Quilpie Shire, the small Outback region with a big heart, has scooped the recent 2022 Queensland Tourism Industry Council Queensland Tourism Awards taking out top honours to be awarded Gold in the ‘Visitor Information Services’ category and a Bronze in the ‘Cultural Tourism’ category for the Eromanga Natural History Museum.
The Quilpie Information Centre’s category win gives automatic entry into the Australian Tourism Awards, which will be announced in March 2023.
“We were thrilled to take out the award. We’re a small team and we were up against some really big centres across the State. Quilpie is renowned as one of Queensland’s friendliest towns and at the Visitor Information Centre we like to embrace this and ensure all our visitors have the best possible experience in our beautiful region. We feel blessed that even though we’re one of the smallest players we punch well above our weight in terms of tourism offerings with Australia’s biggest dinosaur – and one of the biggest in the world – calling Quilpie Shire home at the Eromanga Natural History Museum. We also have some of Australia’s best opal fossicking and stunning outback lookouts like Baldy Top, award winning accommodation and a lot of history and natural beauty. And at the moment we’re also having an amazing wildflower season – which is drawing an abundance of birds and other wildlife to our region. It feels like we’re on a real roll after the initial knocks of Covid and floods in the region,” said Jessica Tully, Tourism Officer, Quilpie Shire Council.
“The resilience of Queensland tourism operators was celebrated at the awards night. I was proud to represent Quilpie and the Visitor Information Centre and accept the Gold award on behalf of our incredibly hard-working team and the Quilpie Shire Council who work hand-in-hand with the local community and businesses to help sustainably grow local tourism experiences in Quilpie. I think outback communities in particular are renowned for their resilience – and our bounce back during Covid was nothing short of phenomenal. It was awesome to see so many Queenslanders, and interstate travellers as well once borders opened, embracing our backyard and exploring regions that may not have been on their radar pre-Covid. And even now that international travel has opened up, and the warmer months are here, we’re still experiencing higher than usual travel to our region,” added Karen Grimm, Manager Tourism & Economic Development, Quilpie Shire Council.
Post Covid lockdown Quilpie Shire experienced the busiest tourist seasons on-record – with tourist numbers up on previous years – and an estimated $581 million in overnight visitor spending was recorded for Outback Queensland.
“More than a thousand tourism operators from around the State came together to celebrate the QTA awards – so it was no mean feat that our Visitor Information Centre took out top honours, and the Eromanga Natural History Museum was awarded a bronze. Full credit to our VIC staff and the Museum – I was thrilled to see staff at both get the recognition that they deserve for their unwavering passion in promoting our beautiful region,” said Stuart Mackenzie, Quilpie Shire Mayor.
“Bolstered by these high accolades, our Council, Tourism Operators and the Visitor Information Centre won’t be resting on our laurels. We’re all looking ahead to the 2023 tourist season and are already in planning stages for the 2032 Olympic Games to ensure we’re maximising opportunities for the region and all our tourist operators with interstate and overseas visitors,” added Stuart Mackenzie.
A total of 78 awards, including 31 Gold, 26 Silver and 20 Bronze Awards were presented across 31 categories with Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC) CEO Brett Fraser saying the Awards had brought together an outstanding selection of operators that truly reflect the diverse range of the state’s quality tourism offerings. “Collectively, this year’s recipients are a testament to the strength and calibre of the state’s tourism operators, and I applaud this great industry and its people for the innovation and resilience they have displayed,” Mr Fraser said.
