Blue Mountains. Boeing simulator

The official opening of the Boeing 737 NG-800 simulator has taken place at The Edge Cinema, in Katoomba. Katoomba-based VS made the full motion replica cockpit, which has operated within the cinema foyer for several months. “Not only is this an exceptional additional drawcard to the region, the VS Jet simulator is unique to the southern hemisphere,” said Blue Mountains, Lithgow and Oberon Tourism chairman Randall Walker.

The simulator is Civil Aviation Safety Authority-approved for flight simulator training and courses will soon run for experienced pilots and those wanting to make the transition from light to heavy commercial licence. As well as those for general public use, the company manufactures flight simulators for the aviation industry and is currently building several simulators for CareFlight Queensland.

Blue Mountains. Tourism trade mission

Representatives of the Blue Mountains Lithgow & Oberon Tourism, Scenic World Blue Mountains, Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa and Accor, which has hotels in Western Sydney, are attending a Tourism Australia-led trade mission to India from August 25 – 28. “The operators will have the opportunity to meet up to 40 key buyers and travel trade decision makers from key Indian markets including the main cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Ahmedebad, and Pune,” Destination NSW, executive director – tourism, Lyndel Gray, said.

Blue Mountains. Tourism plan collapses

Blue Mountains City councillors are putting pressure on businesses to come up with ways to ease the burden on ratepayers for infrastructure costs in tourist areas after a 12-month Tourist Voluntary Contribution Scheme trial collapsed due to lack of support, according to the Blue Mountains Gazette. A council report stated the planned trial — aimed at raising at least $60,000 via guest donations — required the involvement of at least seven major accommodation businesses to be viable but it lacked the support of Blue Mountains Lithgow and Oberon Tourism (BMLOT), the Blue Mountains Accommodation Association (BMAA), and the Australian Hotels Association.

Blue Mountains. Tourism report queried

Blue Mountains Lithgow and Oberon Tourism chairman, Randall Walker, The Blue Mountains’ tourism chief has moved to hose down reports of the slow death of the region’s number one industry despite the release of concerning visitor statistics. Recently released regional expenditure survey by Tourism Research Australia showed a steady decline in the number of domestic visitors to the Mountains since 1999 including a cut of almost 50 per cent in overnight stays. “We are not doing worse than other regions. We have held our own in a declining market,” he said in the Blue Mountains Gazette. He did concede ongoing problems at the Fairmont Resort had affected the region’s tourism figures. He said the Fairmont had shown improvement under receivers and also cited positive figures in the past financial year for tourism mainstays including Scenic World, The Carrington Hotel and The Mountain Heritage.

Blue Mountains. Donations for pilot program

Visitors to the Blue Mountains will be asked to dig into their pockets as the cash-strapped council seeks funds to boost tourism. Councillors have voted to go ahead with a voluntary tourist contribution scheme, a step back from the controversial consideration of a tax late last year. A small-scale pilot program will go ahead that will initially target overnight visitors, who will be invited by participating accommodation providers to have a small donation added to the cost of their stay. Collected funds would be used by the council to upgrade tourism infrastructure. The council’s report into the scheme estimates it would take less than $5000 to set up the program which would include the production of promotional material explaining to guests what their contribution would be used for, according the The Blue Mountains Gazette.

Blue Mountains. $387m boost to economy

The Blue Mountains received 2.7 million visitors in 2009, who spent 1.3 million nights in the region and contributed $387 million to the local economy, said the Minister for Tourism, Jodi McKay, who, with the NSW Tourism Board, would be visiting a number of locations around the region and meeting with key tourism industry stakeholders, on April 15-15.