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| Melbourne’s iconic Flinders Street Station |
Don’t be surprised if your agency gets flooded with inquiries about Australia this spring. Just as Oprah Winfrey once took her show—and her audience—on a tour of Australia for all the world to see, another top-ranked TV host is preparing to do the same.
The Ellen DeGeneres Show will visit Australia in March in what is expected to deliver a major boost for local tourism. The visit was announced by DeGeneres and Swisse Wellness’ global ambassador Nicole Kidman, in an episode last month that was watched by a global audience of more than 16 million people.
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, sponsored by Swisse Wellness (which is promoting its global product launch), will film numerous segments around Melbourne and Sydney in March that will air in April to around 60 countries around the world. Qantas has partnered with Swisse Wellness to support the initiative as part of the airline’s ongoing commitment to promoting Australia to the world.
During the in-studio announcement in Los Angeles, The Ellen DeGeneres Show audience each received a free roundtrip flight on Qantas between the U.S. and Australia. These trips can be taken any time before the end of the year from New York, Dallas, Fort Worth or Los Angeles to Sydney or Melbourne.
CEO of the Qantas Group, Alan Joyce, said helping to bring The Ellen DeGeneres Show to Australia was a fantastic opportunity to market the country to a massive worldwide audience.
“This is a great coup for Australian tourism,” Joyce said. “The Ellen DeGeneres Show is one of the top-rated shows in the United States and screens in several key source tourism markets, making it a great platform to profile what Australia has to offer as a holiday destination. Ellen is a household name and her unique brand of fun and optimism is a perfect match for the relaxed Australian culture.”