The holiday capital of Port Stephens, Nelson Bay, has scored a top 10 berth in the list of Australians’ most searched destinations on Google in 2012.

Nelson Bay, the main holiday centre in Port Stephens, 2½ hours north of Sydney, joined the Whitsundays as the only two Australian destinations to make the list of the 10 most searched destinations worldwide for Australians using Google during 2012.

The Google coup follows a 2011 survey of 2350 people in NSW which revealed over a third of respondents mentioned, umprompted, Port Stephens or Nelson Bay as holiday destinations close to home that were top of mind for them. Port Stephens emerged as the survey’s most prominent destination respondents could recall.

Port Stephens Tourism Marketing Manager, Tars Bylhouwer, said he was delighted so many Australians were ‘googling’ information on Port Stephens.

“We have also seen significant increases in visitation and bookings on our newly revamped website -  www.portstephens.org.au - so it’s clear the major investment we have made in digital marketing over the last year and the engaging ‘P.S. I Loved You marketing campaign’ we launched in 2011 is paying dividends in mouse clicks,” Mr Bylhouwer said.

“There is now clear evidence that Port Stephens is a key holiday destination in its own right, a status we will build on in 2013 with a new destination management plan that aims to enhance the appeal of Port Stephens as a seaside destination and boost visitor yield for the local economy,” he said.

“Port Stephens is a very special place offering visitors pristine blue waters, bay and ocean beaches, dolphin and whale cruises, one of NSW’s richest koala populations, the biggest sand dunes in Australia, exciting adventure activities such as sand tobogganing, parasailing, thundarafting an quadbiking and a huge range of accommodation and restaurants, making the region a complete holiday destination that has stood the test of time.

“Clearly many Australians love Port Stephens and it’s our aim to make even more people fall I love with the area in the years ahead.”