South Australia will be on the global stage this week when Adelaide – Australia’s wine capital – is represented at a world wine tourism fair in Portugal.
Held in Porto, the inaugural Wine & Travel Week event will bring together industry professionals, buyers and media from across the globe for a two-day forum and a trade show with a focus on sustainable and innovative wine tourism experiences.
One of South Australia’s iconic wineries, celebrated for its sustainability credentials and crowned Global Best of Wine Tourism Award winner in the category in 2022, Gemtree Wines will present today at the forum on the topic of sustainable wine tourism and biodynamics.
Gemtree Wines co-owner and viticulturalist Melissa Brown will also participate in meetings with buyers, wine industry colleagues and international media to sell South Australia as a destination and one of the 11 Great Wine Capitals of the World.
Through the state’s membership of the Great Wine Capitals Global Network, the South Australian Tourism Commission will exhibit at the trade show to target international buyers such as travel agents and tour companies to ensure South Australia is built into the itineraries they sell around the world.
“With international tourism still recovering from the impacts of the pandemic – now at 25 per cent of its pre-COVID $1.2 billion – it is incredibly important we continue to put South Australia on the world map at every chance,” said Zoe Bettison, Minister for Tourism.
“As Australia’s wine capital and one of just 11 around the world, it is terrific to have representation at a global wine tourism fair – putting our state in front of the people who will help sell it”.
Wine is a significant contributor to the state’s economy and a key tourism drawcard.
There are 340 cellar doors in South Australia, 200 of which are within an hour’s drive from Adelaide. South Australia produces 50 per cent of Australia’s bottled wine, and around 80 per cent of Australia’s premium wine.
Prior to the pandemic, 36 per cent of international tourists to South Australia visited a winery during their trip, and latest data shows that one fifth of all interstate visitors (in the 12 months to September 2022) visited a winery during their trip.
The local membership of the Great Wine Capitals Global Network includes the Department of Primary Industries and Regions, South Australian Tourism Commission, South Australian Wine Industry Association, University of Adelaide, and University of South Australia.
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