Cairns Convention Centre expansion to set new benchmark

With a location near two World Heritage sites of the Wet Tropics Rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef, Australia’s Cairns Convention Centre is now shouting about its new A$176m brand expansion and refurbishment with the accent on reflecting that local nature. The project will deliver an extra 10,000sqm of meeting, banquet and exhibition space when the two-stage project is completed. The first stage of work will see a refurbishment of the existing Centre. That is due for completion in February 2021, with events beginning in March 2021. The second, expansion, phase will bring new spaces available to event planners in early 2022. Tourism Minister Kate Jones said the A$176m project is one of the largest tourism infrastructure projects in Queensland. “Tourism infrastructure will be crucial to our economic recovery,” Jones said. “That’s why we’re partnering with the private sector to deliver major projects that are creating jobs in Far North Queensland. “Once complete the expanded centre will bring around 20,000 extra visitors to the region and inject up to $50m into the local economy annually.” The new Cairns Convention Centre façade is inspired by the region’s oldest living rainforest. The new expansion will be able to host a conference in the facility for 500 delegates, adding to the Centre’s overall capacity of 2,500 delegates. The refurbished Arena will be able to host events for up to 5,000 capacity. Highlights of the expanded Cairns Convention Centre interior include a new exhibition space that will hold 30 exhibition stands. The new exhibition space leads to a flat floor plenary that can hold 410 people theatre-style and can be divided into two equal rooms. Also, on this level are three new meeting rooms that can hold over 118 delegates each in theatre-style. The new Trinity level brings the region’s tropical environment inside and can offer gala dinners and large cocktail functions for up to 500, with a view. The Trinity Terrace has views over the Trinity Inlet. Along with the new spaces, the Centre is also launching a new brand to reflect the beauty of the destination and the spirit of the people. A new logo incorporates both the Great Barrier Reef and Wet Tropics Rainforest, representing the only destination in the world where the rainforest meets the reef. And a new tagline, Passion is in our Nature, represents not only the Cairns Convention Centre team, but the spirit of the people of Cairns. The new brand campaign will roll out across the next 18 months across a variety of platforms. Harvey Lister, Chairman and CEO of ASM Global Asia-Pacific said, “We are extremely proud of the success that our team has had with the Cairns Convention Centre including twice being awarded AIPC’s World’s Best Congress Centre. Re-opening planning is proceeding with the added focus on the health and safety of all guests and staff with ASM Global’s VenueShield Operational Readiness programme, developed in-house across our network of more than 300 venues around the world.”