Destination Southern NSW

As readers may recall, in early May this year parties interested in Yass Valley and Hilltops tourism participated in a planning workshop conducted by Destination NSW, the lead government agency for the NSW tourism and major events sectors.

Yass Valley participants included Councillor Cayla Pothan, Georgia Patmore, Senior Destination Marketing Officer, and representatives from businesses including Blackwattle Alpaca Farm, Robyn Rowe Chocolates, and local wineries.

The consultation phase has now concluded and last week the draft Southern New South Wales Destination Management Plan 2022 -2030 was sent to workshop participants for review and feedback.

The draft proposes that five experience platforms drive and coordinate tourism product and experience development across our region:

1. Country Life: Create experience trails to link key tourism products with country towns and villages allowing visitors to engage with country characters and enjoy country life, local arts, artisans and culture to encourage visitor dispersal across the region

2. Food, Drink & Produce: Leverage the strength of the Canberra District Wine Region, developing Hilltops Wine Region, reputation for regional produce, country ‘hatted’ restaurants, pubs, cafes, authentic agri- tourism experiences and distilleries

3. Australian Heritage: Provide opportunities for visitors to engage and experience the rich Australian heritage story of the Tablelands in an appealing and contemporary way

4. Nature & Outdoors: Increase awareness and activation of the Tablelands’ distinct nature based tourism experiences including caves, waterways, camping and cycling

5. Country Festivals & Events: Establish a hierarchy of tourism events (hallmark events, destination events, sports tourism events and community events) across the region to promote and develop the region’s authentic country festivals and events.

Participants have until 5pm on the 5th October to give their feedback on the draft to Destination NSW, and we look forward to seeing the final document.

• Topics:

• Tourism