Backpacker - thUMBRELLA

Opinion
- Another Wicked piece of marketing
  
  I’ve written about this before, but once again I have to confess to a sneaking admiration for the PR and marketing expertise of John Webb and Wicked Campers. Read more »
- Grounds for cautious optimism, but things could get worse before they get better
  
  Just got back from a couple of weeks in London – surely the world’s most depressed capital city at the moment, but more of that later – and everyone I speak to seems to be 20 per cent down. Read more »
- BOA successfully talks up the ‘Gong and south coast
  
  BOA president Katrina Greeves’ wrap-up on last week’s regional meeting in Wollongong.
  
  Over 10 local South Coast tourism operators joined BOA Committee representatives and members at the ‘BOA Talks South Coast’ event in Wollongong last Thursday to engage in lively debate regarding travel and tourism issues affecting the backpacker, student and youth market in the south coast region. Read more »
- What prison taught me about discounting
  
  Founder of Brokepacker.com Kevin Lippy explains there are three types of discounting ahead of the website’s launch tonight.
  
  A prison yard is a tough, volatile, dangerous, cut throat and an extremely unpredictable environment… Kind of like the Australian backpacking industry during low season. Read more »
- How many backpackers does it take to change a lightbulb?
  
  Thumbrella is conducting an exclusive industry survey this week, with just one question. How many of your customers are idiots? Read more »
- How’s business?
  
  So, how’s business? It’s a simple question, but it seems there’s no easy answer. Read more »
- Australian backpacking is the pulse we watch to gauge the health of the industry worldwide
  
  In this guest post, gapyear.com founder Tom Griffiths relects on the recent ATEC Backpacker and Youth Industry Conference and why Australia’s backpacking industry still leads the world.
  
  Like most of the delegates I spoke to, I found the recent ATEC Backpacker and Youth Industry Conference extremely interesting and useful. It’s very easy in these current times to set a safe agenda to cater for an industry licking its wounds, who want to hear good news stories and see rainbows ahead. Read more »
- McEvoy: ‘Put your tourism experiences on the map’
  
  Tourism Australia managing director Andrew McEvoy discusses the first stages of the There’s nothing like Australia campaign and urges the industry to get involved. Read more »
- The Cross needs backpackers to thrive
  
  In this guest post, a Kings Cross backpacker operator who wishes to remain anonymous outlines the benefits backpackers bring to the Cross.
  
  Lately there has been a concerted effort to push out the evil doing, backpacking “scum” from Potts Point together with various articles on your website and other media. Read more »
- There’s nothing like Australia’s violence on tourists…at least according to Google
  
  News in Sydney’s media of a young Scottish tourist who had been bashed by a group of youths in Sydney this week got me thinking, is violence in Australia towards foreigners worse than anywhere else or is it just because we’re here that we hear about it? Read more »
- Vote Australia – you know it makes sense
  
  If, as expected, British prime minister Gordon Brown goes to Buckingham Palace later today and asks the Queen to dissolve parliament, there will be a general election in the UK on Thursday May 6. Read more »
- Morrissey was right – life IS very long when you’re lonely…
  
  Last month I faced a classic publishing dilemma. When stories surfaced in the national press that a harvest work contractor in Bundaberg had allegedly sacked backpackers after they asked for water, my colleagues on the Backpacker Tourism Advisory Panel urged me to publish a story in TNT Magazine informing readers of their workplace rights. Read more »

Wicked Campers slammed for safety standards on A Current Affair

Wicked Campers is back in the news for all the wrong reasons after Channel Nine’s A Current Affair ran an expose slamming the company’s safety record. Read more »

By Martin Lane · October 21st, 2009 at 11:07 am · Comments: 35

Backpackers fined for camping in Darwin parks

Backpackers are being fined for camping in Darwin parks to avoid paying accommodation fees, Darwin City Council has said. Read more »

By Alice Terlikowski · October 20th, 2009 at 12:53 pm · Comments: 2

Tourism Whitsundays Awards criticised for lack of entrants

Eight trophies, including the award for best backpacker accommodation, were left unawarded at this year’s Tourism Whitsundays gongs due to a lack of entrants. Read more »

