{"id":6333,"date":"2018-09-25T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-09-24T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/?p=6333"},"modified":"2020-04-02T05:35:57","modified_gmt":"2020-04-01T19:35:57","slug":"best-next-big-thing-nominations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/trending\/laughs\/best-next-big-thing-nominations\/","title":{"rendered":"BIG IDEAS: 16 of the best Next Big Thing nominations"},"content":{"rendered":"

Have you heard the Big News? To celebrate our 18th birthday, Wotif is building Australia\u2019s Next Big Thing and you get to help decide what and where it should be. We started by calling for nominations from all over the country, and we were inundated with thousands of clever, quirky, original, and meaningful ideas. It was tough work for our judging panel to narrow them down to a short list \u2013 but they got there and now\u00a0you can vote for your favourite Big Thing<\/a> (and go in the running to WIN $2000 towards your next Wotif holiday).<\/p>\n

As much as we love our finalists, we couldn\u2019t forget all the fantastic ideas that didn\u2019t quite make the cut. Here are some of the other nominations our judges loved.<\/p>\n

1. The Big Bin Chicken in Sydney, NSW<\/strong><\/h3>\n

You guys really love your white ibises (aka bin chickens, aka trash turkeys, aka dump ducks… ) and we don\u2019t blame you. Because as Joel C said…<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ibis has become the Aussie battler of Sydney City. Forced out of its natural habitat by human intervention and global warming, it\u2019s learned to adapt to its new habitat on the streets of our cities. It\u2019s a survivor and represents what we all love about our country.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

2. The Big Dolphin in Lakes Entrance, VIC<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Ibises aren\u2019t the only animal with a fan club. The Big Dolphin \u2013 specifically, the Big Burrunan Dolphin \u2013 was another standout idea. Sandra E made a compelling argument:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Gippsland Lakes, around Lakes Entrance, are home to a special breed of bottlenose dolphin, the Burrunan Dolphin. Burrunan is an Aboriginal word meaning a \u2018large sea fish of the porpoise kind\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

3. The Big Cassowary in Kuranda, QLD<\/strong><\/h3>\n

We had a lot of cassowary fans too, with location suggestions for all over Queensland. We liked Angela F\u2019s reasoning the best:<\/p>\n

\u201cCassowaries are an endangered species, primarily due to loss of habitat, attacks by domestic dogs let wild or not controlled by their owners, and motor vehicle strikes. Kuranda is a wonderful area of rainforest which has undergone a lot of habitat restoration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although Jacqueline\u2019s reason had a certain, simple charm:<\/p>\n

\u201cTo please our dino-bird overlords.\u201d<\/p>\n

4. The Big Leafy Sea Dragon in Rapid Bay, SA<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The best Big Things have a special connection to their home, and that\u2019s why we loved this suggestion. As Shavojn R said…<\/p>\n

\u201cThe leafy sea dragons or ‘leafies’ are South Australia’s state marine emblem. They are interesting and the ‘Big Leafy’ could be quite intricate in design. Rapid Bay is where they can be regularly seen by divers or\u00a0snorkellers.\u201d<\/p>\n

5. The Big Dragon in Warwick, QLD<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Another clever idea \u2013 and we had to give Jeff D a shout-out for his local history knowledge:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt looks like the streets of Warwick were named for a 1765 book of ancient ballads by Bishop Thomas Percy. \u2018Sir Guy of Warwick\u2019, \u2018Palmerin of England (Albion)\u2019, and \u2018The Dragon of Wantley\u2019 all involved dragons. I believe Warwick has the only Dragon Street in Australia.\u201d<\/p>\n

6. The Big Loo in Dunedoo, NSW<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Hey, it\u2019s not all about history and classic literature. Our judges couldn\u2019t help but smile at the idea of a Big Loo\/Giant Dunny in Dunedoo. Because as Alison B said…<\/p>\n

\u201cWho hasn\u2019t giggled when saying Dunedoo out loud?\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

7. The Big Strawberry in Wamuran, QLD<\/strong><\/h3>\n

We loved Wamuran\u2019s passion for the Big Strawberry! Adrian R said:<\/p>\n

\u201cWamuran produces 70% of Queensland\u2019s strawberries, and with 6000+ international travellers for picking season and another 2000 for planting season, we have thousands of visitors. This would become an amazing tourist attraction to help grow this fantastic region.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Wotif top tip: If you haven’t heard, Australian strawberry farmers are having a rough time at the moment. Aussie strawbs are still one of the most delicious (and healthy!) foods in the world, so remember – cut ’em up, don’t cut ’em out.<\/em><\/p>\n

