11, February 2022

MEDIA ENQUIRIES

McLaren Vale Grape Wine & Tourism Association
P: +61 8 8323 8999, E: info@mclarenvale.info, W: www.mclarenvale.info

McLaren Vale Grape Wine and Tourism Association (MVGWTA) is thrilled McLaren Vale is included in the 100 most loved destinations around the world for 2021.

Tourism Sentiment Index (TSI) released the study drawn from more than 1.6 billion online conversations and content pieces that are publicly available regarding travel experiences about 21,330 global destinations. The most loved destination results are based on consumer sentiment and word of mouth.

TSI believes the wealth of data analysed makes this the farthest-reaching study of destination brands to date.

McLaren Vale was ranked 48 out of 100 and was recognised alongside other notable international, Australian and South Australian destinations - with the Barossa ranked 90 and Adelaide 75.

MVGWTA would like to congratulate all tourism operators in the region for being acknowledged in this top 100 list after some of the toughest years the industry has faced.

Local and intrastate visitation to McLaren Vale has largely buoyed the industry in the region over the past two years with interstate visitation increasing again since late 2021.

MVGWTA Chair, Mr David Spear said:

"Tourism operators in McLaren Vale have continued to navigate the pandemic safely, address many business challenges and their continued commitment to providing leading wine tourism experiences is unwavering."

"This recognition is a great demonstration of the our region's collective commitment to best practice tourism operations and immersive tourism offerings."

The McLaren Vale region remains a leading light in the South Australian tourism space. MVGWTA has worked to garner significant travel media coverage in the past two years to highlight and celebrate the innovation and excellence in wine tourism throughout the region.

MVGWTA as the custodian of Brand McLaren Vale, provides the major industries of the McLaren Vale region – wine, food and tourism – with a vision for the future in both domestic and international markets. It acts as a broker and representative of those industries and is the driving force behind their development. MVGWTA plays a crucial role in securing the region’s economic and environmental sustainability.