Business Events Australia Supplement-Biz Events Asia June -July 2015

THERE’S NOTHING LIKE

AUSTRALIA

Produced by Business & Tourism Publishing Asia Pte Ltd and Business Events Australia

www.businessevents.australia.com

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UNLOCKING AUSTRALIA’S NEWEST TREASURE The Adelaide Convention Centre welcomes the world to its new state-of-the-art facilities, designed with the event planners’ future requirements in mind. It is surrounded by premier entertainment, sporting and medical precincts, and set on the city’s revitalised waterfront district.

Find 54 out more about our brand new building at adelaidecc.com.au JUNE-JULY 2015

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Welcome to Australia!

ustralia’s business events industry is a significant contributor to the country’s economy, and one that grows from strength to strength.

Maintaining momentum takes commitment, innovation and creativity to continually inspire the target customer.

Research shows that Australia continues to consistently rank highly in the international business events market, either first or second against 45 other destinations, as a place offering world-class beauty and natural environments, local cuisine and wine, outstanding business events facilities, quality accommodation and exclusive experiences.

In particular, Australia remains highly aspirational as a business events destination, and for good reason.

Australia’s offering as a business events destination is constantly evolving, with greater flexibility in what can be offered or achieved for businesses, and constantly exceeding expectations.

Business events buyers are increasingly well-travelled and looking for experiences with “wow” factor.

But where does that “wow” factor come from? How is it created and then communicated?

One example is Tourism Australia’s Restaurant Australia campaign – showcasing the country’s exceptional

food and wine offering. Since its launch early last year, the campaign has been bringing together stories of Australia’s people, produce and places, helping to demonstrate to international audiences the world-class food and wine experiences being served-up in remarkable locations every day. Buyers are encouraged to explore these stories online at restaurant.australia.com to ensure that their next event is enhanced by memorable culinary experiences and settings.

Developing and promoting Australia’s world-class business events offering also requires effective communication on the ground. Tourism Australia has business events specialists on the ground in key markets who are pivotal in ensuring Australia has a strong presence in this competitive and crowded market. Connecting with agencies and corporate buyers on a daily basis, the team is instrumental in communicating Australia’s distinctive destinations, products and experiences.

Bringing the Australia experience to key markets through trade visits and events, wherever possible, is also extremely important for building relationships, and increasing awareness and preference for Australia. Equally, there’s no substitute for experiencing a destination first-hand. Dreamtime, a key business events showcase, will take place in Adelaide this December, giving buyers from around the world the opportunity

John O’Sullivan Managing Director Tourism Australia to experience Australia’s leading incentive product first-hand.

Australia is a place of fresh thinking and innovation, where a can-do attitude prevails. This natural optimism, creativity and unquenchable desire to succeed has seen the business events industry flourish and the country remain a place of inspiration.

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There’s nothing like Australia

Unique incentive experiences

It’s

the catchphrase that calls out to us from billboards, magazines and television adverts seen all over the world. But what is it about the world’s largest island and smallest continent that has captured the imagination of people from all corners of the globe?

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Something for everyone

Australia’s land mass is double the size of Europe and equivalent to 48 of the USA’s 50 states. It spans six different climates, from arid desert to subtropical rainforest. Within one country there is a swathe of venues in different environments from which to choose.

Many are tempted to Australia’s sunny shores by the promise of cuddling koalas, fresh air and sandy beaches.

Others find the open, laid back and friendly Australian personality refreshing compared to their busy, cosmopolitan and urban lives.

Whether hosting high-end, small incentive groups on luscious islands on the Great Barrier Reef, or managing a league of thousands for an international convention, Australia offers a broad spectrum of flexible event space and accommodation for event organisers and travel management companies.

These visceral and evocative associations with Australia make it an attractive destination for event organisers. Yet beyond this, there are many solid reasons for Australia being one of the world’s leading destinations for business events.

Add to this Australia’s business events industry’s extensive experience in producing thousands of flawless events – including high-security events such as the 2000 Sydney Olympics, APEC in 2007 and the G20 Leaders Summit in

Amway Convention Melbourne 2012

BridgeClimb Sydney

2014 – event organisers will have peace of mind when choosing an Australian venue.

World leaders

For a small nation of 23 million people, Australia is prominently positioned as a world leader on many fronts.

Brisbane recently hosted a successful G20 Leaders Summit, acknowledged as the world’s most significant and influential business event, and was hailed as the “friendliest and best” in the event’s history.

Adelaide has marked the beginning of a new era in health and medical research with the establishment of a dedicated, flagship research institute – the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), attracting 600 outstanding researchers and nurturing a new generation of the finest research minds.

