Cairns is fast becoming a must-visit destination for regional conference and incentive planners. Developments in 2003 left the city’s foreshore with a Hollywood-style makeover, with lagoons and the entertainment precinct of the Pier Marketplace, to boost Cairns’ claims to being an international destination.
Aside from a wide range of accommodation and dining options, markets, culture, shopping
and a seaside atmosphere, Cairns’ big drawcard for corporate incentive groups is its access to
the Great Barrier Reef. It is also an ideal base to discover Port Douglas, the Atherton Tablelands, Cape Tribulation and beyond.
New offerings include the Cairns Convention Centre, which completed a US$7.6 million refurbishment last year, and the Shangri-La group has spruced up the Pier Hotel to create The Marina Hotel, Cairns, catering to corporate travellers.
In the first three weeks of June the Cairns city hosted more than 3,500 conference delegates who contributed around US$14 million to the Cairns economy. The International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) 5th Annual Meeting plus the APEC Senior Officials and Ministers Responsible for Trade meetings were held at the centre.
