Home News Tourismkeeper': Government to offer cut-price flights to boost tourism

Tourismkeeper': Government to offer cut-price flights to boost tourism

A new support package worth $1.2 billion will include half-price airline tickets in an effort to boost struggling tourism hotspots.

By Harrison Astbury

First published on 11 Mar 2021

Tourismkeeper': Government to offer cut-price flights to boost tourism

BREAKING: Darwin has been added to the list of eligible half-price flight destinations. More details to follow.

Approximately 800,000 half-price airline tickets will be up for grabs, across 13 key tourism regions.

The discounts will be off the 'average' fare, and will be available on airline websites, such as Qantas, Virgin, and Jetstar, from 1 April to 31 July.

Targeted regions include:

Gold Coast
Cairns
The Whitsundays
Mackay (Prosperine and Hamilton Island)
Sunshine Coast
Lasseter and Alice Springs
Launceston
Devenport
Burnie
Broome
Avalon
Merimbula
Kangaroo Island

However, the discounted flights to each destination will be restricted to particular routes. Brisbane residents, in particular, have only two half-price routes on offer from Brisbane airport - to Launceston, and Alice Springs. More below:

Discounted routes available include:

Gold Coast

Adelaide – Gold Coast
Melbourne – Gold Coast
Sydney – Gold Coast
Canberra – Gold Coast
Avalon – Gold Coast

Tropical North Queensland

Melbourne – Cairns
Sydney – Cairns
Darwin – Cairns

Whitsundays and Mackay region

Sydney – Proserpine
Sydney – Hamilton Island

Sunshine Coast

Sydney – Maroochydore
Melbourne – Maroochydore
Adelaide – Maroochydore

Lasseter and Alice Springs

Adelaide – Alice Springs
Sydney – Uluru
Brisbane – Alice Springs
Melbourne – Alice Springs
Perth – Alice Springs
Sydney – Alice Springs
Brisbane – Uluru
Melbourne – Uluru

Launceston, Devonport and Burnie

Melbourne – Launceston
Sydney – Launceston
Brisbane – Launceston
Melbourne – Devonport
Melbourne – Burnie

Broome

Darwin – Broome
Sydney – Broome
Melbourne – Broome

Avalon (Victoria)

Gold Coast – Avalon
Sydney – Avalon

Merimbula (New South Wales)

Melbourne – Merimbula

Kangaroo Island (South Australia)

Adelaide – Kingscote

Exact details on flights, routes, and the total number of tickets will be demand-driven and up to the airlines' discretion.

This comes after the Queensland Government announced $200 travel vouchers to those travelling within the state.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the package will help affected tourism regions "get back to normal trading".

“This package will take more tourists to our hotels and cafes, taking tours and exploring our backyard," he said.

"That means more jobs and investment for the tourism and aviation sectors as Australia heads towards winning our fight against COVID-19 and the restrictions that have hurt so many businesses.”

"This is all about keeping people in their jobs by putting planes in the air and getting tourists on the ground"

Prime Minister @ScottMorrisonMP on the federal government's new plan to pay for half of your holiday to support the struggling tourism industry. pic.twitter.com/Ol5mfFH0IT
— Sunrise (@sunriseon7) March 10, 2021

Photo by Marcel Wiemers on Unsplash

Ready, Set, Buy!

Learn everything you need to know about buying property – from choosing the right property and home loan, to the purchasing process, tips to save money and more!

With bonus Q&A sheet and Crossword!

By subscribing you agree to our privacy policy

Harrison Astbury

Harrison is Savings.com.au's Assistant Editor, and also Editor & Research Analyst of sister comparison site InfoChoice.com.au. Prior to joining Savings Media Group in January 2020, he worked for some of Australia's largest comparison sites and media organisations, and has key interests in housing policy, real estate, and niche topics such as the gold standard.

Email Articles

By subscribing you agree to our privacy policy

The entire market was not considered in selecting the above products. Rather, a cut-down portion of the market has been considered. Some providers' products may not be available in all states. To be considered, the product and rate must be clearly published on the product provider's web site. Savings.com.au, yourmortgage.com.au, yourinvestmentpropertymag.com.au, and Performance Drive are part of the InfoChoice Group. In the interests of full disclosure, the InfoChoice Group are associated with the Firstmac Group. Read about how InfoChoice Group manages potential conflicts of interest, along how we get paid.