Cultural events

Australia is a uniquely multi-cultural and creative country. Festivities such as Chinese New Year capture the hearts and minds of the locals, with most major cities hosting parades, night markets and street hawker stalls to celebrate. Sydney,

home to Australia’s largest Chinese population, hosted more than 80 events attracting over 600,000 people during the two weeks of Lunar New Year celebrations.

Vivid Sydney, a festival of light, music and ideas held in June, has proven to be a key attraction for the business events industry. Over the past two years, the Australian International Design Forum, Rotary International Convention 2014 and the 19th International Symposium on Electronic Art have all chosen to have their event coincide with Vivid Sydney, during what was historically a low period for business events.

hotel rooms are opening and additional flight routes will be opened thanks to renewed airline partnerships.

With this in mind, Australia continues to perform strongly in the business events market, attracting large-scale incentives and conventions such as:

Though Australia has proven itself many times over when hosting important international and domestic events, the industry is constantly evolving.

• 2 015 Tupperware Indonesia Manager Incentive Trip – Melbourne • 2 016 Nu Skin Greater China Success Trip – Sydney • 2 016 International Conference on Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICONN) – Canberra • 2 018 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) – Brisbane • 2 018 Sibos (SWIFT International Banking Operations Seminar) Sydney

To ensure that Australia’s cities and venues remain competitive on the international stage, massive investment has been dedicated from state governments into key capital cities across the country. Thousands of new

Brisbane has also announced it has generated AUD 30 million (USD 24 million) in leads since the G20 Leaders Summit last year, all pointing to the continuing appetite for Australia as a leading business events destination.

Looking ahead

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Developing world class infrastructure

rowing demand from Asia is one of six key areas of Australia’s Tourism 2020 strategy. The Australian business events industry is committed to developing world-class infrastructure that exceeds the expectations of the country’s closest neighbours.

Adelaide Convention Centre West Building

Flight accessibilities into Australia are enhanced with joint marketing agreements with major carriers.

To ensure their position as one of the world’s leading business events destinations, Australia has been focused on building infrastructure that will cope with market demands in the long term.

Adelaide

With an infrastructure investment of AUD 3 billion (USD 2.4 billion), the Adelaide Riverbank precinct and city is ready to welcome key international biomedical events with the opening of the South Australian Health & Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) (sahmri.com) in Adelaide’s biomedical hub, adjacent to the new Adelaide Convention Centre (adelaidecc.com.au).

Completed in March 2015, stage one of the convention centre’s AUD 400 million refurbishment added 4,300 square metres of convention space within the West Building and a 1,000 capacity Panorama Ballroom. Phase two is scheduled for completion in 2017.

The city welcomed the highly anticipated five-star boutique hotel, The Mayfair (mayfairhotel.com.au) located at the edge of Adelaide’s busy Rundle Mall.

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is a new 245-room Holiday Inn Express and a 250-room Sofitel hotel, both opening in 2018.

Located a 75-minute drive from Adelaide, the Novotel Barossa Valley (novotelbarossa.com) meets growing demand by recently completing an AUD 2.5 million refurbishment of its conference centre.

Adelaide will be the host of Dreamtime 2015, a Tourism Australia biennial five-day destination showcase to one hundred top international buyers.

Brisbane

Building on the success of the G20 Leaders Summit, the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre (bcec.com.au) took technology used at the summit and introduced BCEC Live, a free conference app.

The personalised app comes preloaded with venue content, precinct information and fully integrated venue way-finding technology.

Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre

BCEC Live

A world-class integrated resort is set to open at Queen’s Wharf Brisbane.

The Howard Smith Wharves Revitalisation Project will include public spaces and parklands covering 80 percent of the site with an event space and a proposed 150-room five-star boutique hotel.

The city welcomed the opening of NEXT Hotel Brisbane (silverneedlehotels.com), a technologically savvy hotel located above Queen Street Mall. Other new hotels opened include Four Points

by Sheraton (starwoodhotels.com) in the CBD, Alpha Mosaic Brisbane (alphamosaichotelbrisbane.com.au), Capri by Fraser Brisbane (brisbane.capribyfraser.com), the New Inchcolm Hotel & Suites (inchcolm.com.au), Hotel Jen Brisbane (hoteljen.com), TRYP Hotel in the Valley (trypbrisbane.com), as well as the Gambaro Hotel in Petrie Terrace (gambaro.com.au).

Starwood’s W Hotels brand is set to return to Australia in 2018 with a brand new W Brisbane, located on George Street in the city.

Hobart

Hobart

The striking new Brooke Street Pier (brookestreetpier.com.au) development was officially launched in January 2015 on Hobart’s picturesque waterfront. The redevelopment provides great potential to the business events industry in the form of additional event spaces, hospitality offerings and a revitalised and modern wharf area for their high quality passenger ferries. This truly waterfront site, within short walking distance of many of Hobart’s conferencing venues, is ideal for welcome receptions or cocktail functions of up to 300 persons.

