SME business travellers will face incremental airfare increases in 2018 but the passenger experience will be better than ever according to the latest 4D FOCUS – Australian Aviation and Airfare Analysis.
The report, produced by Flight Centre Travel Group’s (FCTG) 4th Dimension Business Travel Consulting (4D) team, includes a statistical outlook for 2017 and year on year benchmarking of corporate and leisure airfares from 2014 to 2016.
Corporate Traveller General Manager Jess Anscombe said despite some forecast increases on the most popular domestic routes, the uptick in airfares would be offset by the increased quality of the passenger experience.
“Qantas and Virgin Australia have shifted from capacity battles to focus on shoring up their product. Both are vying for customer loyalty by introducing innovative new features on the ground and in the air,” she said.
“Two of the most important recent airline innovations was Qantas’ launch of its SME focused Qantas Business Rewards program and Virgin Australia unveiling its new Economy X Class.”
Ms Anscombe said the continued investment of both carriers to boosting their fleets and facilities pointed to the underlying value for money proposition being delivered to business travellers.
The report also suggested a shift from the long-held belief that booking 14-21 days in advance delivers the best fares on the busiest routes.
The introduction of Days of the Week fares in late 2016, which made certain fare types more expensive for travel on Thursdays and Fridays, being the clearest disruptor.
Ms Anscombe said the report also highlighted the continuing strong demand in key SME destinations of Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland with resulting cost increases for accommodation.
“Historically, airfares are still very competitive but using some professional expertise to match the market’s dynamic pricing is the best way to ensure you’re accessing the best airfares every time,” she said.
4D’s General Manager Felicity Burke said key international routes for SME travellers continued to show outstanding value.
“Flights between Sydney and Shanghai have dropped an astonishing 27 per cent in the last three years, the biggest fall of any major international route,” she said. “Sydney and Los Angeles were the next best performing flights dropping 16 per cent in the same period.
“Other major destinations for SME travellers including Auckland, Singapore and Hong Kong all fell between three and nine per cent.”
In an Australian and New Zealand first, Airbnb, the world’s leading community driven marketplace, has partnered with Flight Centre Travel Group’s (FCTG) corporate division to provide corporate customers with more options when travelling for business.
With five different corporate travel brands, FCTG corporate, offers the broadest range of travel management services for organisations across Australia and New Zealand.
The new partnership with Airbnb means that FCTG’s corporate brands will now have an unrivalled pool of accommodation options to offer its corporate customers.
FCTG’s corporate brands, including FCM Travel Solutions, Corporate Traveller, Campus Travel and Stage and Screen, will have access to Airbnb for Business.
The new accommodation offering will give FCTG’s corporate customers access to more than three million listings worldwide, which are available to be booked through the home-sharing platform.
Since its founding in 2008, Airbnb hosts have welcomed more than 180 million guest arrivals at Airbnb listings worldwide. Approximately 10 per cent of all travellers on Airbnb are business travellers, and in 2016, the number of business trips on Airbnb tripled.
Through this partnership, FCTG’s corporate travel brands will have access to Airbnb’s third party booking tool.
Additionally the travel manager and the employee who is taking the trip, will be able to see trip details, make changes to the reservation, and message the Airbnb host with questions about the listing or neighbourhood.
Andrew Flannery, FCTG’s Executive General Manager of Corporate Travel, said today’s agreement would bolster the company’s award-winning corporate travel offering.
“Customers’ needs and preferences in the corporate travel sector are constantly evolving, and this agreement will deliver interesting new accommodation options that will appeal to sections of our customer base, particularly those who are looking to experience something a little different to a traditional hotel stay,” Mr Flannery said.
“It will also benefit our corporate customers who are travelling to locations where there may currently be an under-supply of suitable hotel rooms.
“We are currently talking with a number of clients about the range of opportunities that Airbnb offers for travellers.”
David Holyoke, Global Director of Business Travel at Airbnb said, “We are thrilled to be working with FCTG’s corporate travel brands, in this sector of the travel industry, and look forward to helping Australian and New Zealand business travellers feel more at home while on the road.
