The Liberal Government is committed to protecting and celebrating Tasmania’s cultural heritage assets.
With Tasmania now one of the hottest travel destinations in the world, there are tremendous opportunities for Tasmania to showcase our heritage assets, such as the Port Arthur Historic Site, to an ever-increasing number of visitors.
In the 2013-14 financial year the Port Arthur Historic Site Management Authority recorded a record 250,000 daytime visitors to the site. This represents an increase in visitation of over 18 per cent on previous years.
The greatest growth market has been Chinese tourists, with a fourfold increase last year. Chinese tourists now represent the largest single source of visitors to the Port Arthur Historic Site, with over 16,000 Chinese tourists visiting the site this financial year.
The incredible exposure created by the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping in November will also help to continue to increase the number of Chinese tourists visiting Port Arthur.
The Port Arthur Historic Site Management Authority (PAHSMA) has undertaken a number of important initiatives to build on the interest from China, including:
• Production of Chinese language brochures for the site;
• The development of a Chinese language website;
• The employment of a number of guiding and service provision staff with Chinese language skills;
• Facilitating staff to undertake “China ready” training; and
• Developing a relationship with Dunhuang Academy, a Chinese Government agency responsible for the management of the World Heritage site in north west China.
The Liberal Government has a target of growing our tourism industry to 1.5 million visitors a year by 2020. The work undertaken by PAHSMA to appeal to Chinese tourists will help us to achieve this.
Matthew Groom, Minister for Environment, Parks and Heritage
