Northern Territory Famil Trip

People often think working as an events manager is full of perks.  I've had people suggest that it must be lovely to have a job that involves swanning about in cocktail dresses sipping champagne.  And I'm sure it must be lovely, but that isn't what events management is about.  It is about logistics, planning, long hours, and being polite in the face of often finicky and obnoxious delegates.

However, that isn't to say there aren't some perks and Famil trips are one of them.  Famil trips involve visiting a place to be familiarised with the facilities and opportunities.  They are really important, planning events in venues you haven't visited is very hard and they give tourist operators the opportunity to promote their businesses.  But they do also mean you get to go somewhere you haven't been before as the guest of the tourism promoters.

This last week I was lucky enough to be hosted by the Northern Territory Convention Bureau on a Famil trip to Alice Springs and Darwin.  Let me be clear, it was NOT a holiday.  Each day started at 8am, was filled with numerous meetings, site visits and tours, ending late.  But we did get to visit some amazing places, eat wonderful food and meet some truly inspirational people.  In fact some of those people and places were so inspirational that they deserve a post of their own, so today's post is just about the landscape.

I've not been to NT before but I had some ideas in my head of what it would look like.  Red dirt, wiry trees, blue skies and clear blue sea.  I wasn't expecting the wild flowers, towering ranges and manicured waterfront.  I could write more but my break is over - another site visit awaits, so enjoy just a few photos of the goreousness of NT.