The cruise industry’s peak annual conference, Cruise360 Australasia, will move to Brisbane next year, marking the first time the event has been held outside Sydney in its seven-year history.

At the closure of this year’s Cruise360 in Sydney, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) managing director Australasia Joel Katz announced the event would move to Queensland in 2020 to mark the opening of the Brisbane International Cruise Terminal at Luggage Point.

Taking place at Brisbane’s Royal International Convention Centre on 28 August 2020, the event will attract hundreds of travel agents and industry executives from around Australia and New Zealand.

“With the spotlight now firmly on Brisbane, the cruise industry believes 2020 is the perfect time to bring our Cruise360 Australasia conference to the Queensland capital,” said Katz.

“Brisbane has become one of Australia’s most important cruise destinations and the opening of its new International Cruise Terminal late next year will cement its position as a leading port in the South Pacific region.”

Cruise360 Australasia is held annually by CLIA and is the cruise industry’s peak annual forum for sharing ideas, knowledge and visions for the future.

The full-day event offers a program of top international speakers from across the cruise and tourism industries, as well as a trade show for cruise industry exhibitors.

Tourism Industry Development Minister Kate Jones said attracting this conference to Queensland for the first time reflected the strong growth of Queensland’s cruise industry.

“Queensland’s cruise industry is growing rapidly and worth $1.1 billion to the state’s economy,” she said.

“Bringing this conference to Queensland will allow us to showcase our world-class tourism offerings and Brisbane’s new International Cruise Terminal due to open next year to key industry representatives.”