8. The Big Witch in Toowoomba, QLD<\/strong><\/h3>\n

We never would have thought of this one! Jeff D gave us a (very cool) history lesson with this nomination:<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are many old haunted homes and graves. Also, James St was named after King James VI of Scotland, who wrote the book Demonology<\/em> about how to recognise witches, which was used by William Shakespeare in his description of the witches in Macbeth<\/em>.<\/p>\n

9. The Big Violet in Toowoomba, QLD<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Lucky Toowoomba had more than one Big Thing suggested for it. The Big Violet was another great idea. As Jenelle R told us:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s our city emblem. During and after the First World War, mothers in Toowoomba sold bunches of violets to raise money to build a war memorial to our citizens who paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. This memorial stands proudly in our city, the venue for Anzac Day services and other memorial services. We are the Garden City as well, so a bunch of violets could be very appropriate as the Next Big Thing. It is also the anniversary of the end of WW1.\u201d<\/p>\n

10. The Big Revolving Door in Canberra, ACT<\/strong><\/h3>\n

This one made our judges laugh. Because as Dennis S said…<\/p>\n

\u201cThey need it.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

11. The Big Duck Orchid in Perth, WA<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A very clever idea! Kit P\u2019s scientific reason impressed our judges:<\/p>\n

\u201cDuck orchids are native to Australia and are incredible in that they use sexually deceptive mimicry, duping male wasps to mate with them to pollinate them.\u201d<\/p>\n

12. The Big Thylacine (Tasmanian Tiger) in Tassie<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Another animal with a fan club. We saw nominations for Big Thylacines in multiple Tassie destinations. Emily hit the nail on the head with her reason, saying:<\/p>\n

\u201cThis gorgeous extinct creature deserves its own landmark. We were the ones who drove it to extinction and we should be the ones to memorialise it.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

13. The Big Tractor in Freeling, SA<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The little town of Freeling made a BIG impression on our judges with their suggestion of a Big Tractor. Glenys R told us…<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would draw people to the area of McLeod\u2019s Daughters<\/em> and our country town. Would be great to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

14. The Big Gold Nugget in West Wyalong, NSW<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Bland Shire was keen to prove they\u2019re anything but. They thought a Big Gold Nugget would give them a bit of extra sparkle, with Jeff S saying…<\/p>\n

\u201cGold was discovered in the Bland Shire at West Wyalong in 1893 and was mined until 1920. In 2004, a new gold mine was established in the Bland Shire and has produced the gold for Melbourne in 2016 and\u00a02017.\u201d<\/p>\n

15. The Big Esky in Darwin, NT<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A seriously imaginative idea! Our judges were wow-ed by Gino L\u2019s creative vision:<\/p>\n

\u201cA giant esky that is actually a pub on the Esplanade. To be called Esky on the Espy \u2013 it sells itself. Any Aussie will put the Esky on the Espy on their next Aussie adventure.\u201d<\/p>\n

16. The Big Vegemite in Sydney (or anywhere)<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Who could resist a Big Jar of Australia\u2019s favourite spread? Even Vegemite themselves wanted to make it\u00a0happen.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Want to find out which lucky towns made the final four? Check out the finalists and vote for who you want to win the Next Big Thing<\/a>. You WIN $2000 towards your next Wotif holiday just for voting!*<\/p>\n<\/i> VOTE FOR THE NEXT BIG THING <\/a>\n

*AU residents 18+ only. Ends 11.59am AEDT 9\/10\/18. Limit one entry\/vote per person per valid email address. Full terms and how to enter via link<\/a>. Permit NSW LTPS\/18\/27577.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Have you heard the Big News? To celebrate our 18th birthday, Wotif is building Australia\u2019s Next Big Thing and you get to help decide what and where it should be. We started by calling for nominations from all over the country, and we were inundated with thousands of clever, quirky, original, and meaningful ideas. It …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":6335,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[756,765],"tags":[217,245,247,246],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6333"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6333"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6333\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6443,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6333\/revisions\/6443"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6335"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wotif.com\/vc\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}