If they didn’t have the desire to visit Sydney before Today, then they do now, as millions of Americans woke up to the Harbour City with NBC’s popular morning show.
The wake-up series, NBC Today, sent its Australian-born host, Savannah Guthrie, to Sydney this week, for a special live broadcast.
Savannah and her mother arrived at Sydney Airport on Sunday – over forty years since the two left Australia to relocate in the US.
They received a warm welcome at the gateway with koala bear toys, furry mascots, welcome balloons and even a few local fans.
The host and her mother took some time to explore the city, before the special live broadcast last night.
They even took time out to chat to local celebrity, Jessica Mauboy.
Held in front of the Sydney Opera House and East Circular Quay, Destination NSW went all out promoting Savannah’s visit, and even arranged for a giant banner welcome on the iconic Sydney Harbour.
And the @TODAYshow is live from Sydney! #ilovesydney #savannahinsydney pic.twitter.com/x2G4mKCgW7
— Sydney.com (@sydney_sider) May 4, 2015
Savannah said the pair will stay in Australia to celebrate Mother’s Day.
During their visit they have been invited to experience some of the ‘very best’ Sydney has to offer including the BridgeClimb, visiting the iconic Sydney Opera House, witnessing thr lifesavers and nippers in action on the sands of Bondi Beach and shopping along the style-miles of Paddington and Surry Hills.
According to NSW Premier Mike Baird, Savannah’s visit will promote Sydney to some 5.6 million Americans who watch the show every morning, as well as four million TODAY Facebook followers.
For the year ending September 2014, around 323,000 visitors travelled to NSW from North America.
During their stay, visitors stayed 4.3 million nights, providing a $535 million boost to the local economy.
Mr Baird says this makes the US a ‘priority market’ and a key contributor to the state’s goal of doubling overnight visitor expenditure by 2020.
See part of Savannah’s Sydney segment above.