TOURISM Northern Tasmania believes Launceston will need at least one more hotel in addition to the Silos project by 2020, as well as a destination five-star hotel.
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TNT chief executive Chris Griffin said his organisation had performed yet-to-be-released forecasting which showed Launceston should be looking to attract a new accommodation provider who could be up and running beyond 2020.
Mr Griffin said TNT was working towards attracting 1.5 million visitors within the next four years.
“We’re also illustrating that we should be attracting and actively seeking a destination five star hotel in the city,” he said.
“Beyond what we need in occupancy we actually need to be able to attract a high-yield market, and to do that we need the accommodation style to suit their needs.”
According to the City of Launceston there are around 2000 rooms and close to 5000 accommodation beds in the city.
City of Launceston general manager Robert Dobrzynski said the council was in active discussions with developers around new hotel developments.
“There is strong interest from private developers in increasing the city's capacity to accommodate more tourists, and to offer new accommodation ventures to the market, particularly on the back of the strong tourism boom Tasmania has been experiencing of late,” Mr Dobrzynski said.
"The council continues to receive inquiries from prospective developers in this regard, and it would appear that many developers see promise in investing in accommodation projects in Launceston.”
Mr Griffin said attracting events such as this year’s under-18 hockey championships during the winter off peak season was the best approach, because that was when more accommodation capacity was available.
Mr Dobrzynski said the hockey championships were expected to draw an estimated $1.2 million into the city.
"Launceston will host 20 teams from July 8 to 16 and we expect demand for accommodation to be high across Launceston,” he said.
"After the success of the recent visit by Ulysses, the city has proven that it can host large-scale multi-day events and that it presents a unique offering as the gateway to Northern Tasmania.
"We're delighted at the possibilities the five-year agreement with Hockey Australia can deliver for Northern Tasmania."
