Lord Mayor Gordon Bradbery encouraged Wollongong residents to out-vote Townsville. Picture: GREG TOTMAN
Wollongong has won the right to stage Australia’s first social media tourism conference after easily beating Townsville in a 12-hour Facebook vote-off.
More than 6100 people voted for Wollongong to host the event, compared with 3780 for Townsville.
MORE: Wollongong vs Townsville Facebook battle
The Social Media Tourism Symposium, scheduled for July, is expected to bring about 100 to 150 national and international attendees and generate about $200,000 in income for the region’s hotels and restaurants.
Seven cities around the country, including Wollongong, nominated late last year to host the two-day symposium, the world’s largest conference dedicated to tourism marketing and promotion through social media.