“Airbnb for Business gives business travellers the ability to explore a city like a local, making it easy to travel for work without sacrificing the comforts of home.”
FCTG have run a trial with one of their clients over the last few months and they are already seeing a positive impact for their employees travelling for business using Airbnb, with employees included in the trial rating the experience 4.76 out of 5 stars and with an average daily rate of of $80AUD.
Airbnb listings will be available to Campus Travel and Stage and Screen in the coming weeks, and then progressively introduced soon after to FCM Travel Solutions and Corporate Traveller.
Corporates have rarely had it so good, with a recent airfare study indicating the price of corporate Economy Class tickets dropped on key international routes in 2016 and fell by as much as 7% on the top domestic routes, according to the latest 4D FOCUS – Australian Aviation and Airfare Analysis.
The report, which was produced by 4th Dimension, Flight Centre Travel Group’s (FCTG) business travel consulting division, includes a benchmarking study that compares the price of corporate and leisure airfares purchased in 2016 compared to airfares purchased in 2015 and 2014.
4D’s analysis of corporate and leisure tickets purchased through the FCTG’s staple of travel brands, demonstrates that Australian travellers continue to see excellent value from the price of their air tickets. Compounding the positive news for travellers is the fact that Australian airlines are heavily focused on improving the whole travel experience – from take-off to touch-down as they vie for customer loyalty.
Since 2014, Qantas has upgraded 100 Airbus A330 and 737 aircraft with new interiors, opened new lounges around the country and the carrier is also on the verge of introducing free high-speed Wi-Fi in the domestic market.
John Simeone, Qantas’ Head of Business and Government Sales, said in the report, “This year, we’re entering a new era with the introduction of free high-speed Wi-Fi in the domestic market and the arrival of Qantas’ first Dreamliner, opening up breakthrough routes like Perth – London.”
Meanwhile in the Virgin Australia camp – the brand has started a three month trial of testing in-flight Wi-Fi on its Boeing 737-800 aircraft. These are but a few of the perks travellers now enjoy when travelling for work or play.
FCTG Managing Director, Graham Turner, said it’s been positive to see 2016/17 airfares remain competitive.
“Airfares are still extremely affordable for domestic and international travel and I think despite some of the distractions we’re seeing globally – the corporate and leisure travel industry will continue to perform throughout the rest of 2017,” Mr Turner said.
Below is a takeout of some of the key findings in 4D’s report.
Domestic Travel – CORPORATE Economy Class airfare benchmarking
(Based on 2016 fare benchmarking against 2015 fares)
Domestic Economy Class price changes for tickets purchased through FCTG’s corporate travel brands ranged from -7% to a 4% increase on key routes
Business travellers flying the BNE – MEL and the BNE – PER routes have enjoyed the biggest savings with average purchase price of tickets on both routes falling by 7%
Corporates travelling on the CBR – SYD and the MEL – SYD routes struck out on any savings with the average purchase price of tickets increasing up to 4% from 2015 – 2016
Domestic Travel – LEISURE Economy Class airfare benchmarking
(Based on 2016 fare benchmarking against 2015 fares)
From 2015 to 2016 the average price of domestic Economy Class leisure fares purchased through FCTG’s leisure division fell by 6%
Economy Class price changes for leisure tickets purchased through FCTG’s retail brands ranged from -10% to a 1% increase
Big ticket savings for leisure travellers were highlighted on the BNE – SYD route with a 10% reduction on the average purchase price, while tickets purchased through FCTG by leisure travellers flying on the HBA – MEL and the BNE – PER routes dropped by 9%
It was only on the MEL – SYD route, where capacity is tightly controlled by airlines due to the high volume of traffic, where travellers didn’t see a price reduction but rather wore a 1% increase on the average price of purchased fares.
Felicity Burke, General Manager, 4th Dimension Business Travel Consulting, said the outcome of the latest research into corporate and leisure fare movement painted an extremely positive picture for companies and smaller businesses, as well as holiday travellers, that have been booking their travel through a travel management company or retail travel agency such as those that fell under FCTG.
