THE push is on to build on Leeton's brand as a tourism destination on the back of the recent Australian Art Deco Festival.
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The NSW Business Chamber is also highlighting the importance of the tourism industry to regional economies following the release of the results of the National Visitor Survey.
According to the survey, in the Murray and Riverina in the 12 months to March 2019, there over one million overnight visitors to the region.
The chamber said this equated to overnight visitors spending roughly half a billion dollars each in both the Murray and Riverina, while day trippers spent over one-and-a-half billion dollars.
Leeton Shire Council manager of communications and marketing Brent Lawrence said tapping into this market was crucial.
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"Leeton shire has a thriving business traveller market during the days of Monday to Friday, but we are always looking at ways to attract a new wave of visitors to town over school holidays and weekend periods," he said.
"The huge success of the revamped Australian Art Deco Festival Leeton event is evidence that events of this magnitude are a huge economic driver for regional communities such as Leeton."
Research into the behaviours of Australians has also revealed while domestic travel is up, residents are sticking to the same locations, with the average Aussie visiting less than one per cent of towns and cities across the country.
Fifty-three per cent can only name up to nine regional destinations across Australia.
Because of this, nearly a quarter of all Australians and 36 per cent of those aged 25-34 years admit to feeling embarrassed about how few Australian locations they've been to.
This is also an area council could tap into.
"Certainly a focus for council is building a strong brand in which to leverage our promotional activities for the shire," Mr Lawrence said.
"By branding our recent art deco event as the 'Australian Art Deco Festival' this gives a strong message to visitors that this event is a national (one) happening in Leeton showcasing our town's art deco heritage and other unique selling points within our shire."
Council will soon be making a decision on the festival and when it should be held again after visitors flocked to the event last month.
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