It was a tale of two cities. A combo of country and gold.
Tourism Australia presented the 2024 version of its signature incentive showcase, Australia Next, this past September 8-11 in Cairns, North Queensland, with a separate post-fam to Gold Coast, a thriving beach city just south of Brisbane. In both places, Meetings Today inspected some drop-dead gorgeous offsite venues for groups.
Group Offerings and Venues in Cairns
Cairns (pronounced “cans”) is a small waterfront tourist town, a walkable grid of restaurants, bars, shops, Indigenous products and other funky businesses, mostly catering to visitors on their way to two heritage sites: the Great Barrier Reef or the Wet Tropics Rainforest. We noticed a laid-back charm to this quirky coastal city, where Southeast Asian immigrants, leftover colonial types and aboriginal influence all blend amid a beautifully incongruous jumble of buildings on every block.
Group possibilities emerged everywhere. At the Crystalbrook Riley, where many planners stayed, we found two restaurants in particular. The Crystal Club was a rum and seafood bar. Rocco was a naturally lit rooftop bar. Both were excellent settings for networking events.
Twenty minutes away, Trinity Beach Palace was a private beachfront estate that unfolded up a foothill toward the rainforest. Nick Holloway, head chef and co-owner of Nu Nu Restaurant and recent star of the food show Taste of the Tropics, brought an entourage of folks for a lavish meal of local native ingredients. Joining him was Samantha “Sammy” Martin, aka the Bush Tukka Woman, who also signed copies of her book, Bush Tukka Guide, with recipes including mangrove snails and curried crocodile. The two iconic chefs specialize in working off the land.
“This is how I grew up,” Holloway told us, pointing to the ocean and then up toward the rainforest in the opposite direction, and then to the grill, where several coral trout roasted in paper-bark shells.
“This is what I call real luxury,” he continued. “Not the luxury of riches, but the luxury of working together and living off the land.”
At the table, literally 100 feet from crashing waves, Phillipa “Pip” Harrison, managing director at Tourism Australia, expounded on the sheer bliss of the situation.
“This is the only place in the world where you have one heritage site meeting another heritage site,” she said.
Mark Olsen, CEO of Tourism Tropical North Queensland, then addressed the luncheon and talked about corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs.
“Everyone here is making a contribution to the wildlife corridors,” he said. “And we do that with many corporate groups and incentive travel groups.”
During our time in Cairns, Holloway and his culinary crew similarly transformed other spaces into mega-themed environments. The Sugar Shed at Yorkeys Knob, a rustic setting surrounded by sugarcane fields, came alive with outdoor grills, illuminated farm equipment and barn settings. The Cruise Liner Terminal, a large hangarlike waiting room for ship passengers, was likewise converted into a reception space with numerous food stations and drink vendors.
The very next day, Reef Magic Cruises introduced us to several hours’ worth of activities, all accessible via day trips to their own pontoon located on the outer Great Barrier Reef. Groups chose from guided snorkeling, scuba diving, glass-bottom boat tours or even a 10-minute helicopter jaunt for a wide-angle view of the reef. Some even joined a coral regeneration activity that would make a great CSR program.
[Related: On the Scene: Exploring Cairns, Australia, the Gateway to the Great Barrier Reef]
The Gold Coast Post-Fam Experience
Seemingly moments off the airplane from Cairns to Gold Coast, we arrived at the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, a heritage-listed zoological garden originally built in 1947. Just last May, a new space, The Homestead, opened up on the property for weddings and events. A Queenslander-style home built from the ground up, The Homestead contained numerous verandas, a professional kitchen and lavish lighting design.
“We had three weddings the weekend we opened—back-to-back. It was amazing,” said Shirley Dodt, head of sales and events, as we dined from a menu inspired by the Australian Outback.
As we later toured the whole sanctuary, including koalas and perentie lizards, Tiffany Callaghan, senior sales manager, gave us the lowdown on some of her CSR programs.
“Tree planting is a big one,” she said. “Animal enrichment is another huge one that we can do. We can customize depending on what people are looking to do.”
If Cairns was laid back, Gold Coast felt more like the Miami Beach of Australia, with several miles of skyscrapers facing the water. In the middle of it all, the Sheraton Grand Mirage sprawled horizontally along the main beach, offering vast ocean views. Director of Sales & Marketing Nathan Gadd met us for breakfast in Pearls Bar, a lobby-level space with ocean views perfect for small gatherings. Waving his hands in sweeping gestures, he motioned toward the ocean.
