Jetstar is urging Tasmanian tourism and hospitality businesses to gear up for a busy finish to the summer, with a record 170,000 passengers booked to travel to and from Hobart during February and March.

To help meet the soaring demand for travel to Tasmania throughout the year, Jetstar added extra services to deliver an additional 85,000 seats to and from Hobart last year.

The low fares airline will offer up to 63 return services in and out of Hobart from Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane each week during February and March, equating to 24,360 seats.

Jetstar Australia and New Zealand CEO David Hall said summer holidays to Tasmania are taking off and the airline is committed to meeting the needs of leisure-seekers by offering a range of travel options between Hobart and mainland capital cities.

“This summer we’re flying more people from the mainland to Hobart than ever before as tourists rush to visit Tasmania’s world-renowned wineries, indulge in the art scene and discover the local hidden secrets of the island state,” Mr Hall said.

“It is a great result for local tourism and a clear sign that the marketing partnership we launched with Tourism Tasmania last year is helping boost visitation to the region.”

In August, Jetstar and the Tasmanian Government announced a commitment to invest up to $600,000 in co-operative marketing funds over 12 months to attract more visitors to Hobart and Launceston.

The co-operative campaigns with Tourism Tasmania included destination marketing for Hobart, Launceston and beyond across TV, press, digital and radio platforms.

“On top of our destination marketing investment, we also added more than 85,000 seats to the Hobart market last year,” Mr Hall said.

“This surge in bookings to Hobart builds upon strong passenger growth across the Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane routes we’ve seen in recent years. It’s great to see our low fares entice more visitors than ever to Tasmania.”

Hobart Airport CEO Rod Parry welcomed the increase in travellers to the city.

“Jetstar is an important partner for Hobart Airport and continues to support Hobart as a destination,” Mr Parry said.

“Over the past two summers Jetstar has provided significant capacity increases which has contributed to the recent growth in tourism, as well as providing more options for Tasmanians to travel interstate.”

Jetstar is the largest carrier operating in and out of Hobart with all flights serviced by Airbus A320s and A321s.