CASE STUDY

Australian Tourism Exchange 2023

An Aussie-inspired event with a twist

After two years of condensed hybrid events, over 2,500 industry delegates joined Tourism Australia’s ATE23 Welcome Event at The Star on the sunny Gold Coast. Guests were treated to an event setting highlighting Australia as an inspiring destination through three distinct landscapes – coastal, outback and rainforest – whilst they caught up with industry colleagues.

Location: The Star, Gold Coast, Queensland

Attendees: Over 2,500 guests

Entertainment: DVNA, Blackline the Band, Benjamin Barker, DJ Cashew, Elska

Dates: 1st May, 2023

Background

Tourism Australia’s event brief drew on creativity to showcase Australia, but to stay focused on the task at hand. The Welcome Event was the opener to a five-day B2B event bringing together tourism businesses, wholesalers and retailers from around the world. Tourism Australia wanted to treat guests to an enjoyable event experience, highlight Australia as a destination, and connect delegates.

With the help of FCM Meetings & Events, the team were able to develop an event concept showcasing Australia in a comfortable way while not overwhelming the purpose of the Welcome Event.

Highlights

The ATE23 Welcome Event delighted guests with a twist! The event, entertainment and food & beverages on offer were split into three landscapes – coastal, outback and rainforest. The inspiring event setting allowed guests the opportunity to find a space to relax and enjoy the ambience with colleagues before busy days ahead.

The event created the feel of ‘inviting guests to Australia’s backyard’ and immersing themselves in three vastly different backyard landscapes set at The Star Garden Events Lawn, Garden Kitchen & Bar and Event Centre marquee.

Each dedicated event space showcased the coastal, rainforest and outback landscapes with all elements of each area acting cohesively, from the entertainment and technical production, to styling and theming.

Attendees were also treated to a menu filled with the freshest of local, Australian produce.

Further highlights included:

Despite a 6-month lead time, the echoes of resource scarcity from a post-COVID world still reverberated throughout the planning process. But the team at FCM M&E were able to overcome a lack of supplier resourcing with minor knock-on effects, resulting in positive client feedback!