NEWS
Friday March 12, 2021
Cairns Local News
BRIEFS
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CAIRNS
NEW PATIENT TV’s
Tourism Tropical North Queensland CEO Mark Olsen, Cairns Adventure Group co-owner Roderic Rees and Sunlover Reef Cruises General Manager Greg Erwin (back seat) celebrate the Cairns Holiday Dollars announcement by taking a joy ride with Bad Fishy operators Pat McLoughlin and Adam Fish (front seat). Picture: Tanya Murphy
Tour operators in a spin for holiday vouchers TANYA MURPHY FAR North Queensland will benefit from an estimated $14 million in extra visitor spending over the next three months thanks to the Queensland Government and Tourism Tropical North Queensland (TTNQ) ‘Cairns Holiday Dollars’ travel voucher lottery. Around 100,000 Queenslanders entered the 72-hour lottery, which closed yesterday, for a chance to win one of 15,000 vouchers. The vouchers can be used to claim 50 per cent off any eligible tourism experience in Far North Queensland, excluding accommodation, with a maximum of $200 from each voucher. The vouchers will be emailed to the lucky winners on Monday and can be used
any time before June 25. The initiative is well-timed to help struggling tourism businesses make it through the traditional off-season, with the JobKeeper program to end on March 28, and no return of international visitors in sight. The majority of lottery entrants were from South-East Queensland, which means there should be a big flowon benefit for accommodation providers and other local businesses as visitors increase. To make the most of the voucher, winners should book experiences worth at least $400 as they can then use the 50 per cent off voucher for its maximum value. Tour operators across the Cairns and Great Barrier Reef region are putting together deals especially to cater for this.
TTNQ Chief Executive Officer Mark Olsen said the vouchers could be spent on world-class experiences in Cairns and the Northern Beaches, Port Douglas and Daintree, Cooktown and Cape York, the Cassowary Coast, the Atherton Tablelands and the Savannah Way. “This means a family of four could get $200 off the cost of a trip to the outer Great Barrier Reef, an exclusive tour of the world’s oldest rainforest, or on an epic adventure to Cape York.” he said. Sunlover Reef Cruises General Manager Greg Erwin said the campaign would make a big difference for them as an Australian-owned company which used to rely heavily on international tourists. “It’s terrific. We’ve seen
this work successfully in other states so we’re really pleased that it’s happening for Cairns,” he said. “JobKeeper has been incredibly helpful but what we need is visitors back in the region, so anything that brings people into the region and gets Cairns working again from a tourism perspective is terrific.” Member for Cairns and Assistant Tourism Minister Michael Healy said the campaign would have lasting benefits. “We know that once people get a taste of Tropical North Queensland, they can’t get enough, meaning this campaign will help us grow our domestic visitor base long into the future,” he said.
MORE than 300 new interactive patient smart televisions are being installed throughout Cairns Hospital providing entertainment for the thousands of patients who are admitted to the hospital each year. Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service Chief Information Officer Anthony Whitchurch said more than half of the TVs had already been installed, to very positive response from patients and staff. “We’ve installed the TVs in our aged care ward, the rehabilitation ward and maternity so far and will continue to replace the old televisions on wards through the hospital and plan to have the installation completed in March, Mr Whitchurch said. “There are many benefits to the new system, but primarily the screen is much more tolerant to infection-control chemicals which is important at the moment and we can manage the content much more easily,” he said. “Not only will we have all the free-to-air channels and radio, but we also offer patient education information and videos up such as
physiotherapy exercises,” he said. “In addition, we will have content specific to the Far North Queensland Hospital Foundation, as we recognise their important contribution to the health service.” Nursing staff and patients are delighted with the new televisions, finding they are extremely easy to use and access via touch screen and controls. The TVs can be moved around a patient’s bed easily with a small handle. The new TV system will be able to adapt to the needs of the hospital in the future, enabling other features such as therapeutic games and streaming services to be provided.
CAIRNS
ECOFIESTA RETURNS CAIRNS Ecofiesta has a new home in 2021 with Munro Martin Parklands hosting the Far North’s premier sustainability festival on Sunday June 13. The new venue, with more space to spread out and plenty of greenery, will bring a new level of ‘Eco’ to Ecofiesta. Ecofiesta was cancelled in 2020 because of COVID-19, but returns this year with a renewed emphasis of turning ideas into actions. Local eco-businesses, artisans, food and drink vans, entertainers, not-for-profit organisations and volunteers are invited to get involved in Cairns Ecofiesta 2021 through an online application process on Cairns Regional Council’s website. Cairns Mayor Bob Manning said the free community festival combined environmentally friendly products and sustainable living ideas with entertainment, fun, food and importantly education. “While the past 12 months of restrictions and lockdowns have presented us with many environmental challenges, such as an
increase in single-use plastics, they have also opened up opportunities, such as starting a garden or taking on a home renovation,” said Cr Manning. “During this time many people stopped to think about what was really important to them. “Nature, protecting our environment and living more sustainably was a priority for many people. Ecofiesta helps people to turn those ideas into action. Cairns Ecofiesta is supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland and features on the It’s Live! in Queensland events calendar. Applications and expressions of interest are now open Apply online at www.cairns.qld.gov.au.
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