By Alice Terlikowski · October 19th, 2009 at 5:10 pm · Comments: 10

Best Job Ben gets his own TV series

Tourism Queensland’s Best Job In The World campaign is to be made into a television series. Read more »

By Martin Lane · October 16th, 2009 at 1:02 pm · Comments: 0

Australian Workers Union urges action on illegal workers

The Australian Workers Union (AWU) has urged the Federal Government to crack down on human trafficking in the horticulture industry. Read more »

By Martin Lane · October 14th, 2009 at 8:44 am · Comments: 0

Topdeck unveils expanded European program for 2010

Topdeck has launched an expanded program of European trips for 18 to 30-year-olds with a raft of new itineraries for 2010. Read more »

By Martin Lane · October 13th, 2009 at 8:28 pm · Comments: 0

ITE appointment system live

The appointment booking system for ITE is now live, with many companies now only having a few spots left for meetings. Organisers are urging delegates to register now to avoid disappointment. Read more »

By Alice Terlikowski · October 13th, 2009 at 3:44 pm · Comments: 0

Awards celebrations to continue into the night

Side Bar has been confirmed as the after-party venue following the 2009 Golden Backpack Awards Dinner on November 5. Read more »

By Alice Terlikowski · October 13th, 2009 at 3:39 pm · Comments: 0

Golden Backpack Awards finalists confirmed and places filling fast

The votes have been counted and the finalists confirmed for the 2009 Golden Backpack Awards. Read more »

By Alice Terlikowski · October 13th, 2009 at 3:37 pm · Comments: 0

ATEC calls for BTAP nominations

The Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) is calling for nominations for its Backpacker Tourism Advisory Panel (BTAP) with voting to take place online in the coming weeks. Read more »

By Alice Terlikowski · October 13th, 2009 at 12:54 pm · Comments: 0

Base goes live with new agent booking engine

Base Backpackers has gone live with its new agent booking engine after formally launching the technology at WYSTC last month. Read more »

By Martin Lane · October 12th, 2009 at 1:09 pm · Comments: 0

WYSE Work Abroad unveils winner of YouTube competition

Young people from all over the world have taken part in a video contest to celebrate the cultural benefits of living and working abroad. Read more »

By Martin Lane · October 9th, 2009 at 7:53 am · Comments: 0

Three backpacker travel agents found in breach of new price law

Three backpacker travel agents have been found to have breached the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) new component pricing law and have been forced to publish corrective notices where all misleading advertising was displayed. Read more »

By Alice Terlikowski · September 30th, 2009 at 9:56 am · Comments: 12

NSW Tourism Minister Jodi McKay launches Surf Tourism Action Plan

New South Wales Tourism Minister Jodi McKay has called on the backpacking industry to get behind the state’s new marketing campaign to promote itself as the premier surf destination in Australia for both domestic and international tourists. Read more »

By Martin Lane · September 29th, 2009 at 12:54 pm · Comments: 0

OTOs struggle with funding for youth sector

The need for better research and access to information for Tourism Organisations to lobby governments was a key message to come out of an Official Tourism Organisations (OTOs) strategy round table last week. Read more »

By Dan Roberts · September 29th, 2009 at 10:09 am · Comments: 0

Australia shines at WYSTC

Australian operators have turned out in force and shone through as the leading destination for student, youth and backpacker travel in the world at this year’s World Youth and Student Travel Conference (WYSTC). Read more »

By Dan Roberts · September 28th, 2009 at 9:57 am · Comments: 0

Paddywagon boss reaches Entrepreneur of the Year finals

Paddywagon founder Charlie O’Connell, a familiar face at the Adventure & Backpacker Industry Conference, has reached the Irish final of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year competition to be broadcast live on Irish television in October. Read more »

By Martin Lane · September 28th, 2009 at 9:17 am · Comments: 1

WYSTC business appointments kick off

The business end of the World Youth Student Travel Conference (WYSTC) in Manchester kicked off yesterday with the start of one-on-one business appointments. Read more »

By Dan Roberts · September 25th, 2009 at 10:07 am · Comments: 0