More than 200 industry leaders are expected to participate in the forum which will feature insights from experts in politics, destinations, consortiums, convention bureaux and venues. Designed to help the industry advocate to all levels of government – from local to national – the session will address key facets of advocacy, including highlighting economic, social and cultural impact, encouraging corporate engagement, promoting soft power initiatives and how to facilitate government advocacy. The session will also address the need for government advocacy in the business events sector.  “T ..read more

Schwartz Family Company picks up another hotel Jerry Schwartz has bought the Leura Gardens Resort in the Blue Mountains for $25 million. The Schwartz Family Company already owns the Fairmont Blue Mountains nearby. The newly acquired Leura Gardens Resort sits within four and a half acres of gardens and has 92 rooms alongside conference facilities. The accommodation is made up of studio, family and self-contained apartments. The resort has recently been renovated. Now under the Schwartz Family brand, Leura Gardens Resort will operate in conjunction with the Fairmont, to present a comprehensive m ..read more

David Blansfield, executive vice president and group publisher of Northstar Travel Group, which owns the event, described TMS APAC as “a watershed moment for the MICE industry”. It is Northstar’s “largest organic event launch ever, featuring over 160 exhibitors from a wide range of destination bureaus, meeting venues, hotels, technology providers and suppliers”. There were almost 5,000 hosted buyer business appointments. The program included education sessions by industry presenters and panellists, a technology ‘campfire’ and networking receptions. TMS APAC also stood out for international ass ..read more

The return to suitability for Crown Sydney comes just weeks after the Victorian gambling regulator announced Crown’s Melbourne casino had returned to suitability to hold the state’s only casino licence. The move comes after the Bergin inquiry in NSW found Crown unsuitable to hold a casino licence in the state. The inquiry report was released in February 2021 and resulted in Crown operating its just-built complex in Barangaroo for more than 18 months without gaming floors. The inquiry became the first of similar investigations in other states where Crown operates casinos. However, today, the NS ..read more

Visitors from China attending conferences, meetings, trade exhibitions and incentives are a particular focus of the collaboration. Just six per cent of the 210,000 business travellers from China entering New Zealand since pandemic travel restrictions ended were in the country for business events. Overall the number of Chinese business travellers to New Zealand is now sitting at 65 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. The latest figures seen by micenet on New Zealand’s international visitation – as at the end of 2023 – put the country’s overall traveller numbers at around 76 per cent of 2019 levels ..read more

Marriott International has verified its targets with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), which is a partnership between the likes of the United Nations, the WWF, the World Resources Institute and CDP, another not-for profit in the climate change space. One of Marriott’s short term goals is to reduce its scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions by 46.2 per cent by 2030, compared to what they were in 2019. The company has also committed to reducing its scope 3 emissions from fuel and energy-related activities, waste generated in operations, employee commuting and franchises by 27.5 per cent by 20 ..read more

One of Australia’s most awarded boutique retreats, Bells at Killcare Boutique Hotel, Restaurant & Spa is nestled in the delightful seaside hamlet of Killcare, just 90 minutes’ drive from Sydney’s CBD ..read more

Many of the conferences scheduled for the city are from the health and sciences realm, including the Health Services Research Conference, Royal Australasian College of Medical Administrators (RACMA) 2024 National Conference, digital health conference, HIC, which is being held for the first time in five years, and the Society for the Neurobiology of Language Annual Meeting. Brisbane Economic Development Agency’s CEO, Anthony Ryan, said Brisbane’s medical offering was influencing Brisbane’s profile in the business events space. “As one of the largest hospital and healthcare clusters in the south ..read more

W Melbourne boosts its sales team W Melbourne has added four new faces and promoted an existing staff member in its sales team. Teigan Slater has been appointed as the director of sales and distribution for the luxury Melbourne hotel, moving over from IHG Hotels and Resorts, where she was in a director of sales role. Previously, she has also held business development and sales roles with The Island Gold Coast and Accor. Already working within the Marriott International portfolio, Macey Button has been appointed as account director at W Melbourne. She has worked for Marriott for nearly five yea ..read more

An hour and a half north of Brisbane on the Queensland coast, the destination is known for its beaches, near-endless sunshine and its lush hinterland. The region stretches from Caloundra to Noosa. Now the destination organisation, under which the local convention bureau sits, has launched new assets to represent the Sunshine Coast in the local and international business events market. “On the Sunshine Coast, we radiate a sunny disposition, fostering a ‘sunshine state of mind’ in business event attendees,” said head of business events at Visit Sunshine Coast, Ali Thompson. “Our natural environm ..read more