Red Bus Explorer tourist operator John Williams endures a sharp business downturn over the three months of winter, before the Floriade spring festival fills his vehicle with tourists.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Mr Williams hopes international flights from Singapore and Wellington, which begin in September, will keep the momentum coming.
"I'm very optimistic about people coming in from south-east Asia and New Zealand, it has been a bug bear people having to get off in Sydney, they are told there's everything to see in Sydney and northing to see in Canberra," Mr Williams said.
Canberra Business Chamber says the ACT government should double spending annually on tourist marketing for the territory. In a submission for the 2016-17 ACT budget, the business chamber says foreign tourists are forecast to rise this financial year, including a 15.5 per cent jump in the number of Chinese visitors.
"Canberra is not achieving these growth rates, contrasting with Tasmania which has a strongly growing visitor economy despite not having an international air service," the submission says.
Last year the peak industry group, the Tourism and Transport Forum urged the ACT government to double marketing expenditure to $28 million.
Canberra Tourism Industry Advisory Council chairman David Marshall says Tasmania has a bigger budget and has always been an aggressive promoter because tourism is its biggest industry.
Mr Marshall said the ACT government gave $1 million for international flights, related to marketing into Singapore and Wellington.
Being a small jurisdiction, it was hard for the ACT to compete with other states and the Northern Territory.
"But it would be great to have a doubling of the marketing budget to make sure we are up there playing with the serious competitors we have. They are not other countries, they are other states," Mr Marshall said.
"We have always had quite strong international visitation from New Zealand, England the United States, the Chinese are just starting to travel now, more so than ever."
Mr Marshall says as well as international flights, the government and Canberra Airport had campaigned long and hard to get a low-cost airline such as Jetstar to fly to and from the national capital, so far without success.
Building momentum from existing major events such as Enlighten and Floriade would be preferable than establishing new events. "To try and establish an event in any city these days, it is hard and I tell you what it costs a lot of money."
He said the successful Multicultural Festival should be expanded.
Mr Marshall recalled chairing Floriade meetings 22 years ago, when a key discussion was moving out of Commonwealth Park, which has remained contentious ever since.
