Chris Hemsworth and Aussie stars behind promotion to get more Americans to visit Australia

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1 Chris Hemsworth (second left) has helped Tourism Australia enjoy excellent growth in the number of American tourists visiting Australia. Australia Chris Hemsworth and Aussie stars behind promotion to get more Americans to visit Australia By MATHEW MURPHY, News Corp Australia Network January 24, :00pm Subscriber only WHAT does it take to sell Australia to a roomful of Americans? Thor star Chris Hemsworth promising nude photos certainly doesn t hurt. The Tourism Australia global ambassador was the key draw card at this year s G Day USA event in New York. 1/5

2 He was joined by Naomi Watts, Rachel Griffiths, former Home and Away stars Brenton Thwaites, Luke Mitchell and Rebecca Breeds, as well as Australian Ambassador to the US, Joe Hockey, and Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Steven Ciobo, who all walked the red carpet. Chris Hemsworth lives in Byron Bay, but says the Great Barrier Reef is his favourite destination in Australia. Picture: Chris Hemsworth/Instagram Rockpool s Neil Perry was also on hand serving up a special tasting menu with matching wines. Hemsworth has been travelling around Australia during the past year in his role as global ambassador for Tourism Australia, sharing his experiences via social media. Rachel Griffiths, who was MC for the event, projected Hemsworth s photos up on to the big screen. We hacked your phone. I hope there s no nudes, Griffiths said. There s a couple, Hemsworth teased, to the delight of the crowd. 2/5

3 Hemsworth said his favourite destination he visited last year was the Great Barrier Reef, with the energy and spirituality of Uluru at dawn also proving to be a memorable experience for the 33-year-old. Hemsworth with wife Elsa Pataky. Picture: Chris Hemsworth/Instagram I have travelled all around the world and seen most of the planet and coming back home to Australia and especially where we live now in Byron Bay is unlike anywhere else in the world, he said. Call it Hemsworth s sales pitch or perhaps the weakened Aussie dollar but a record 705,000 Americans visited Australia last year an 18 per cent jump on the year before. Tourism Australia Managing Director, John O Sullivan said G Day USA was one of the best opportunities of the year to sell the US travel industry on all Australia has to offer. It s great to return to New York, almost exactly a year after Chris Hemsworth helped us launch our latest global tourism campaign, he said. Travel by Americans to Australia is growing at levels we haven t enjoyed since the 2000 Sydney Olympics. 3/5

4 The movie start also loves the spirituality of the Red Centre. Chris Hemsworth/Instagram Luxury travel network Virtuoso also announced a partnership with Tourism Australia to push the wonders of Down Under to Americans. Australia continues to be a key location for our travel advisers and their clients, consistently ranking in our top 10 destinations by sales and as the number one dream destination for Virtuoso travellers, said Matthew Upchurch, Virtuoso CEO. 4/5

5 Our goal is to ensure that every Virtuoso agency in North America has an Australian specialist on board, someone who can assist clients as well as their fellow colleagues. Hemsworth says while Australia s landscape sells itself to tourists, it is the locals who leave a lasting impression on foreigners. Everywhere you go people talk about how welcoming and open Australians are so I think that definitely helps promote what Australia is all about, he said. Originally published as Hemsworth reveals brilliant tourism strategy 5/5