Bendigo and Echuca tourism groups team up to attract visitors

Both groups visited the Australian Tourism Exchange last week in the hope of increasing visitors to the area.

Bendigo Tourism marketing manager Glenn Harvey said travel agents and organisations at the ATE were always after new products and experiences.

"This year with the Qantas flights from Sydney to Bendigo beginning, we have tried to add things that appeal (to that market)," he said.

"We are working with Echuca, which is a good alliance because of the points of difference.

"One package is glamping at Balgownie (in Bendigo) for two nights following by two nights on the Murray (in Echuca). We have partnered for that tour which is all inclusive. (Visitors) can be taken to Bendigo (form the airport) and to Echuca and then back."

Echuca Moama Tourism chief executive Kathryn Mackenzie said it made perfect sense to have the "fly, drive, cruise" package.

"Bendigo has become a major destination and seeing the opportunity with Qantas to work with Bendigo and create a complementary experience made sense," she said.

"For us it is a distinctive experience to put gold rush city with the experience of cruising in an Australiana destination, with a red gum forest, the river and a heritage experience.

"So we took that to the Australian Tourism Exchange and got terrific traction. It is just the beginning of what we can leverage from the new gateway."

Ms Mackenzie said overnight visitors to Echuca had grown by 15 per cent in the last year.

"Echuca is a much smaller destination than Bendigo. We have about 20,000 people in town but we are a very big tourism destination," she said. "About $1 million a day comes into the community from tourism, which is huge for a community this size. We are punching above our weight."

As part of the new tourism relationship, Murray River Paddle Steamers completed a cabin upgrade its paddle steamer Emmy Lou.

"With Qantas now flying into Bendigo, it creates an opportunity to (attract) the high number of domestic and international visitors for Sydney," MRPS owner Craig Burgess said.

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