The tenants already operating at Brooke Street Pier include MONA, Peppermint Bay, Red Decker and Port Arthur Historic Sites.

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) is introducing a 187-room Crowne Plaza Hobart to meet increased demands as the city enjoyed a 13-year high in occupancy.

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Discover a zoo without fences

THERE’S NOTHING LIKE AUSTRALIA FOR YOUR NEXT BUSINESS EVENT. PLAN NOW, VISIT AUSTRALIA.COM/BUSINESSEVENTS

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Melbourne

The Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre (MCEC) (mcec.com.au) will be going through an AUD 210 million expansion. The expansion will significantly increase the South Wharf precinct footprint as well as building flexible event spaces that will meet the changing needs of the global business events industry. MCEC was running high occupancies the past three years and has been turning away 20 percent of business opportunities due to availability constraints.

Following the success of hosting the World AIDS Conference 2014, the fashionable city also saw success in attracting smaller high-end incentive

travel groups to regional areas such as Ballarat, the iconic 19th century Gold Rush town, Phillip Island for a date with the little penguins, and Yarra Valley for some of Australia’s best wines.

Melbourne

The city welcomed Sheraton Melbourne (sheratonmelbourne.com) in 2014 whilst Wyndham Hotels and Resorts entered the market with the Wyndham Hotel Melbourne (wyndhamap.com) offering 531 apartment-style guest suites. Crown Melbourne (crownmelbourne.com.au) is building a new luxury five-star hotel to attract more visitors while The Ritz Carlton Melbourne is set to become the tallest hotel in Australia; construction is expected to begin in early 2016.

offering features wireless technology to ICC Sydney’s network infrastructure, the ability to broadcast to rooms and areas across the venue and video-conferencing.

For those confident with the touch pad screens, lighting and sound can be selfcontrolled from within the room. ICC Sydney offers venue-wide access to strong wireless connectivity in public spaces.

ICC Sydney

Sydney

Sydney caught the world’s attention with the announcements of the Barangaroo development and Darling Harbour precinct regeneration.

The AUD 1.1 billion ICC Sydney (iccsydney.com) is on schedule to open in December 2016 as the epicentre for international events and the heart of its local community through new linkages to hotels, universities and residential areas. The ICC Sydney team launched a sneak-peek video offering a fly-through experience of the centre, spanning from the 9,000-delegate capacity meeting space to the 27,000-guest capacity of Tumbalong Park. The event spaces,

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14 restaurants and bars will set a new standard in international conferencing, based on research and comprehensive insights into the future demands and trends facing the business events industry.

ICC Sydney will provide the world’s best practice technology and seamless audio visual experiences. The venue’s robust, high calibre and functional IT network is hardwired into every room, providing the ability to tailor solutions as new technology is introduced and for the needs of each event. The data network is designed and configured in a way that is flexible to change and be refreshed throughout its life. The integrated

Adjacent to ICC Sydney will be a new 616-room Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour, set to open its doors in 2017. Across from the ICC Sydney, Starwood’s Four Points

by Sheraton Sydney Darling Harbour (starwoodhotels.com) has embarked on an AUD 200 million redevelopment plan.

Its significant expansion will include a third tower increasing the number of rooms to 905 by August 2016 and 4,800 square metres of new convention space with stunning Darling Harbour views by May 2016. Also nestled in the Darling Harbour precinct, the Australian Maritime Museum (anmm.gov.au) is set to open three new event venues within the AUD 11 million Warships Pavilion bringing the museum’s total capacity to 2,000 guests across 11 spaces.

Located in the renowned Hunter Valley wine country, the Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley (crowneplazahuntervalley.com.au) unveiled its conference and events centre with an airy, light filled design. The Centre offers a combined 2,000 square metres of pre-function, meeting and exhibition space catering for up to 1,600 delegates.

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Restaurant Australia inspires event creativity

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here is a lot more to Australian cuisine than the iconic “shrimp on the barbie”. Built upon a rich multi-cultural heritage, Australian food culture is a happy marriage of familiar techniques and flavours adopted from across the world, matched with local produce from the country’s unspoilt coastlines, sweeping plains, sub-tropical seas and frosty alps. The result: Australia offers the opportunity for gastronomic adventure at every meal.

Defining food trends

Australia has been at the cutting edge of world food trends for many years; it is most notably a prominent leader in sustainable food production.

Provenance and carbon footprint are recent buzzwords across the rest of the world but have been infused into the Australian food industry for many years.

The popularity and interest in food provenance has seen the rise of concepts such as “Farm to Fork” menus. Australians are passionate about the origins of their ingredients, often preferring local farmers, brewers and wineries to the well-known, larger labels. Many venues go to exceptional lengths to source independent suppliers that can support large-scale events to ensure a memorable food journey for guests.