“Not only are FCTG’s corporate customers purchasing extremely well-priced fares but they are also getting all the additional value that comes with booking through a travel company such as 24-hour global traveller support, access to experienced consultants that manage their company’s travel policy, travel spend and activity reporting capabilities as well as access to our online booking technology,” Mrs Burke said.
“And the really good news is that this experience is about to get even better for travellers with the likes of Virgin Australia and Qantas both acutely focused on enhancing the traveller experience to grow market share and increase loyalty, particularly in the corporate sector.”
WHAT’S NEW AND CHANGES AHEAD IN 2017
Fare tracking conducted by 4D for first Quarter 2017 indicates a moderate increase of between 3% – 5% in domestic Economy Class fares across both the corporate and leisure buying groups.
Further to this, both the major Australian airlines introduced ‘Days of the Week’ fares late 2016, which has travellers on certain routes, with certain ticket types paying a higher price to fly on Thursday and Friday.
The data collected suggests a definitive shift away from the long-held beliefs of travel buyers – that booking 14-21 days in advance delivers the best deal on the busiest routes. With a likelihood of one in 10 tickets being changed by corporate travellers after a ticket is issued, 4th Dimension highlights that customers should consider the benefits of ‘flexible’ fares to avoid costly change fees.
The report shows the average cost of change charged by the airlines is $165. Internationally, the big changes in 2017 include:
Start of non-stop Qantas flights from Perth to London
Virgin Australia expanding to Hong Kong and Beijing
The opening of Qantas’ flagship international lounge due to open at London Heathrow
Qantas adding services to Beijing and Tokyo (Narita) and;
Virgin Australia reintroducing a Melbourne to Los Angeles service.
ACCOMMODATION
Strong demand for accommodation 4th Dimension research showed, that in the second half of 2016, there was strong demand for accommodation in Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland, as leisure and business travellers arrived in huge numbers for work, conferences and holidays.
The upshot in demand fuelled accommodation rate rises in those cities, with hotel rates increasing two or three times more than what the traveller paid for flights. Looking ahead to the second half of 2017 and into 2018, room bookings in these metro hot spots are expected to continue, causing demand to outstrip supply in some cases during peak periods.
FAST FACTS
1Source: BITRE, Aviation Domestic Airline Ontime Performance 2016 2Source: CAPA Centre for Aviation 3Published fare year-on-year benchmarking fare change 2016. Source 4D analytics
Australia’s Dealer Trade Holdings Limited has signed a lucrative agreement with Mitsubishi Motors to auction their manufacturer-owned vehicles on the Dealer Trade listing platform.
Mitsubishi in Australia are now using Dealer Trade to auction their manufacturer-owned vehicles to their 190 plus franchisees in a move that will lower costs and streamline the distribution of their vehicles by creating an Australia-wide auction in a closed network.
Dealer Trade Chairman Wayne Myers said, “Since launching the Dealer Trade platform late last year we have already signed up more than 35% of the Australian motor dealer market.
“The Dealer Trade app has the benefit of making dealers more efficient in how they transact and minimise the reliance on auction houses.”
The Dealer Trade Australian-developed mobile app is transforming the way motor dealers source their used vehicles by allowing them to bid directly on other dealers’ wholesale stock as soon as it is listed.
Dealers are also able to list their trade-in, wholesale or surplus stock on the app to other dealers that are in need of that particular vehicle based on a set of preferences.
Dealer Trade Holdings is an unlisted public company headquartered in Brisbane and is building to a possible Australian Securities Exchange listing in late 2017 after completing its product expansion into the US and the UK.
Mr Myers said, “As our product portfolio expands, we are now the only company to have introduced a full suite of products providing a thorough history for a broad range of vehicles and watercraft.”
Dealer Trade set up CarRecord.com.au in 2016 to offer a suite of vehicle information products in conjunction with Glass’s Guide to the Australian consumer.
