Some people haven't heard of the Gorge says Senator in tourism call

Senator Tammy Tyrell made the comments on the floor of the Senate saying that Launceston was underrated as a tourist destination in its own right.

"How many of you have heard of Cataract Gorge?," she said.

"I have people in my office, believe it or not, who had never heard of [it] before. They were imports to the state, though, so I will let them have that.

"We should be putting it on postcards and shouting about it. It should be a Tasmanian icon."

Ms Tyrell said Launceston was marketed well as a regional hub and launching pad to explore the state.

"They either head to Cradle Mountain or to the east coast. But, believe it or not, there is more than that. We are missing a trick here," she said.

"Launceston itself has so much to offer."

Ms Tyrell listed her favourite eateries as the Black Cow, Bar Stelo, wineries in the Tamar Valley wine trail, Jinglers Creek and Josef Chromy.

But the state "isn't selling the story well enough," she said.

"We are directing people towards the exits when we should be inviting them to stay and soak up all that Launceston has to offer."

"I don't want Launceston to remain a hidden gem," she said.

"Launceston punches above its weight, and we should let the rest of Australia know about it. It is time to shift our marketing focus and show off Launceston as a destination worth lingering in, not just passing through."

International visitor data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, showed short-term trips for August 2023 were 30.4 per cent lower than pre-COVID levels in August 2019.

The main countries that brought tourists were New Zealand, China and India.

However the number of tourists from China, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia have not bounced back to pre-pandemic levels.

Ms Tyrell who's lived in Launceston for 12 months said she was just discovering "all the amazing things" the city had to offer.

"I want Launceston to be people's first choice of destination in Tassie," she said.

"Tourism Tasmania stats show that the South got almost double the amount of visitors the North did last financial year. And visitors stay in the South almost three times longer than they do in the North!

"Hobart is great, but we want those visitors to be making the trip to Launceston too," she said.