If, like the Chinese, tourism had its own calendar then surely 2011 would be the 'Year of the Campaign'.

Tourism Queensland, Tourism Tropical North Queensland and Qantas are the latest to join forces in an attempt to tempt more Americans to travel to our region. 

Tourism Queensland CEO Anthony Hayes said the new tourism campaign would promote a special deal encouraging American travellers to fly directly into Cairns and experience the beauty of the Cairns and Great Barrier Reef Region.

“The Great Barrier Reef has long been one of the ‘must dos’ on American travellers’ lists and this deal offers travellers the chance to fly from LA or Dallas to Cairns and receive a free additional flight from Cairns to Brisbane, Sydney or Melbourne,” Mr Hayes said.

Running from 8 April to 22 May the campaign will be predominantly promoted through online marketing channels such as TripAdvisor, Travel Zoo, Google and Facebook, as well as through mobile devices such as Kayak Mobile, a travel search engine phone app.

Mr Hayes said this campaign follows a series of successful marketing campaigns coordinated by the partners in the US.

“Queensland shares a successful partnership with Qantas, which has been further strengthened by these campaigns and we hope to see similar growth as a result of this activity in 2011,” he said.

"The strength of Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef’s tourism industry is in part reliant on the continued support of our aviation partners and the US remains one of the regions most important international markets.

“In 2010 Queensland welcomed 148,000 American visitors who spent $250 million on their trips to the state.”

CEO of Tourism Tropical North Queensland Rob Giason said the campaign was clever marketing.

“It’s a smart and productive campaign in working together to convert interest into direct sales to Cairns as the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef,” Mr Giason said.

Mr Hayes said Queensland’s profile in the US following the screening of Oprah’s Ultimate Australian Adventure in January and her audience's visit to the region in December has meant that it was an ideal time to rollout this campaign.

“Following Queensland’s recent weather events, this campaign is also an excellent opportunity to encourage more US visitors to travel to Queensland and show them that Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef is well and truly open,” he said.

The Newsport contacted TQ and TTNQ regarding how the "successful marketing campaigns coordinated by the partners in the US" were measured, but hsd not been given a response at the time of reporting.