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Indigenous tourism in Australia

27 September 2007 - Tourists visiting indigenous communities don't want a "Disneyland experience", according to Aden Ridgeway, Executive Chairman of Indigenous Tourism Australia.

the aboriginal flag now flies at many tourism offices accross australia

People want to know more about Aboriginal traditions and understand the philosophy behind them, he said.

A new indigenous tourism research report released by Tourism Research Australia reveals 830,000 international tourists, or 16% of all tourists, reported having an indigenous experience in Australia last year.

Sharing Culture: Indigenous Experiences and the International Visitor also found that travellers who participated in indigenous experiences spent an average of $3,800 in Australia, or 39% more than the average for all travellers.

Mr Ridgeway, a former Australian Democrats senator, said many Australians had a "vagueness" about what the Dreamtime meant but they did want to know more.

His organisation was established by the federal government under the umbrella of Tourism Australia.

He said tourism helps create jobs for indigenous communities, which are often in remote locations.

The government had also appointed business mentors to help develop indigenous tourism businesses.

Generally, tourism is an $81 billion industry for Australia which creates jobs for around 500,000 people.

Mr Ridgeway told a Foreign Correspondents Association lunch in Sydney that tourism provided the stage and gave the opportunity for Aboriginal people to share their stories.

He said Australia often forgot to promote its Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture enough, one that preceded the Roman and Greek civilizations and goes back way before Judaism and Christianity. And it was important to understand there was not just one indigenous culture but a mosaic of different ones.

For example, there are more than 200 different languages and dialects of Aboriginal languages.

There are now more than 300 indigenous tourism businesses in Australia and these are listed on a number of directories and websites.

"It is my belief that in the years to come, the cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples will play a leading role in the development of mainstream tourism," Mr Ridgeway said.

His organisation was looking at ways to "create a more conducive environment for these communities and families who choose tourism to come together as a way forward".

It helps tourism businesses access capital, as many communities cannot mortgage their land to raise money because of land rights restrictions. Many indigenous families also have no credit record.

Mr Ridgeway said the banks were developing new products that deal with indigenous circumstances.

He has also been heavily involved in promoting indigenous tourism overseas at roadshows and events. Britons and Germans were the most interested of international visitors in having an indigenous experience here.

"We also want to give them (indigenous communities) an alternative way of seeing themselves," he said.

Indigenous Tourism Australia was set up following a recommendation in the tourism white paper of 2004.

Its website is a central information gateway for the indigenous tourism sector and gives advice on what's involved in starting and maintaining a profitable business, how to get help, training programs available, and who to contact.

Other initiatives include looking at ways to attract carbon credits to indigenous communities, more "voluntourism" projects, and discussions with the Australian Hotels Association and others on training for indigenous staff.

Another Aboriginal-run organisation, Aboriginal Tourism Australia, already exists.

Source: TVNZ, New Zealand 

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