Aussie specialist travel agents from around the world have voted South Australian-based Bookabee Australia the Best Indigenous Tourism Experience in the country. The win has been published by Australia's foremost inbound travel magazine, Travelling in Australia, which goes out to more than 15000 retail travel agents and members of the travel trade in countries around the world – as well as some of the top executives internationally. In Australia, the magazine is read by more than 1200 trade readers as well as the CEOs of Australia's top 500 companies.

The redeveloped South Australian Whale Centre promises to deliver a quality facility featuring exciting new displays when it re-opens on 1 June 2008. New displays will portray both the historical and current relationship of whales with Victor Harbor, and will feature interactive exhibits displaying other creatures of the deep including sharks, dolphins and local endangered species. The new focus of the centre will provide an excellent platform on which to build high quality marine education and research programs, also giving students an opportunity to interact with the marine environment.
More information: www.victor.sa.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=437

Transport Minister, the Hon Patrick Conlon, officially launched Sharp Airlines new services between Adelaide and Port Augusta and Adelaide and Mildura in May. Minister Conlon said the Government was very pleased that airline routes for these important regional centres had been preserved. He also said the Government was confident about the future of regional towns and expected continued growth in the future. Sharp Airlines' began flying the new services on 28 April 2008. There are currently 40 scheduled flights, Monday to Friday, between Adelaide and Port Augusta, and between Adelaide and Mildura.
More information: www.sharpairlines.com

Sinclair’s Gully Wines, the Adelaide Hills’ first eco-certified winery and cellar door, has recently won a Telstra State Environment award for its efforts in conservation work carried out during the past 11 years on the Eucalyptus Rubida Woodland located within their property. Sean and Sue Delaney have painstakingly resorted their 10ha woodland block, ridding it of blackberries and weeds, and conserving the only large remnant of candlebark gum forest in the Adelaide Hills. Along the way they have discovered more than 150 plant species and 62 bird species. The Telstra Environment Awards reward those people, businesses and communities who are striving to save the planet from the potentially catastrophic effects of climate change.
More information: www.sinclairsgully.com

GoodLife Modern Organic Pizza, Australia’s first and only certified pizza restaurant to date certified by NASAA (National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia), now proudly offers Australia’s first carbonless pizza. The environment is important to GoodLife and they’ve recently changed their operations to manage and mitigate their impact on climate change. After appointing Balance Carbon Pty Ltd to conduct a greenhouse gas emission audit of the business, GoodLife now offer carbon free pizzas after achieving zero net emission status (ZeroCTM).
More information: www.goodlifepizza.com

Passengers on Captain Cook Cruises’ seven-night Murray River cruise departing 6 June, will have the opportunity to meet famous author and the man who inspired the character of Mr. Keating (played by Robin Williams) in the film Dead Poets Society, Samuel Pickering. Mr. Pickering has returned to Australia to write a third book entitled ‘A Tramp’s Wallet’, and part of his book will feature a chapter on the Murray River. During the seven-night cruise, Mr. Pickering will be giving talks to passengers about capturing life on paper. Mr. Pickering will also present to guests on the three-night cruise departing 6 June, and guests on the four-night cruise departing 9 June. For the month of June, the second person also travels for half price with Captain Cook Cruises.
More information: www.captaincook.com.au

On 30 April 2008, the Eyre Highway Operators Association joined in partnership with AusIndustry to commence the creation of “The Longest Golf Course in the World.” The 18-hole, par 72 golf course will span 1,365 kilometres, with one hole in each participating town or roadhouse along the Eyre Highway, from Kalgoorlie in Western Australia to Ceduna in South Australia. Each hole will include a green and tee and somewhat rugged outback-style natural terrain fairway. This development will offer a new quintessential Australian experience for travellers along this renowned highway. The contract will allow the Association to access the funds required to commence the building of this great Australian project.
More information: www.nullarborlinks.com

The 2nd annual Adelaide International Guitar Festival will be held this year from 29 November to 7 December 2008. The full program will be launched on Wednesday 20 August in the Piano Bar at the Adelaide Festival Centre. Multiple-player line-ups, a broad cross-section of styles and world-class, international artists, plus loads of Aussie guitar gods and goddesses will feature prominently again this year. Confirmed genres include roots, blues, classical, country and rock plus interesting collaborations and programming that defy description. To keep up to date with Guitar Festival news, exciting competitions and "early-bird" ticket offers subscribe now on the website to receive Twang!, the official monthly e-newsletter.
More information: www.adelaideguitarfestival.com.au

The Adelaide Convention Tourism Authority (ACTA) has been awarded the Australian meetings industry’s highest award for marketing excellence. At a glittering ceremony held at the Alice Springs Convention Centre, ACTA was chosen ahead of a strong field of state marketing organisations to take out the coveted prize. For the past two years, ACTA has recorded the best return on investment of any convention bureau in the country, delivering in excess of $100 million annually to the state’s economy.
More information: www.acta.com.au

South Australia’s largest and longest running event – the Royal Adelaide Show – will have a fresh look in 2008, with a new promotional brand launched at the Adelaide Showground. The new ‘fireworks’ logo represents energy, brilliance and light – all charactistics of the popular event. The new brand encapsulates all that is fun and exciting about the Royal Adelaide Show, and reflects the evolution of the event in recent years. 2008 will also see a return to the rural focus of the Show, with future marketing and promotional campaigns set to reinforce the Show’s origins and contribution to the promotion of primary industry through the staging of events and the rewarding of excellence.
More information: www.adelaideshowground.com.au/showground/royal-adelaide-show/royal-adelaide-show-home.jsp

Construction of Adelaide Showground’s $42 million exhibition centre - the Goyder Pavilion – is on schedule and will open in mid August, just before the 2008 Royal Adelaide Show. Featuring an 8,000 square-metre exhibition space and 16,000 square-metre outside entertainment area, the facility will suit a wide range of events. Boasting lots of natural light, state-of-the-art technology and a versatile floorplan, the development will be a world-class, multi-purpose venue, meeting the events industry's needs in terms of capacity, capability and flexibility. The venue is committed to creating a sustainable development that features a wide range of environmentally friendly initiatives. A 3.5 million-litre underground water tank will supply up to 50% of the venue's annual water requirements. Other examples include the installation of blinds to all glazed areas to reduce glare and direct sun penetration; high efficiency fluorescent lighting and recycling waste storage areas.
More information: www.adelaideshowground.com.au

The Ruby Awards are on again in 2008, celebrating the contribution of the arts to the cultural life of South Australia and commemorating the role played by Dame Ruby Litchfield. Artists (individuals and companies), facilitators, cultural sector workers and community participants may be nominated. The eight awards up for grabs in 2008 are: Best work or event; Community impact (x 2); Sustained contribution (x2); Innovation; Leadership in arts enterprise and the Premier’s Lifetime Achievement Award. The Ruby Awards will be held in partnership with the Australia Business Arts Foundation SA Awards on 4 September 2008. Nominations close at 5.15pm on Friday 20 June 2008.
More information: www.rubyawards.com.au


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