The potential for development of food and wine tourism in the Cairns region

This dataset was created to examine the potential for the development of the food and wine tourism industry in the Cairns region. Cairns has a range of local food and wine products, including local seafood, coffee, tropical fruit and fruit wines. The research used a model developed by Hall and Sharples to identify the current position of the food and wine tourism industry and determine potential opportunities for its future development. Chi-square analyses identified three groups of tourists using interest in food and wine as a basis for classification. Approximately 45% of respondents self identified as food and wine tourists, however they were unaware of the availability of local food and wine until their arrival. A larger potential market of tourists who participated in food and wine tourism activities was also identified. The paper concludes by outlining a number of implications for marketing food and wine tourism in the Cairns region.