New Tourism Chief For Norfolk Island

New Tourism Chief for Norfolk Island

A tourism marketing expert with an impressive track record in the Australasian market is the new General Manager of Norfolk Island Tourism.

Terry Watson, 53, moves to the island with wife Debbie on January 14 to take over from Steve McInnes, who returns to Sydney after two and a half years in the top tourism job.

Terry began his tourism career running snow trips from Sydney in the mid 1970s. After working for a range of organisations he set up and operated Sydney's first nature-based adventure day tour operation, Wild Escapes, winning NSW and Australian tourism awards in the process.

Terry went on to obtain a Graduate Diploma in Tourism Management and an MBA from the University of Technology Sydney while furthering his tourism career in senior marketing positions in the hospitality and tourism industries.

In between he managed to operate his own management consultancy and lecture part-time at Southern Cross University. During 2006 Terry helped the Tweed region in northern NSW achieve a 70 per cent growth in visitor nights.

Terry's main task on Norfolk Island will be to implement an ambitious five-year tourism strategy set up under Steve's watch to broaden the island's appeal to New Zealanders and Australians.

"Thanks to Steve's work and the solid air links with Australia and New Zealand, Norfolk Island is on track to achieve 50,000 annual arrivals by 2012," Terry says. "My job is to keep the growth going by targeting new market segments while maintaining the traditional market base and broadening the range and quality of holiday experiences."

Steve's move back to Sydney with wife Anne and twin children William and Alexandra sees him start a tourism consultancy role based on his Norfolk Island work and 25 years in various other frontline tourism jobs.

Norfolk Island Tourism Chairman Wally Beadman said Steve would be a big loss to the island. "His all-round skills were important as part of a team in establishing Norfolk Air as our very own airline while developing a new tourism blueprint that many believe is the best we've ever had. In welcoming Terry and Debbie, we extend to Steve and his family our very best wishes for the future."

Just 8km by 5km in size and only one and three-quarter hours from Auckland, Norfolk Island is an external territory of Australia with pristine beaches and lagoons, dramatic coastal scenery, a rich history, laid-back lifestyle and low-tax shopping.

About Norfolk Island: Discovered by Captain Cook in 1774, Norfolk Island was first settled as a British penal colony in 1788 through to 1856. On June 8, 1856, the island was re-inhabited by a community from Pitcairn Island, descendants of the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian companions. Known today as Norfolk Islanders, they form a majority of the 1,800 resident population. Norfolk Island is renowned for its spectacular coastal scenery, colourful history, sporting and cultural activities, convict heritage and low tax shopping.

Air New Zealand flies to Norfolk Island on Sundays and Thursdays. For bookings and more information freephone 0800 737 000 or visit www.airnewzealand.co.nz.

For general information visit www.norfolkisland.nf.

ENDS

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