“Nobody else here has what we have,” he said of the property’s direct access to the beach. “Most everything here is high-rises. They don’t have this.”
The Grand Mirage was only a five-minute walk from the services of Gold Coast Helitours, also a spectacular option for groups, thanks to a landing pad atop Tamborine Mountain in the Gold Coast Hinterlands, an area populated by indie wineries and country estate venues.
High Garden Estates, for example, provided stunning views of the Gold Coast skyline from all the way atop the mountain. Alex Baker of local tour organizer Kiff & Culture took us up to the vista point, a near-perfect gardenlike setting for weddings or receptions.
At nighttime, Miami Marketta was the most innovative example of adaptive reuse we’d seen. A former industrial complex where multiple auto repair shops once opened up onto a laneway was now a thriving night market of urban street art and eclectic indie food vendors.
Vancouver native Grant Trammell, who functioned as the venue’s experience manager, ushered us into one of the private spaces, a champagne bar called Mona Lisa’s Lair, and brought us sample entrees from several of the vendors in the main laneway before showing us several other spaces, including a gin bar and a music venue where Russel Crowe had just recently played. The complex was a fabulous canvas for events.
People kept telling us the Gold Coast was so much more than just the glitter. Our final example came in the form of Kirra Beach House, a near-perfect transformation of one whole city corner, with dramatic beachfront views and several spaces for conferences, weddings or other events. Owner Dave Galvin and his team don’t usually open for breakfast, but for us, they did.
While Bourdain would have prowled around Miami Marketta, Stanley Tucci’s crew probably would have visited Kirra Beach House. There was something for every planner.
As such, the Gold Coast was hard to leave. While waiting for our car to the airport, Gadd confirmed the status of Miami Marketta.
“I’ve been to a few shows there,” he said.
We left armed with new ideas, both country and gold.
[Related: Tourism Australia’s Signature Incentive Showcase Returns to Adelaide]
Planner’s Perspective
Josh Adams, Industry Relations Strategist, streamlinevents, inc., Emeryville, CA
As someone with previous experience in several parts of Australia, what did you learn from the trip and the post-FAM?
I was amazed at how both the Cairns and Gold Coast destinations have matured and grown. The number of new incentive-worthy hotel offerings provides a wider range of options for both destinations. Combining this with an increase in venue and activity options both on land and water, I came away with a re-energized view of how I could position these two destinations for my clients.
Did your participation in Australia Next increase the chances you’ll bring a group back there?
Absolutely. The great thing about Australia is that it ticks a number of boxes that make it an easy destination to be considered. It is safe, it is clean, and the current exchange rate means that my budget goes much further than it does in other destinations. This is extremely important at a time when we are being asked to hold budgets at their current levels for some of our clients. Beyond these factors, Australian hospitality is authentically welcoming, making me comfortable knowing that my guests will enjoy meeting, interacting and immersing themselves in the culture of the country.
What type of incentive group would be the best fit for Australia?
Australia has such a wide variety of venue and activity offerings that make it appealing for all types of incentive groups. Some of my groups enjoy being active, and Australia has so much to offer in the way of land and water activities that would satisfy those groups. At the same time, these two destinations—Cairns and Gold Coast—offer a multitude of soft adventures that will appeal to my groups, whether that is spending time with koalas and kangaroos, tasting world-class wines or just taking advantage of the amazing beaches, reefs and cultural attractions. From the planner perspective, there is a wealth of options to consider including in an incentive program
What would be your advice to incentive planners thinking about taking a group to Australia?
Because there are so many options, we would always work with a trusted DMC to advise on the best options for our event. A trusted in-country partner can advise on the latest venues, new hot spots, current trends, the hottest chefs and help design that event element that your attendees could not do on their own. If you don’t know who a good fit might be, you can reach out to Business Events Australia for recommendations.
In general, what do you think would surprise people the most about Australia?
In our group, I think the unique venues were a pleasant surprise along with the quality of food and wine. What was not surprising to me, but a pleasant experience for the first-timers was the genuine friendliness and fun-loving nature of the Aussies. It’s a country where you feel like you make friends easily, and they’re friends you may have for a lifetime.
Connections
Tourism Tropical North Queensland
Read this next: Tourism Australia Reveals Findings From Its 2024 Business Events Consumer Demand Project