CarRecord offers a complete car history product including values, written off vehicle register and Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) or encumbrance status, and has proven to be better value than competitors at a cost of $19 compared to Veda-owned carhistory.com.au for $36.95 and RedBook powered carfacts.com.au at $29.
Dealer Trade Holdings Limited has now launched the following product suite being the only vehicle records company in Australia to offer a full range of products:
jetskirecord.com.au
boatrecord.com.au
motorbikerecord.com.au
truckrecord.com.au
tralierrecord.com.au; and
motorhomerecord.com.au.
Dealer Trade has also recently launched Vehicle Market (vehiclemarket.com.au) for consumers and dealers in direct competition to carsales.com.au and carsguide.com.au but for a seller listing fee of only $10.
By using individual IP addresses for each listing, a vehicle can be searched for specifically with access available from their search engine without having to trawl through pages of results.
In February Dealer Trade signed a milestone agreement to supply vehicle history reports in the large US vehicle market through its CarRecord.com subsidiary. The deal combines history reports with vehicle values from J.D. Power Valuation services.
Dealer Trade Holdings has forged agreements with motor industry data suppliers Dealer Solutions, Edge, CDS Online, Datamotive, EASY Cars, UBS and others allowing vehicles to be uploaded to its platforms in bulk. For more information visit: dealertrade.com.au
Put simply, producing cornerstone content is about getting your web or blog page to rank highly by Google.
Of course, it is helpful to have informative content for the benefit of your customers and site visitors, but ultimately Google will need to be told which of your articles are the most important – especially where you write a number of posts about similar topics.
Cornerstone content then are those articles (or a static page on a topic) that you feel are the most informative and that you would like to rank highly in search engines. The key then is to create internal links to that page of content or article. Internal links are an important ranking factor.
It’s possible to have more than one cornerstone page on a website. You may have one for each of several key topics.
Cornerstone articles can be long, including everything relevant and important for your readers about the topic. Make sure it uses good SEO practice – keyword focused, headings, imagery etc. Smart internal linking can push this article up in the search results. It’s a good idea to update it regularly and expand on it when possible.
You should link all your other posts about a similar topic to that article. An internal linking structure will increase the chance of your content article ranking in Google.
If you’re using the WordPress platform, the Yoast SEO Premium plugin makes it easy for you to identify which are the cornerstone articles and to be prompted to link to them.
The first goal of cornerstone content is usefulness and relevancy to the visitor, no matter how they arrive.
The second goal is to make that content so compelling and comprehensive that people are willing – no, make that excited – to link to it.
Benefits of creating cornerstone content
It provides a very informative source and value to readers
Google is responsive to these sort of articles and they rank well in search engines
Cornerstone content helps you boost your blog’s credibility
People will be more likely to share this content on social media
It can attract back-links from other authoritative sources
Ultimately direct a lot of traffic and hopefully new subscribers and customers.
The benefits of linking can be seen by Fairfax media in all their articles and newsletters where they are constantly linking back to their own stories. They are forming content clusters with their authoritative journalism and feature articles.
The Australian Financial Review will link back to a feature article (hyperlinked in blue) on the imposition of the big bank levy in all their articles related to this topic – a cornerstone article.
A content article that amazes us on our own blog with the constant traffic it receives is an article about the difference between publicity and public relations. It works because it provides answers on a topic, is informative, responds to a search query, and is shareable. And, as you can see, we will link back to it wherever possible as cornerstone content.
Australia’s Dealer Trade Holdings Limited has signed a lucrative agreement to supply vehicle history reports in the large US vehicle market through its CarRecord.com subsidiary.
In the deal with J.D. Power Valuation services in the US, which will combine vehicle history information with values, Dealer Trade according to its chairman Wayne Myers “is making the process of compiling the total history and pricing of a vehicle much easier, saving customers time and money.”
J.D. Power Valuation provides NADA (National Automobile Dealers Association) vehicle values by using auction and retail sales transactions—and review asking prices and other relevant information—to accurately value vehicles.
