Palaszczuk Government forms inter-agency group to revive Great Barrier Reef tourism
Only 13 of the 24 reef island resorts remain operational
The Queensland Government has stepped up efforts to sustain the strong eco-tourism industry on the Great Barrier Reef with an inter-agency initiative to revive closed resorts.
According to the Ministry for National Parks and the Great Barrier Reef, only 13 reef island resorts out of the 24 that have leasehold land in the Great Barrier Reef remain open to tourists. The other 11 resorts were closed due to ongoing redevelopment plans or internal negotiations.
“The Great Barrier Reef resorts are an iconic part of Queensland's tourism industry, however a number are unfortunately run down and not operating,” said Minister for the Great Barrier Reef Dr. Steven Miles.
“The Queensland Government is working to turn this around, and is working with the tourism industry to rejuvenate our reef island resorts. An inter-agency working group has been considering relevant issues and identifying opportunities to improve economic opportunities for the Great Barrier Reef,” he added.
Ec0-tourism spot
For her part, Tourism Minister Kate Jones stressed out the importance of tourism in the overall economy. In fact, she claimed, “Tourism is worth more than $800 million to the region and supports more than 7,000 local jobs.”
“Anyone who has visited the Whitsunday islands knows just how breathtaking they are. In the last 12 months, the Whitsundays welcomed more than 655,000 visitors,” Jones said.
Jones also pointed out that reef island resorts should be rejuvenated to offer world-class experience to visitors.
“Our Reef islands are already experiencing a new wave of investor interest including the redevelopment of Hayman Island, planned expansion of Hamilton Island Resort, refurbishment of Daydream and new up-scale eco-resorts planned for Lindeman and Brampton Islands,” she pointed out.
Miles said he strongly supports tourism opportunities on the Great Barrier Reef.
“Securing the reef’s iconic reputation and flow-on benefits to the tourism sector are key considerations moving forward. This Government is committed to ensuring that we develop a strong and sustainable eco-tourism industry in the Great Barrier Reef,” he added.