The loved-up couple who won an all-expenses-paid wedding in the Top End have managed to sneak in a fleeting family visit to Katherine this week.
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Lauren Marsh and Steve Wadey arrived to much warmer temperatures than their home of Melbourne for a quick look at the location of what will be their highly publicised Territory wedding on May 6.
The wedding is part of a NT Government and Nine Network competition riding on the back of the new feature film Top End Wedding.
Katherine is home to Mr Wadey's mother, Kerry, a teacher at Clyde Fenton Primary School, and his brother, Pat, and sister-in-law, Trish, who both work for Nitmiluk Tours.
To mark the occasion, students at Clyde Fenton Primary School arranged a special school "muster" singing Tom Curtain's Never, Never Land before the couple went into classrooms to help students with their school work.
The couple visited Nitmiluk National Park to see Pat and Trish, and their sons Silas, 7, and Theodore, 3, before a meander down the gorge on the popular boat tour, followed by a picnic lunch and swim at a nearby waterfall.
According to Tourism NT deputy chief executive Andrew Hopper, the film Top End Wedding has delivered a local economic contribution of $1.526 million.
"Tourism NT's partnership with Channel Nine for the Win a Top End Wedding competition is making the most of the film's success to promote the Territory as a destination of choice not only when it comes to weddings, but for general holiday visitors too," Mr Hopper said.
"Lauren and Steve were selected from more than 13,000 entrants vying to win a Top End wedding, and many of those entrants will be following their journey on Today.
"Through these regular competition updates they, and thousands of other viewers, are being exposed to stunning locations such as Nitmiluk, as well as the diverse tourism offerings and quality experiences provided by Territory businesses."
The financially burdened NT Government has been spending big dollars on promoting the Territory as a premier holiday destination.
With aims to stimulate the economy, the government has put millions of dollars towards "turbocharging tourism".
"[As] the Territory heads into a tough economic time, now more than ever, we need to be investing in industries that drive growth and bring more money into the economy," minister for Tourism and Culture Lauren Moss says in the Turbocharging Tourism Action Plan.
"For every dollar we invest in tourism marketing, $37.60 is returned back into the economy.
"We have a number of important projects underway that will bring more visitors here from overseas and interstate, including our $100 million Arts Trail initiative, $100 million Darwin CBD revitalisation and our $90 million investment in Alice Springs."