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Foraging for bush tucker

While Australia is a young nation by most standards, Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders have called this vast island home for at least 40,000 years. Chefs are now drawing on their ancient knowledge of the continent and foraging for “bush tucker” such as wild native fauna, herbs, nuts, seeds and berries to enrich their culinary creations.

There are many Australian native plants and fruits that are palatable to international taste buds. Bush tomatoes, salty ice plant, pepper leaf, rosella flower, wattle seed and riberries, just to name a few, are all growing in popularity in mainstream cookery. Native flora is a great addition to event menus to offer delegates a taste of rustic and rural Australia.

Sensational seafood

Being the world’s largest island, wedged between the Pacific, Indian and Southern oceans, with a population that clings to the coast, seafood is a fundamental part of Australian life. Whether it is the ever-popular barramundi, tasty Balmain bugs, freshwater Murray cod or tender Australian Gulf prawns, Australia’s seas provide many delectable dishes.

Australian oceans range from sub-tropical in the north to icy waters skirting Antarctica in the south, so different states and cities offer an array of local

specialties. Australians are fiercely proud of their produce and will debate the virtues of the Eastern Rock lobster to the Western Rock lobster, or the Sydney Rock oyster to the Angasi.

For the more adventurous, there are many fishing expeditions to be had with the opportunity to catch your lunch or dinner.

Delegates can sail off the coast of Cairns to battle the legendary fighting fish of the ocean, the Black Marlin, or learn the delicate art of fly-fishing for wild trout in the highlands of Tasmania. Others might prefer to pull lobster pots from the Indian Ocean while in Western Australia, or conquer the ocean’s greatest predator, the shark in Bass Strait. There is something to suit all the fisher-folk.

The best of the new world wines

Australia has more than 60 designated wine regions across the country and has developed a worldwide reputation for its well-respected new world wines. Many of these famous wine regions are only a few hours’ drive from major Australian cities, offering a great opportunity for day or overnight trips.

Australia is home to some of the world’s oldest shiraz vineyards in South Australia’s Barossa Valley (barossa.com) and McLaren Vale (mclarenvale.info), as well as award-winning sauvignon blanc in Western Australia’s Margaret River (margaretriver.com). The Hunter Valley (winecountry.com.au) near Sydney is well-known for its semillon and the Yarra Valley’s (visityarravalley.com.au) chardonnay, pinot noir and sparkling wines are tried and tested favourites.

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team building Team building only in Australia

Australia is a land of beaches, bush and desert and one must embrace the great outdoors for a real taste of Australian life. Energise weary delegates with a little sunshine and physical activity with one of these fun activities, offering something for everyone.

Whisky and wine days

Hunter or Gatherer?

A short flight from Adelaide, the Eyre Peninsula is an epicurean utopia; home to some of Australia’s best seafood. With Goin’ Off Safaris (goinoffsafaris.com.au), delegates can channel their inner caveman (or cavewoman) and dive for abalone, fish salmon off the beach, hunt for oysters and gather pipis. When the hunting and gathering is done, a personal chef will prepare a delicious and well-earned feast for all to enjoy.

For the fearless there are optional cage dives with great white sharks, or animal lovers can swim with bluefin tuna, sea lions and dolphins.

Award-winning Lark’s Distillery (larkdistillery.com.au) is nestled next to Hobart’s beautiful harbour, and offers fantastic interactive activities for delegates. Tastings at the Cellar Door are guided by the knowledgeable staff members and includes three whisky samples and a liqueur.

For a more in-depth experience, add on a trip to the distillery in Coal River Valley (coalvalley.com.au), only a short drive from the centre of Hobart as part of the Cheese and Whisky half-day tour. Cheeses are hand-picked from local fromageries for a tasty Tasmanian encounter.

Adelaide’s online tour portal

The Adelaide Convention Bureau (adelaideconvention.com.au) has recently launched a new award-winning online portal especially designed for delegates seeking pre- and post-conference tours.

The portal is the first in Australia to provide a handy one-stop shop for a plethora of exciting adventures around South Australia, making bookings super simple for the busy conference delegate.

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The best of the Great Barrier Reef

One of seven natural wonders of the world, the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland should not be missed when visiting Australia. A brand new fly-andsnorkel day trip has been launched

by Heli Taxi and Cruise Whitsundays (tourismwhitsundays.com.au). The private charter allows small groups to take in the breath-taking views of the Whitsunday Islands and Great Barrier Reef. Dropped off at a private pontoon, guests will be able to descend into another world, snorkelling with hundreds of fish and colourful coral.

For the perfect Instagram shot, the helicopter flies past the world-famous Heart Reef before dropping everyone back on dry land.

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