Kingscote Airport Business Case Appendices - Kangaroo Island ...

Kangaroo Island Futures Authority Draft Economic Impact of Agriculture and TourismAPPENDIX 5 TOURISM MARKETSAND THEIR POTENTIAL FORGROWTHThe following summary of points raised by stakeholders during consultations highlights the linkbetween sectors of the tourism market, the utilisation of spare capacity in realising short termgrowth potential and the milestone barriers to growth for the middle and longer terms.DisclaimerThis section provides a summary of discussions with stakeholders during consultations. Theviews expressed are the views of the stakeholders consulted unless shown otherwise. Noattempt has been made to validate the information provided. The information should not berelied upon for any purpose other than that stated as the purpose of this report.Domestic intrastate extended stay marketIt was stated during consultations that a significant proportion of South Australians had notbeen to Kangaroo Island despite a strong recognition and expressed desire. Strong recognitionand desire were seen as opportunities to grow this market segment.As a (part) explanation for the lower than expected conversion rate, it was suggested that theSouth Australian (intrastate) domestic market was more price sensitive than interstate andinternational markets. Some suggested that there was a perceived high cost of transport to theIsland particularly for visitors originating in South Australia. Most stakeholders identifiedaddressing the cost, availability and quality of access options by sea and air as a priority for anyfuture growth in tourism on Kangaroo Island.It was suggested that there was considerable capacity in the current Kangaroo Island tourismindustry to absorb significant growth in the short term without the need for majorinfrastructure spending if the growth occurred outside of peak times. It was felt that there wassufficient accommodation for example, particularly in the 3 – 4 star range, for short termgrowth in the domestic extended stay market with more accommodation to be added asmarket demand grew.Stakeholders also felt that there was sufficient capacity in broader community infrastructurelike power and water supply to support an increased visitation in this market segmentprovided it was off peak. They suggested that these systems currently coped with peakdemand during the six or so weeks over Christmas and the Easter period and that there maybe capacity for tourism growth provided that the increase did not occur at these times. Theideal outcome was described as ‘push up and flatten out’ the distribution curve of visitationacross the year leaving the peak times at their near capacity.Note that while stakeholders believed that capacity for electricity supply was available in offpeak times particularly, they were concerned about the reliability of this service and pointedout the need to upgrade the undersea cable and to address the issue of the high reliance ondiesel back up.e c o n s e a r c hPage| 64