiences that visitors are seeking now, and into the future,” she said.

While the overall level of tourism infrastructure investment is strong, it is not as broad based as it needs to be. For example, Victoria is still 10% below the national average in terms of the proportion of investment in regional accommodation and experience development.

Commenting on this, Mariani (pictured addressing the recent VTIC conference) explained “the challenge for policy makers is to address this shortfall by creating a framework that will attract new business ventures into the state and increase private sector investment in tourism infrastructure.

“A key step is to extend the maximum length of leases in national parks to at least 49 years.”

The report also shows that the highest value of projects in the pipeline were in regional Victoria (68% of the value of the pipeline), with the remaining value of projects in Melbourne (32%).

Mariani went on to say “while VTIC is encouraged by these results, there is still work to do to ensure that the tourism sector continues to thrive in Victoria.

“VTIC’s submission to the Victorian Government’s Regional Tourism Review contains recommendations to streamline approvals for tourism investment, and fast-track the maintenance and upgrade of visitor amenities and tourism-related assets.”

Click here to read a summary of VTIC’s submission to Victoria’s Regional Tourism Review, or click here to view the full submission.