 Tourists spend $67 million in Maryborough annually |
14th March, 2008 |
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New figures show the City of Maryborough attracts an average of 141,000 domestic overnight visitors per year, supporting small business and putting more money into the local economy. The Federal Member for Wide Bay, Warren Truss said the new figures from Tourism Research Australia, which are based on a three year average to June 2007, reveal why people are choosing to visit the City of Maryborough. “235,000 day visitors to Maryborough spend a total average of $21 million per year. More than 141,000 Australians choose to stay overnight in Maryborough annually, spending a total of $46 million which is helping local cafés and restaurants, retailers and hotels,” Mr Truss said. “The weekly Thursday Heritage Markets are a big drawcard for tourists, promoting local craft, and produce, plants and household wares. “The new survey shows that the biggest drawcards for tourists to Maryborough are visiting friends and family, eating out at cafés and restaurants, seeing the local sites and shopping.” The Tourism Research Australia data shows the average number of nights a domestic visitor spends in Maryborough is 2.9 nights. Mr Truss said that tourism is vitally important to small businesses in the local area which rely on visitor spending. “The survey says at least 141 businesses in Maryborough which depend on tourism spending to increase their yield,” Mr Truss said. “The new figures can help small businesses identify the types of visitors attracted to the region so that their marketing plans can be tailored accordingly. This can lead to increased productivity for local businesses and greater opportunities for tourists as well.” To see a full summary of the Tourism Profiles for Local Government Areas in Regional Australia, log onto http://www.tra.australia.com/regional.asp?sub=0159 . | |