The following programs are now completed and no longer active. No further rounds will be offered.
On this page:
Recovery for Regional Tourism program
Status: closed
How the program worked
The Recovery for Regional Tourism program helped Australian regions reliant on international tourism. The program helped fund projects to:
- keep and create jobs
- improve tourism product offering
- increase demand, and
- attract visitors.
Eligible applicants
Applicants were usually a Regional Tourism Organisation (RTO) or a State Tourism Organisation (STO) from an eligible region.
Eligible regions
Maximum government contribution by tourism region was:
- Australia’s South West (Western Australia) - $1,250,000
- Gold Coast (Queensland) - $10,000,000
- Kangaroo Island (South Australia) - $3,500,000
- Lasseter and Alice Springs (Northern Territory) - $3,500,000
- North Coast (New South Wales) - $1,250,000
- Phillip Island region (Victoria) - $3,500,000
- State of Tasmania - $13,500,000
- Tropical North Queensland (Queensland) - $10,000,000
- Whitsundays and Mackay region (Queensland) - $3,500,000.
Program dates
Applications opened on 30 November 2020 and closed on 30 September 2021. The program was announced on 27 September 2020.
Funding
The Recovery for Regional Tourism program offered $50 million for eligible applicants. This initiative was part of the $1 billion COVID-19 Relief and Recovery Fund.
Eligible projects
Mandatory requirements included projects that:
- created and retained tourism jobs
- drove interstate tourism, with dependencies on borders being open.
Highly desirable requirements were projects that:
- met identified regional needs
- could achieve results quickly, to aid rapid economic recovery in the region
- encouraged product and market diversification and adaptation.
COVID-19 Consumer Travel Support Program
Status: closed
How the program worked
The government provided $75.5 million to support Round Three of the COVID-19 Consumer Travel Support Program (CTSP).
Austrade administered the CTSP. It provided grants to eligible travel agents and tours arrangement service providers. This helped businesses rebook travel using existing COVID-related credits.
Program dates
Round three Opened 29 March 2022 and closed 20 April 2022, 5 pm (AEST).
Grant amounts
Grant payments ranged from $7,500 to $90,000.
Eligibility
Log in to access individual grant and eligibility requirements on Grants Connect.
Past rounds
Access information from past COVID-19 Consumer Travel Support Program rounds.
Round One
Round Two
Multi-outlet under Round Two
Round Three
If you are you having difficulty accessing these documents, please contact us.
More information
Contact us
Email: consumertravelsupport@austrade.gov.au
Regional Tourism Bushfire Recovery Grants
Status: closed
How the program worked
We administered the Regional Tourism Bushfire Recovery Grants program. The program helped regions affected by the 2019-20 bushfires.
Eligible applicants
Two groups of applicants were eligible for funding:
- Local government authorities and regional tourism organisations eligible for Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA).
- Local government authorities and regional tourism organisations eligible for DRFA and also declared 'Category D'.
Program dates
The program opened on 11 February 2020. Applications for smaller events (stream 1) closed on 18 December 2020. Applications for larger events (stream 2) closed on 8 May 2020.
Funding available
The $10 million grants program was part of the Australian Government’s $76 million funding package for tourism recovery.
Eligible projects
Stream 1 supported smaller events, including promotion. Applicants could apply for more than one grant each to a total value of $30,000.
Stream 2 supported larger events, including promotion. Applicants were asked to include scalable funding proposals.
Successful projects
Find approved stream 1 (smaller events) projects on grants.gov.au by searching GO3689. Find approved stream 2 (larger events) projects on grants.gov.au by searching GO3955.
Expert panel
Members of the expert advisory panel were:
- Ms Sandra Chipchase (Chair), former Chief Executive Officer of Destination NSW and Executive Producer, Vivid Sydney Festival
- Mr Michael Luchich, South Australian State Director, Optus, and Chairman of Country Arts South Australia
- Ms Sara Quon, Chief Executive Officer of Sovereign Hill Museums Association, Board Member of Visit Victoria and the Committee for Ballarat.
Supporting Australia’s Exhibiting Zoos and Aquariums Program
Status: Closed
The Supporting Australia’s Exhibiting Zoos and Aquariums Program provided $139.6 million in funding.
How the program worked
The program supported eligible applicants. This included eligible exhibiting zoos, aquariums, and wildlife parks affected by the economic impacts of COVID-19.
Program dates
The program ran from 2020 to . It opened to significant exhibiting zoos and aquariums to:
- contribute to conservation and presentation of animals
- drive interstate and international visitation.
Funding
The funding was for maintaining animal populations where COVID-19 restrictions affected tourism revenue.
Consultations on the design of the program included:
- the Zoos and Aquariums Association
- the Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment
- state and territory tourism organisations.
Success stories
Read about some positive outcomes:
Tourism and Aviation Network Support Program
Status: Closed
How the program worked
The government’s Tourism and Aviation Network Support Program (TANS) discounted airfares to select tourism regions. Over 800,000 half-price airfares were available.
The program helped:
- drive tourism demand for interstate travel
- support economic recovery in regional Australia.
Program dates
The program ran from 1 April 2021, for travel by 30 November 2021.
TANS fact sheet
Read the TANS fact sheet (PDF 156KB) for more information about the program.
The TANS program was part of a $1.2 billion government support package. It encouraged Australians to travel to key regions greatly impacted by the loss of international tourism.
More information
For more information on any of these programs or to log in to access individual grant and eligibility requirements visit Grants Connect.