Top End tourist operator turns to Big Red Group for support

Pre-Covid tourists “aren’t coming back”, claims a Top End tour operator, who has called in interstate expertise to help keep his business running.

Michael Narlburlburl Shaun Narmarnyill and Tim Neilson of Top End Day Tours. Picture: Supplied.

Struggling to recapture pre-Covid success, a Top End tour operator, concerned for his Aboriginal employees’ livelihoods, has joined forces with an interstate company in a bid to boost booking numbers.

When Tim Neilson, 55, purchased Top End Day Tours in 2019, his tour bus was typically full, with up to 90 per cent of his clients hailing from Europe.

A year after taking over the business, Covid-19 curbed Mr Neilson’s operations, with tight restrictions crippling visitor numbers.

Now, Mr Neilson said the tourism sector continued to struggle, despite borders having been opened for years.

“Those (pre-Covid) tourists aren’t coming back in the same numbers they did,” he told this masthead.

“The Territory in particular is struggling for numbers in tourism and having that reach in marketing.”

Research, conducted by Sydney-based experience network Big Red Group, supports Mr Neilson’s claim, with recent findings showing the Territory endured a slump in booking numbers for consecutive years.

Tim Neilson says tourism is helping remote communities financially and culturally. Picture: Supplied.

With a dozen Aboriginal employees – all from West Arnhem – to care for, Mr Neilson said the success of Top End Day Tours directly impacted remote families who relied on consistent visiting numbers.

Further, Mr Nielson maintained a healthy tourism sector contributed to the preservation of Australia’s ancient cultures.

“What the tourism sectors does is encourage Aboriginal people to live on their country, in their world and maintain their culture,” he said.

“I say this to my customers, that the ticket they paid for keeps these (Aboriginal) men employed who can then keep living in their communities.”

In a bid to boost visiting numbers, Mr Neilson turned to Big Red Group, which has partnered with not-for-profit organisation, Welcome to Country, for expert advice and support.

Top End Day Tours now joins almost 50 other Aboriginal experiences being platformed by the interstate organisation.

Mr Neilson said he hoped the new alliance would bring more attention to West Arnhem.

“Just listing us on their platforms puts us in front of a bigger crowd than your average website,” he said.

“We get a minuscule number of visits compared to what they get.”

Shaun Namarnyilk is one of a dozen employees at Top End Day Tours who relies on a steady flow of visitors. Picture: Supplied.

Welcome to Country chief executive Desmond Campbell said tourism money was an effective means of financially supporting Indigenous communities.

“For every $1 spent with First Nations businesses, there’s a social return of $4.41 — so your dollar truly works four times harder when you choose to support these businesses,” he said.

As for other hurdles impacting the tourism sector, Big Red Group chief executive David Anderson said travellers were tight for cash.

“Cost-of-living is impacting decisions on where consumers are spending money,” he said.

“We are seeing a trend of Australians choosing quality over quantity this year and probably choosing to spend more time doing experiences closer to home.”

Mr Neilson raised another concern.

“The airfares are too expensive,” he said.

“Clients are telling me they’re not coming back because it’s too bloody expensive to fly – I don’t know the way around that.”