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Brisbane residents say Dunedin needs to work harder to get the southern city on Queensland’s radar, after Virgin Australia announced it would continue its thrice-weekly flights between the two cities.
Former Dunedin resident Lucy Anderson, of Brisbane, said she was "simply astounded" by the lack of marketing advocacy for Dunedin, by the Dunedin City Council and Enterprise Dunedin.
She believed it was necessary to increase passenger numbers to Dunedin from Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
"Whilst we have lived in Brizzy for nearly 10 years, we have never read an article promoting Dunedin as a getaway destination in any of the local papers.
"We have even ventured in to the local flight centres to ask them about Dunedin and we are met with vacant looks about why anyone would actually choose to fly to Dunners.
"Often they don’t even know where Dunners is, and the fact that it is only three hours away by direct flight.
"The latest excitement and positivity generated by both the recent [Ed Sheeran] concerts and the waterfront concept designs surely suggests the beginning of a new era for Dunedin ... but without international flights growth, it is doomed to be exactly what the international airlines call it — a DUD."
Kiss Travel International sales manager John Grier, of Brisbane, said his travel company used to send hundreds of Brisbane residents on the Virgin flight to Dunedin, every ski season, over years.
It was at a time when the flights arrived in Dunedin about 3pm and returned to Brisbane about 4pm.
He said part of the problem since then, was Virgin Australia had changed its schedules, and its flights from Brisbane now arrived in Dunedin about midnight.
"The current timings suck from a Brisbane passenger’s point of view.
"Surely Virgin or Tiger have one aircraft sitting around Saturday late morning, which could fly Brisbane to Dunedin and arrive before dark, and immediately return to Brisbane.
"This would suit Brisbane people and would help ensure the survival of BNE/DUD/BNE flights."
Enterprise Dunedin’s Fraser Liggett said it had invested $200,000 in a marketing campaign in Queensland. It included digital and print advertising, newspaper contests throughout Queensland, ads in in-flight magazines and lifestyle publications, billboards, radio, social media and distributing a promotional video.
He said Enterprise Dunedin exhibited at the Flight Centre travel expo this year and ran a competition on Brisbane radio promoting Dunedin’s Ed Sheeran weekend.
A Virgin Australia spokeswoman declined to say if the airline would look into scheduling earlier arrivals into Dunedin.
She said Dunedin would continue to get three flights a week — departing Brisbane on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday, and Dunedin on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.