There were 38.5 million vehicles sold in the second-hand market in the USA in 2016.
Mike Stanton, vice president and general manager at J.D. Power Valuation Services said, “We are excited to work with Dealer Trade Group to integrate our accurate, dependable and trusted pricing in their CarRecord product. The integration helps make the selling and buying process more efficient for all involved.”
This is the first time vehicle history and valuation information has been available together on the one platform. The US vehicle history report will be available on www.usacarrecord.com
Mr Myers said that as well as launching in the USA, CarRecord would be entering the UK and New Zealand markets by the end of April 2017.
Dealer Trade Holdings is an unlisted public company headquartered in Brisbane and is considering a possible Australian Securities Exchange listing in 2017.
Dealer Trade set up CarRecord.com.au in 2016 to offer a suite of vehicle information products to the Australian consumer. CarRecord offers a complete car history product including values, written off vehicle register and Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) or encumbrance status at up to almost half the cost compared to its two major competitors in the Australian market, and has the only suite of products in Australia that features reports on the entire collection of boats, jet skis, motorbikes, trucks, trailers, campervans and motorhomes.
Dealer Trade Cornering Online Vehicle Auctions For Motor Dealers
Dealer Trade has introduced an Australian-developed mobile app that is transforming the way motor dealers source their used vehicles by allowing them to bid directly on other dealers’ wholesale stock as soon as it is listed.
Dealers are also able to list their surplus stock on the app to other dealers that are in need of that particular vehicle.
Dealer Trade Holdings’ Wayne Myers said, “The Dealer Trade app has the benefit of making dealers more efficient in how they transact and minimise the reliance on wholesalers and auction houses.
“We’ve been successful in signing a large portion of dealers in Australia to the platform in just over a year.”
Dealer Trade Holdings has forged an agreement with technology firm Dealer Solutions which provides Dealer Trade as a native option alongside sites such as Gumtree, carsales.com.au and carsguide.com.au for dealers to upload sale vehicle details.
Mining labour hire and managed workforce services specialist One Key Resources is seeing a rebound in demand for qualified mining personnel and is on the hunt nationally for suitable workers to fill a wide variety of mining jobs.
One Key Resources managing director Grant Wechsel said that along with an increasing demand for skilled mining workers he is also seeing an increase in wages.
“If I could have another 500 qualified workers lined up outside our offices across the country today, I would be able to put them into good resources jobs tomorrow,” Mr Wechsel said.
“The demand is there from major mine owners across all commodities including coal, iron ore and gold, as well as with major mining contractors.
“We’re talking the full range from open cut and underground operations, especially from the established mining areas in Queensland, New South Wales and Western Australia.
Mr Wechsel said that One Key is hiring mainly for longer term contracts of a year or more, rather than just filling short term positions. A varied skill set is in demand including dump truck and multi skilled operators, diesel fitters, auto electricians as well as underground miner drivers, operators and experienced tradespeople.
“Following the downturn many workers left the resources industry due to downsized operations or less mines operating, but we’re now seeing the rebound first-hand particularly since commodity prices have lifted. While there are a variety of opinions on how long commodity prices will remain buoyant, the demand for skilled workers can’t be denied.
“We are able to offer jobs with tenure, including a range of casual, contract and permanent employment in any state.”
One Key Resources has labour supply contracts with almost 100 mine sites nationally and can offer a huge variety of roles in production, maintenance and for professionals.
Rugby league legend Darren Lockyer is a director of One Key Resources and plays a key role in business development as well as client and community relations.
One Key has extensive operations throughout Queensland, News South Wales, Western Australia and in the Northern Territory servicing the mining industry as well as maintenance and infrastructure projects supporting the mining and oil & gas industries.
Australia’s leading personal budgeting provider MyBudget has appointed experienced US fintech executive Jason Dell to the position of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) as the company embarks on a new technology and data driven customer engagement strategy.
In a major coup for the Adelaide-based company, Mr Dell, who has qualifications from MIT Sloan School of Management, has relocated from Atlanta, Georgia, to MyBudget’s head office to take up the position.
