NICK JONES
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, DESTINATION DEVELOPMENT
Nick Jones is the Executive Director of the Destination Development Group, with the key focus of driving the supply side of the South Australian tourism industry.
Nick has played a key role in increasing accessibility to South Australia, attracting new hotel and infrastructure development, and regional tourism development. He oversaw the negotiation and introduction of direct international flights from Emirates, Qatar Airways and China Southern Airlines as well as significant domestic aviation growth pre-COVID. More recently, Nick has been working to recover domestic and international aviation services to Adelaide to maximise the opportunity as people travel again.
With cruising making its buoyant return to South Australia in the 2022-23 season, Nick and his team are focussed on growing this important sector. The current cruise ship season has more than 100 scheduled cruise visits to South Australian ports and anchorages, with around 170,000 passengers expected to arrive. It is on track to top the 82 visits made in what was a bumper season in 2018-19 – when the sector contributed $145 million to the state’s visitor economy.
He is a member of the Regional Visitor Strategy 2025 Steering Committee.
Nick and his team continue to grow the tourism offering in South Australia across many sectors including Aboriginal tourism, wellness, and recreational fishing.
Supporting South Australia’s tourism industry to reach its full potential and capitalise on significant post-COVID opportunities is a key priority. After successfully administering the $20 million Tourism Industry Development Fund, Nick and his team are now managing the $2 million Experience Nature Tourism Fund, designed to spur investment in nature-based tourism experiences and make South Australia more competitive in luring domestic and international tourists.
Nick has experience in both private and public sectors across the telecommunications, media, advertising and tourism industries. Nick joined the SATC after roles in marketing, sales and management with Publishing and Broadcasting Limited (PBL), at the time, the owners of the Channel Nine Network and Australian Consolidated Press.