Youth campaign vital for tourism growth

The new Tourism Australia campaign targeting the international youth travel market has been welcomed by industry body, Tourism & Transport Forum (TTF).

TTF acting Chief Executive Trent Zimmerman said that targeting the youth market is vital to broaden Australia's global appeal and create a new generation of international visitors, according to peak national

Zimmerman explained "young visitors spend more time and money in Australia than most other types of visitors, with many coming for an extended period as backpackers or students.

"These visitors are well connected in the digital world and can create virtually instant interest in Australia through their social media networks.

"They will also return home as ambassadors for Australia, encouraging their family and friends to visit.

"Tourism Australia's campaign will give fresh impetus to promoting Australia in a number of key markets, generating new interest through the 'Best Jobs in the World' initiative, especially among people considering coming to Australia for a working holiday.

"Working holiday makers - WHM - are an important segment of the youth market and we'd like to see a number of reforms to the WHM visa scheme to maximise its benefits.

"Ideally, it would be expanded to cover more of our growth markets in Asia, like China and Vietnam, while the caps on working holiday numbers from other Asian countries like Indonesia and Malaysia should be raised.

"There's no reason older people shouldn't also qualify to come to work in Australia, especially since there are 36,000 job vacancies across the country in tourism and hospitality, so we'd like to see the age limit raised or even removed.

"In addition, people on working holiday visas who are employed in tourism and hospitality in regional areas should qualify for a 12-month visa extension, the same bonus available to working holiday makers who work in agriculture, mining or forestry.

"We also don't believe that working holiday visa arrangements should necessarily be on a one-for-one reciprocal basis and are calling for more flexibility when it comes to WHM agreements."

For more information go to www.ttf.org.au