Prior to joining MyBudget, Mr Dell was Global Head of Product for Kabbage (www.kabbage.com), one of the world’s leading small business lenders with a valuation of more than $US1 billion, where he was responsible for a number of product and customer driven innovations.
In addition to Kabbage, he has held a variety of roles that have helped him develop a broad base of knowledge that accelerates cross-market application of technology.
Mr Dell said the role would provide a range of exciting opportunities and challenges.
“MyBudget is an exciting business on the cusp of a major expansion, helping to build the infrastructure and interfaces that underpin that growth was an opportunity I couldn’t resist,” he said.
“Our clients are increasingly adopting and utilising new technologies and we need to make sure we have a digital offering that is able to meet them when and where they want to engage with us.
“Existing and emerging fintech provides us with an incredible opportunity to not only improve the customer engagement process but use data gathered to refine and develop our services to ensure we remain true to our mission of helping people live the life they want free from money worries.”
MyBudget founder Tammy Barton said the company had worked hard to secure a CTO with international experience and the capability to build new customer-focussed platforms and systems.
“We want to attract the very best talent in the IT industry, the top 1%, and to do that we need to have a leader that is internationally-recognised,” she said.
“We want to build a team around Jason that has the skills to take us to the next level and help us achieve our mission of improving the financial health of Australians.”
“Like all business, technology will play an increasingly important role in our customer journey and Jason has the experience to ensure we remain at the forefront of the industry for many years to come.”
Earlier this year MyBudget, launched its first app for existing clients. The App provides clients fast, secure and easy mobile access to their budget and personal finances and the ability to make changes on the go.
The App gives users the ability to:
-View and access account balances -View any upcoming activity such as bill payments -View historic changes and activity within their budget -Secure web messaging -The ability to take a photo of bills and send it to MyBudget or attach a document from their device.
ABOUT MYBUDGET MyBudget is dedicated to helping people live the life they want free from money worries. MyBudget is recognised as Australia’s leading provider of personal budgeting services. Since being founded by Tammy Barton in 1999, the company has helped over 65,000 Australians get on the path to financial success.
A great press release doesn’t write itself. They are built, piece by piece, until you have something that satisfies a host of requirements.
A press release is one of the key tools that PR practitioners will use to convey a news story on behalf of their organisation or client.
Often you will have only one chance to get the attention of a news editor or journalist so you need to make sure the release is constructed properly and contains essential information. Otherwise it may get overlooked or consigned to the scrap bin.
It doesn’t have to be a time consuming or daunting task provided you follow some rules and stick to a time tested pattern of laying out essential information. A press release that makes it easy for a journalist will ensure your news is duly considered and that they trust your information.
Header – The header is the first section of the press release from the top down and usually features some key elements.
The words FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE are included to signify that the news is able to be reported on now and not subject to any form of publication embargo – used where a news release may be given to a journalist in advance of an announcement timing so they are able to prepare their story ahead of an impending deadline. The date of the announcement must be included and it’s usual for the company logo to be added which can leverage off their branding for attention and to stamp it as an official company release. Often you may see a combination of the words ‘Press Release’ or ‘ASX Announcement’ (for listed company updates provided to the exchange) to signify the intended audience.
Headline – The headline is immediately below the header and acts just like a headline in a newspaper. A good headline should draw attention and convey the key point of what the press release is about. Try to keep it fairly brief; 8-10 words should suffice. A compelling headline can make a big difference to editors bombarded with competing news items to sift through.
Dateline & Lead – A dateline is the name of the city where the news is emanating from – often the head office of where the organisation is based and is entered in CAPS. The lead sentence is extremely important and must include the most critical facts of the news story. If someone only reads the headline and lead they should have a firm idea as to what the story is about. This summary of critical information is known as Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?
The Body – The body of the press release follows and allows you to flesh out the story further with more details and provide quotes from key personnel related to the story. Media outlets can use those quotes in their reporting as direct quotes from the people attributed. Rules of thumb – no more than two people quoted in a release and restrict to about two quotes per person. After the important details are included in the body, background information can then be included to provide context.