Savings.com.au Pty Ltd ACN 161 358 363 operates as an Australian Financial Services Licensee and an Australian Credit Licensee Number 515843. Savings.com.au is a general information provider and in giving you general product information, Savings.com.au is not making any suggestion or recommendation about any particular product and all market products may not be considered. If you decide to apply for a credit product listed on Savings.com.au, you will deal directly with a credit provider, and not with Savings.com.au. Rates and product information should be confirmed with the relevant credit provider. For more information, read Savings.com.au's Financial Services and Credit Guide (FSCG). The information provided constitutes information which is general in nature and has not taken into account any of your personal objectives, financial situation, or needs. Savings.com.au may receive a fee for products displayed.

Explore the InfoChoice Group network: InfoChoice · Your Mortgage · Your Investment Property · Performance Drive

Our company, Savings.com.au, has obtained accreditation as a data recipient for the Consumer Data Right (CDR). You can view our CDR policy by clicking on this link.

Important information

Savings.com.au provides general information and comparison services to help you make informed financial decisions. We do not cover every product or provider in the market. Our service is free to you because we receive compensation from product providers for sponsored placements, advertisements, and referrals. Importantly, these commercial relationships do not influence our editorial integrity.

For more detailed information, please refer to our How We Get Paid, Managing Conflicts of Interest, and Editorial Guidelines pages.

Editorial Integrity

At Savings.com.au, we are passionate about helping Australians make informed financial decisions. Our dedicated editorial team works tirelessly to provide you with accurate, relevant, and unbiased information. We pride ourselves on maintaining a strict separation between our editorial and commercial teams, ensuring that the content you read is based purely on merit and not influenced by commercial interests.

Learn more about our commitment to editorial integrity in our Editorial Guidelines.

Advertiser Disclosure

Our service is free for you, thanks to support from our partners through sponsored placements, ads, and referrals. We earn compensation by promoting products, referring you, or when you click on a product link. You might also see ads in emails, sponsored content, or directly on our site.

For more details, see How We Get Paid.

Product Coverage and Sort Order

We strive to cover a broad range of products, providers, and services; however, we do not cover the entire market. Products in our comparison tables are sorted based on various factors, including product features, interest rates, fees, popularity, and commercial arrangements.

Some products will be marked as promoted, featured or sponsored and may appear prominently in the tables regardless of their attributes.

Additionally, certain products may present forms designed to refer you to associated companies (e.g. our mortgage broker partner) who may be able to assist you with products from the brand you selected. We may receive a fee for this referral.

You can customise your search using our sorting and filtering tools to prioritise what matters most to you, although we do not compare all features and some results associated with commercial arrangements may still appear.

For more details, visit How We Get Paid and Managing Conflicts of Interest.

Comparison Rate Warning and Base Criteria

For home loans, the base criteria include a $500,000 loan amount over 30 years. For car loans, the base criteria include a $30,000 loan over 5 years. For personal loans, the base criteria include a $20,000 loan over 5 years. These rates are only examples and may not include all fees and charges.

*The Comparison rate is based on a $150,000 loan over 25 years. Warning: this comparison rate is true only for this example and may not include all fees and charges. Different terms, fees or other loan amounts might result in a different comparison rate.

Monthly Repayment Figures

Monthly repayment figures are estimates that exclude fees. These estimates are based on the advertised rates for the specified term and loan amount. Actual repayments will depend on your circumstances and interest rate changes.

Monthly repayments, once the base criteria are altered by the user, will be based on the selected products’ advertised rates and determined by the loan amount, repayment type, loan term and LVR as input by the user/you.

Related Brands

Savings.com.au is proudly part of the InfoChoice Group, which includes InfoChoice.com.au, YourMortgage.com.au, YourInvestmentPropertyMag.com.au, and PerformanceDrive.com.au. The InfoChoice Group is associated with the Firstmac Group.

We may include products and services from loans.com.au, CarLoans.com.au, OnlineAuto.com.au, and YourMortgageBroker Pty Ltd, all associated with the Firstmac Group. Importantly, these brands are treated like any other commercial partner.

Learn more about how we manage conflicts of interest.

General Advice Disclosure

The information provided by Savings.com.au is general in nature and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation, or needs. We recommend seeking independent financial advice before making any financial decisions. Before acquiring any financial product, obtain and read the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS), Target Market Determination (TMD), and any other offer documents.

Rates and product information should be confirmed with the relevant credit provider. For more information, read Savings.com.au’s Financial Services and Credit Guide (FSCG).