Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB) has reported securing 17 Asian incentive groups across China, Taiwan, Indonesia, Korea, Vietnam, Thailand and India since the start of the new fiscal year.
These wins will bring 2,345 delegates to Victoria, filling 4,033 room nights across the city’s hotels and injecting A$9.6m (US$6.23m) into the economy, the bureau reports.
MCB chief executive Julia Swanson, said the bureau has always had a strong presence across the Asia Pacific region, with team members in China, Malaysia and India working with planners to create unique programmes.
“It’s really pleasing to see Chinese incentive groups returning to Melbourne and we expect this to really ramp up now that Australia will once again join China’s list of Approved Destination Status (ADS) nations. Aviation capacity has already expanded with seven out of eight mainland China carriers operating to Melbourne resumed.
“MCB’s efforts to grow this market back to its full potential has been rewarded with 19% of wins in this segment to date hailing from China,” Swanson said.
Across the 17 incentive groups arriving, delegates will visit an array of attractions in Melbourne and regional Victoria. The exciting line-up includes some of Victoria’s most popular regions, the Yarra Valley, Goldfields, Mornington Peninsula, Phillip Island Nature Park for the iconic Penguin Parade as well as a trip to the Great Ocean Road.
Melbourne now claims the country’s largest hotel offering following a building boom. With 21 new hotels and 4,889 rooms opening in less than four years, including Ritz-Carlton, Oakwood Premier, W Melbourne and Hotel Chadstone, Melbourne has increased its accommodation market by 23% to almost 26,500 rooms.
