Tourism Australia relaunches 'Best job in the world'

The competition originally ran back in 2009 and was a huge publicity hit for Tourism Queensland. It attracted more than 35,000 applicants for the post, which was to act as a caretaker on the Great Barrier Reef's Hamilton Island.

TA has activated its social media channels and is pushing the campaign via Facebook and Twitter using the hashtag #BestJobs. The campaign has already generated thousands of likes and comments since going live.

The original competition was won by 34-year-old British contestant Ben Southall, who was picked from almost 35,000 applicants to be the island's caretaker.

Now TA, in partnership with six state and territory tourism offices, is inviting people to follow in his footsteps by applying for one of six jobs with job titles that will ensure thousands are likely to apply.

The jobs on offer are: lifestyle photographer (Melbourne); chief funster (New South Wales); outback adventurer (Northern Territory); park ranger (Queensland); wildlife caretaker (South Australia), and taste master (Western Australia).

The campaign targets travellers between 18 and 30 years of age in Australia and overseas, with particular focus on international markets eligible for Australian working holiday visas. These include the UK and Ireland, the US, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Sweden, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan.

Applications for the roles need to register their interest on Facebook or on the #Bestjobs website. Applicants will be notified as to the next stage in the recruitment process within 48 hours of registering.

Andrew McEvoy, Tourism Australia, managing director said the promotion would provide a great platform to entice more young people from around the world to come to Australia to holiday, but also to work.

He said: "We've taken one of the most successful tourism campaigns in recent times – ‘Best Job In The World’ – and made it bigger and better by coming up with a competition which represents our breath-taking landscapes, our unique wildlife, great food and wine and, of course, our huge sense of fun."

Tourism Australia has secured a number of key partners to support the campaign, including Virgin Australia, STA Travel, Citibank, DELL, IKEA, Sony Music and Monster.com, who have created an online "jobs board", advertising temporary jobs within the Australian tourism industry, aimed at travellers visiting the country on a Working Holiday Maker visa.