Correctly formatting quotes:
Use quotation marks (” “) around quotes in the press release
Separate more than one sentence in a quote with ,“said [Ms Xx].”
Use a comma after the first sentence of a quote; do not use a period e.g. “Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipiscing elit,” said Ms Watkins.
Media convention is not to close the quotes at the end of each successive quoted block – just at the end of the last quote.
End – To signify that the reader has reached the end of the press release itself you can either include the word ENDS or some hashtags underneath the last sentence ###. Also it is important to include organisation contact information for media to contact someone for further information or queries. This would usually be the communications officer or MD.
Boiler Plate – An optional inclusion is a boiler plate that is a simple short paragraph that provides a description of the company or organisation and what it does. Don’t expect everyone to be familiar with who you are.
The Inverted Pyramid
Below is a diagram of what is known in journalistic circles as the Inverted Pyramid and describes the flow of ideas in a press release.
It documents the order that releases should be written in, from ‘most newsworthy information’, to ‘Important details’, to ‘other general or background information’.
By following this plan your readers should be able to find the critical information at the start of the release without needing to read the whole thing. For those who wish to read on they will be able to gain additional information.
Final thought: Edit and spell check! There’s nothing worse than a rushed job with mistakes. Have more than one set of eyes read the press release.
The below press release summary has been modified from a template from eRelease.com:
Daydream Island Resort and Spa’s owners China Capital Investment Group (CCIG) has announced a more than $50-million-dollar redevelopment which will see significant infrastructure upgrades to the popular Whitsunday tropical island resort.
The works will see the resort closing in early 2018 for a period of time to ensure renovations can occur in the shortest possible time and with minimal disruptions.
Daydream Island Resort and Spa general manager Dawson Tang said the major redevelopment would see accommodation refurbishments as well as renovations to existing attractions and installation of new features which will transform Daydream into an upscale 4½ star world-class resort.
“This is a very exciting development in the history of Daydream Island and for The Whitsundays,” Mr Tang said.
“Our owners have recognised the need to revamp Daydream’s facilities especially as we embark on a greater push into international markets including the lucrative China market.
“Prior to commencing the redevelopment in 2018 it will be very much business as usual this coming year.
“With well-over 100,000 guests staying on Daydream Island each year we recognise the need to continuously improve our product and we will be improving the guest experience based on recent feedback right up until the redevelopment.”
“As Australia’s Famous Reef Island we will continue to deliver a unique connection through our Whitsunday location and proximity to the Great Barrier Reef, our fringing coral reef and the Living Reef on-island experience.”
Major works will include redevelopment of the Arrivals pavilion, Reception, main Atrium area, Waterfalls restaurant, Lagoons bar, all room types and Mermaids Restaurant. Additionally, the Lovers Cove function area will be expanded and a new Asian inspired restaurant will be built.
One of Daydream Island’s signature attractions, the Living Reef lagoons, will also be upgraded and receive some brand new features which will enhance interaction with guests.
The resort’s conference facilities will be significantly revamped and expanded.
To ensure minimal disruption to guests, some strategic projects will be implemented in 2017 on the South End of the island. Fish Bowl bistro, Boat House Bakery and Ginger’s Hut will be closed for a period from the first week in February this year. Alternative food and dining facilities will be provided. Access to South End facilities including swimming pools, the outdoor cinema, motorised watersports and the Endeavour Wedding Chapel will not be affected.
CCIG purchased Daydream Island in March 2015 and has since completed many accommodation and facility upgrades and refurbishments plus a renovation to the resort’s main restaurant, Mermaids.
Located in the heart of the Great Barrier Reef, the 4.5 star Daydream Island Resort and Spa offers 296 beautifully appointed rooms, comprehensive facilities such as the Rejuvenation Spa and Living Reef lagoon, a wide variety of activities, sparkling bays and secluded beaches, which all combine to provide a superior tropical island experience.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok
