Meet the new leader of Tourism Australia in the UK
Just two weeks into Andrew Boxall’s new role heading up the UK and Northern European markets for the tourist board, we caught up with him to find out his vision to encourage travelling Poms
It’s been a good time for Andrew Boxall to join Tourism Australia as regional general manager – UK & Northern Europe. Since March this year the published monthly arrival figures for the UK have started to exceed pre-Covid arrivals.
“For the first time in years, we can start to move away from pre-Covid comparisons to talk about positive growth,” Boxall tells TTG.
“Key partners such as Trailfinders, Flight Centre and Audley Travel are all reporting strong growth, and Brits are still number one for spend per head,” he adds.
There are also encouraging signs from the aviation industry, with gulf carriers reinstating A380s on Australia routes and Qantas adding an inaugural Paris-Perth service, joining existing London-Perth and Rome-Perth services.
Fares have been coming down slightly, notes Boxall, and he is confident they could reduce still further with Asian countries introducing more capacity. “China Airlines are offering some attractive lead prices,” he says.
The big aviation news is still to be confirmed. Qantas’ Project Sunrise will cut the flying time to Australia significantly with its direct flights to the East Coast. Twelve new Airbus A350s were ordered in May 2022, for this purpose, with the first scheduled to arrive in mid-2026. What is still to be communicated is whether New York or London will have the first flights. “Obviously we’re pushing for London,” smiles Boxall.
His predecessors, including Sally Cope who was regional manager from 2018 until the end of June, have left a legacy of strong trade engagement. More than 3,000 UK agents have now been trained in the Aussie Specialist Programme, including 1,000 Hays Travel agents: “That works out as two per store,” he says.
There will be 90 spots for UK and European agents at G’Day Australia in Perth this October. This is an Australia-based trade exercise, combining training and fam trips, for 300 Aussie Specialists in total. The event was launched last year to replace Corrobboree, and the plan is to hold it on an bi-annual basis moving forward.
“We want to disperse agents as broadly as we can around the different states,” explains Boxall. There’ll be nine famils, with seven to 10 agents on each, ranging widely from Tasmania, to Victoria and Western Australia.
“Hosting 300 agents at once takes huge commitment from both Tourism Australia and the trade partners who send their staff, but the feedback was exceptional last year, and we know that when agents see our sunsets, and taste our food and wine, they’re a convert for life.”
Looking to the future, there are some big hooks to visit Australia, including lots of sport. There’s a British and Irish Lions rugby tour, from 28 June to 2 August 2025, when 15,000 fans are expected to travel and an Ashes series in November 2025, which should attract in the region of 20,000 Brits. Further down the line, the 2032 Olympics will take place in Brisbane.
“These all create talking points and help to promote Australia through word of mouth,” says Boxall. There should also be plenty of media coverage around the King and Queen’s royal tour scheduled for October, the first time Charles III has visited Australia as sovereign.
One for the family market – Bluey’s World, based on the cult children’s TV show – opens in Brisbane in November. “It’ll be a drawcard to Brisbane and Queensland for sure,” says Boxall. “And might help increase the number of states visited in a single trip” – this being a key performance indicator for the tourist board.
Another market, that Boxall is hoping to get more cut-through with the trade, is those eligible for working holiday visas, now that the cut-off age for the programme has been raised to 35. “We want to work with trade partners to make sure sabbaticals in Australia are a more compelling proposition,” he says. “There’s a perception that the working holiday visas are for backpackers and you have to work regionally, but there have been significant changes to the programme, and we need to educate the industry about these, because the programme resonates well with those clients thinking about a career pause.”
Having spent much of his career at Flight Centre Travel Group in Australia, India, the Middle East and Europe, Boxall is enthusiastic about the challenges that lie ahead. “I’ve been promoting Australia unofficially all my life, so the ability to promote it officially is really exciting. To be an Australian, living in London and promoting Australia, it’s one of the best opportunities you could have.”
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