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Events drive tourism across Queensland
18 December 2018
Events across Queensland will receive a funding boost as part of a strategy to attract more visitors to Queensland.
Tourism Industry Development Minister Kate Jones said 45 events will receive more than $2 million under round 11 of Tourism and Events Queensland’s Destination Events Program (QDEP).
“Events act as a drawcard for visitors and that’s good news for local communities because they deliver an economic boost and support local jobs,” Ms Jones said.
“Since the start of the program in 2015, we’ve invested more than $8 million supporting a total of 256 events, which has delivered strong benefits to Queensland’s $25 billion tourism economy.
“Many of these events have become iconic to Queensland and give visitors a taste of our Queensland destinations and experiences.
“Our aim is to get people to come to the event and then stay on to experience even more of what our regions have to offer.
“Thanks to an increase in funding from $2 million to $3 million from 2018-19 we’ve also been able to support more events this round that demonstrate potential for growth and the ability to continue attracting strong visitor numbers.
“These range from music and indigenous festivals to marathons and lifestyle events hosted from May to September 2019.
“These events form part of the It’s Live! in Queensland calendar, which is now worth $780 million to the state’s economy.
The funding supports event organisers with marketing costs, strategic plan development, and hiring staff in addition to event infrastructure.
Under QDEP there are three funding rounds per year. The next round is open until 28 February 2019 for events held between September 2019 and September 2020.
For more information on QDEP please visit: https://teq.queensland.com/events/events-support/queensland-destination-events-program
Events to receive QDEP funding include:
| Event Name | Location | Event Dates | Funding |
|---|---|---|---|
| McDonald's Brisbane Marathon Festival | Brisbane | 31 May 2019 – 2 June 2019 | $23,500 |
| MELT 2019: Festival of Queer Arts and Culture | Brisbane | 28 June 2019 – 7 July 2019 | $15,000 |
| Redcliffe KiteFest | Brisbane | 24 August 2019 – 25 August 2018 | $15,400 |
| Scenic Rim Clydesdale Spectacular | Brisbane | 15 June 2019 – 16 June 2019 | $10,000 |
| Abbey Medieval Festival | Brisbane | 13 July 2019 – 14 July 2019 | $103,500 |
| Quandamooka Festival | Brisbane | 1 June 2019 – 31 August 2019 | $95,000 |
| Scenic Rim Eat Local Week/Winter Harvest Festival | Brisbane | 29 June 2019 – 7 July 2019 | $150,000 |
| Childers Festival | Bundaberg | 25 July 2019 – 28 July 2019 | $30,500 |
| Fitzroy River Barra Bash (new) | Capricorn | 22 May 2019 – 26 May 2019 | $10,000 |
| Paradise Lagoons Campdraft 2019 (new) | Capricorn | 2 May 2019 – 5 May 2019 | $23,400 |
| Rockhampton River Festival | Capricorn | 12 July 2019 – 14 July 2019 | $25,000 |
| The CQUniversity Village Festival | Capricorn | 9 August 2019 – 11 August 2019 | $25,000 |
| Gemfest 'Festival of Gems’ | Capricorn | 8 August 2019 – 11 August 2019 | $40,000 |
| Mary Poppins Festival | Fraser Coast | 28 June 2019 – 7 July 2019 | $10,000 |
| The Hervey Bay Oceans Festival | Fraser Coast | 10 August 2019 – 18 August 2019 | $15,000 |
| Boyne Tannum Hookup 2019 (new) | Gladstone | 3 May 2019 – 5 May 2019 | $20,000 |
| Captain Cook 1770 Festival in 2019 | Gladstone | 24 May 2019 – 26 May 2019 | $10,000 |
| Cooly Rocks On | Gold Coast | 5 June 2019 – 9 June 2019 | $50,000 |
| Surfers Paradise LIVE | Gold Coast | 2 May 2019 – 5 May 2019 | $105,000 |
| Motorcycle Beach Races (new) | Mackay | 8 September 2019 | $10,000 |
| River Sessions (new) | Mackay | 29 June 2019 | $15,000 |
| Half Way There - Charleville Shindig (new) | Outback Queensland | 5 July 2019 – 6 July 2019 | $15,000 |
| Boulia Camel Races | Outback Queensland | 19 July 2019 – 21 July 2019 | $90,000 |
| Outback Festival | Outback Queensland | 24 September 2019 – 28 September 2019 | $60,000 |
| Blackbutt Avocado Festival (new) | Southern Queensland Country | 14 September 2019 | $10,000 |
| Hampton Festival (new) | Southern Queensland Country | 17 May 2019 – 19 May 2019 | $19,800 |
| Historic Leyburn Sprints | Southern Queensland Country | 17 August 2019 – 18 August 2019 | $22,000 |
| Jumpers and Jazz in July Festival | Southern Queensland Country | 18 July 2019 – 28 July 2019 | $13,000 |
| Opera at Jimbour | Southern Queensland Country | 27 July 2019 | $20,000 |
| 7 Sunshine Coast Marathon (new) | Sunshine Coast | 1 August 2019 – 4 August 2019 | $12,000 |
| Goomeri Pumpkin Festival 2019 | Sunshine Coast | 26 May 2019 | $15,000 |
| Horizon Festival Sunshine Coast | Sunshine Coast | 23 August 2019 – 1 September 2019 | $20,000 |
| Noosa Classic 2019 (new) | Sunshine Coast | 18 August 2019 | $15,000 |
| Queensland Garden Expo | Sunshine Coast | 12 July 2019 – 14 July 2019 | $120,000 |
| Sweet Days Hot Nights Festival (new) | Townsville North Queensland | 30 May 2019 – 2 June 2019 | $12,500 |
| McDonalds Townsville Running Festival | Townsville North Queensland | 4 August 2019 | $80,000 |
| Sealink Magnetic Island Race Week | Townsville North Queensland | 29 August 2019 – 4 September 2019 | $135,000 |
| Townsville Triathlon Festival | Townsville North Queensland | 16 August 2019 – 18 August 2019 | $50,000 |
| Cooktown Discovery Festival | Tropical North Queensland | 14 June 2019 – 16 June 2019 | $10,000 |
| The Gulf Country Frontier Days Festival | Tropical North Queensland | 15 August 2019 – 18 August 2019 | $20,000 |
| Tour of the Tropics (new) | Tropical North Queensland | 2 August 2019 – 4 August 2019 | $15,000 |
| Cairns Indigenous Art Fair | Tropical North Queensland | 12 July 2019 – 14 July 2019 | $280,000 |
| Port Douglas Carnivale 2019 | Tropical North Queensland | 17 May 2019 – 26 May 2019 | $38,000 |
| Whitsunday Reef Festival | The Whitsundays | 1 August 2019 – 4 August 2019 | $15,000 |
| Airlie Beach Race Week Festival of Sailing | The Whitsundays | 8 August 2019 – 15 August 2019 | $150,000 |