Incoming Passenger Changes into Australia

A quicker and more convenient quarantine, biosecurity clearance is assured when you arrive in Australia now that low-risk products such as commercially prepared and packaged lollies, chips and chocolates need not be declared.

The changes, which have been made on the Incoming Passenger Card, are a result of the latest scientific advice that shows such food poses a lower risk.

Biosecurity officers will now focus on goods such as raw meats, live plants, seeds and fresh fruit and vegetables, which have a “much greater potential to bring diseases and pests to Australia,” Chapman said.

A Unique Melbourne Experience

Melbourne's Docklands is the emerging destination that showcases great restaurants, bars, sustainable buildings and public art in a great waterfront location. Customers will not only see how Docklands has developed over the last 13 years but listen to the stories of plentiful swamplands teeming with native birds and wildlife, of Melbourne's first race meeting and of the cricket ground where the Melbourne Club was formed.

Since 1999 over $8.5 Billion has been ploughed into Docklands by such property development heavyweights as Lend Lease. Led by the construction of Etihad stadium, the Docklands precinct has emerged as a corporate space where 29,000 workers are now based, and a residential location where its first library is being constructed right now.

Many of the buildings are home to a growing local population with developer Mirvac having built their interesting 'Tower 5' - the one that seems to have a boat on the roof which can be seen all the way down Flinders St.

However from under this very modern covering, Places Victoria have reconstructed small pieces of the old swamp environment that used to contain some of the best game hunting that the early settlers such as John Batman used to enjoy on their tables.

The Docklands Walking Experience starts from Etihad Stadium and winds through 7 of the 8 Docklands Precincts and highlights the surprising facts of the current environment, mixed with the stories of yesteryear to provide visitors with a rounded experience of the docklands area.

Passing such well-known icons as 'Cow Up A Tree' by John Kelly, the tour ends in Harbour Town for a great coffee and lunch. Use the offers contained in the included tour bag to shop in Harbour Town or enjoy local attractions such as the Icehouse.

Dates: Run 10am Tuesdays to Sundays from Etihad Stadium Docklands, adjacent Southern Cross Railway Station, Melbourne.

For more details call 0407 380969 or visit http://www.meltours.com.au/docklandswalk.htmgmail.com

Melbourne Continues as Business Events Leader

Minister for Tourism and Major Events Louise Asher has announced that Melbourne has secured 14 association business events in the first quarter of 2012/13, which will generate a forecasted $27 million for the Victorian economy.

Melbourne has been awarded nine international and five national conferences, which will attract an estimated 7550 delegates to Victoria over the next six years. Some of these events include:

• Engineers Australia National Conference 2014
• Green Cities 2015
• Congress of the International Federation for Structural Concrete 2018; and
• General Meeting of the International Mineralogical Association 2018. 

Ms Asher said the wins added to the impressive results achieved in the last financial year.

"The 2011/12 financial year saw the Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau (MCVB) deliver its best results on record in terms of estimated room nights and forecasted economic impact," Ms Asher said.

"MCVB secured 210 international and national business events for Victoria - a 62 per cent increase on the 2011/12 full year target."

"The business events secured in the last financial year will inject a forecasted $361 million into the Victorian economy over the coming years, and are a great testament to the ability of Melbourne and Victoria to compete in this global market."

Chief Executive Officer of MCVB Karen Bolinger, said the wins were a tribute to Melbourne's core strengths.

"Melbourne has a lot to offer business events including world-class infrastructure, an accessible city and the award-winning Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, which will host these events in the coming years," Ms Bolinger said.

"These bid wins shine a light on Victoria's strength in intellectual pursuits which we are eager to share with the world through our ongoing campaign, Melbourne IQ: The Intelligent Choice for Conferences."

"I would like to thank all our industry partners and the Victorian Coalition Government for their support of business events in Melbourne and regional Victoria, and look forward to what the rest of the year will bring," Ms Bolinger said.