North East England a hit with Australasia

Friday, 25th January 2008

Categories: General News, Marketing

North East England a hit with Australasia

A campaign to promote North East England "Down Under" is proving a success with more than 17,000 visitors, in just one day, to two new websites targeted at people in Australia and New Zealand.

The specially designed websites www.northeastengland.com.au and www.northeastengland.co.nz have information on what to see in the region and how to plan your stay.

The campaign, led by One NorthEast, has also seen 60,000 unique visitors to the websites with half of those requesting further information on North East England, such as the holiday guide.

The high number of hits to the website occurred in December and followed a direct mail campaign to potential visitors in Australasia.

Australia and New Zealand were chosen as a key international market for North East England following the launch of the Emirates daily route from Dubai to Newcastle International Airport, last September.

Media interest in the region has also seen a dramatic increase with a number of journalists from leading newspapers in Australasia visiting North East England. Coverage of the region has included articles in The Sun Herald, a major Sydney based newspaper and a supplement in The Australian, Australia's leading national newspaper, which is due out next month and The Sunday Star Times, a national newspaper in New Zealand.

Greg Roughan, a reporter described his trip to North East England as "magical."

He said: "Newcastle was fantastic, I loved it. It was like a tiny London in the North."

And described the accommodation in the region as "great" giving high praise to The Rose and Crown, Romaldkirk, County Durham, for it's "gobsmacking, sensational food."

The new TV ad promoting the region showing stunning images of Holy Island, Warkworth Castle, mima and Souter Lighthouse, will also be shown on Australian TV.

The aim behind the campaign is to raise the awareness of the region to our Antipodean friends and encourage them to choose North East England as their next holiday destination.

North East England's history and heritage, including the abundance of castles and Roman history, unique attractions such as The Alnwick Garden and Beamish - The North of England Open Air Museum, are a real draw for visitors from this part of the world.

Marissa Buckingham International Brand Manager at One NorthEast said: "With the launch of the Emirates daily route from Newcastle to Dubai it is now even easier to get to the region and attract an increasing number of visitors from Australia and New Zealand.

"And with Australia Day tomorrow (SAT) this is a fantastic reason to celebrate the initial success of this campaign. We will continue to reach as many potential visitors to ensure they choose North East England as their next holiday destination."

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