Sculpture at Scenic World boosts Blue Mountains visitor economy

Scenic World’s annual art exhibition, Sculpture at Scenic World, has enhanced its position as one of Australia’s premier regional outdoor art exhibitions, attracting record visitor numbers to the Blue Mountains in a welcome boost for the NSW visitor economy.

Drawing to a close on 12th May, the four-week exhibition brought visitors from around the world to the Blue Mountains for day trips and overnight stays to experience the artworks set among the ancient rainforest.

Being held for its eighth year running, the exhibition experienced an increase in visitor numbers of more than 6% on the previous year, with domestic visitation a stand out - with impressive gains from Victoria and Queensland, which increased by 133% and 83% respectively.

Visitor numbers from the ACT also jumped 24% during the exhibition as visitors from the nation’s capital travelled to the Blue Mountains region.

International visitation from Hong Kong, China, the UK and the US also increased significantly during the exhibition, up 132%, 45%, 36% and 19% respectively.

Sculpture at Scenic World was one of the main reasons which prompted more than 43% of survey respondents to visit the Blue Mountains between 12th April and 12th May, while 44% of respondents experienced the exhibition as part of an overnight stay in the region.

Explaining that the results highlighted the exhibition’s proven success in attracting visitors to the Blue Mountains for day trips and overnight stays, Scenic World’s Chief Experience Officer, Amanda Byrne, stated “sculpture at Scenic World provides a compelling reason to visit the Blue Mountains, but the benefits extend far and wide, delivering significant economic benefits for our region while increasing destination awareness and visitors’ intention to travel.”

Recognised as a major tourism event under Destination NSW’s Flagship Event Fund, Sculpture at Scenic World also provides a valuable contribution to the Blue Mountains’ creative industries which employs 8% of the local population, almost twice the NSW average.

In line with previous years, visitors took to social media to share their experiences, with more than 500 guests entering Scenic World’s #ScenicSculpture competition to go in the running to win an Apple Watch Series 4.

Sculpture at Scenic World images courtesy of Scenic World.