Marco Pierre White to appear at IGA Taste Great Southern

Internationally renowned chef, author, restauranteur and TV star Marco Pierre White will be a part of next year’s IGA Taste Great Southern, which is held in WA’s South West. As part of the event, the celebrity chef will appear at the Albany Food and Wine Festival and at a dinner at Three Anchors in Albany with Fervor, on Saturday, March 17. IGA Taste Great Southern runs for 18 days from March 8 to 25, 2018 with events in Albany, Denmark, Mount Barker, Porongorup, Frankland River, Kojonup and Katanning. It includes a line-up of more than 40 events with festivals, markets, degustation’s, dinners and lunches, wine tasting, beer, coffee and spirit sessions, food and wine pairing, masterclasses, seminars and community events.

Australian music acts confirmed for the 2018 Ord Valley Muster

Some of Australia’s biggest musical performers will head to Kununurra in WA’s North West next May for the 2018 Ord Valley Muster. Country music legend Lee Kernaghan, along with The Cat Empire, who are renowned for their live music shows, have been confirmed for the Muster’s pinnacle event – the Aviair HeliSpirit Kimberley Moon Experience on May 19. The annual festival will take over Kununurra and surrounds from May 11 to 20, 2018, offering a variety of unique experiences, including black tie dining under starry skies, Indigenous food, culture and dance, intimate dinners in secret locations, a challenging bike ride, art exhibitions, local talent quests, a country rodeo and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow. Early bird tickets are now on sale, with event-goers able to save almost 20 per cent with a new ticket package - the Muster Double which includes general admission to the Kimberley Moon Experience, and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Roadshow. Travel packages with flights from Perth start from $1,210 per person including accommodation, transfers, event tickets and tour options. Self-drive packages from Broome start from $524 per person including accommodation, transfers and event tickets

Simon Baker’s adaptation of Tim Winton’s Breath – trailer released

A trailer for the film adaptation of Breath, based on the novel of the same name by West Australian author Tim Winton, has been released. The feature film is the directorial debut from Hollywood actor Simon Baker (The Mentalist, The Devil Wears Prada), who also stars in the film. Shot in WA’s South West around the coastal town of Denmark, the story follows two teenage boys who form an unlikely friendship with a mysterious older surfer and adventurer (played by Baker). Simon Baker said: “Breath is a story that resonates with me, not only as a surfer and a parent but ultimately as a child reared on the magnificent Australian coastline. I’m excited to show the trailer to audiences here and to bring Tim Winton’s classic story to the big screen.” It will be released in Australian cinemas in May 2018. 

New look for Tourism WA’s mobile app

Visitors to WA will have more information about our extraordinary State at their fingertips thanks to a major update of Tourism WA’s Experience WA app. First launched in 2011, the app now uses technology that can anticipate what a user may be interested in doing or seeing based on information they provide when they download the app. Or, visitors can save things that interest them and the app will “learn” their interests to personalise suggestions for them in the future.  It is designed to encourage visitors to see more, do more and spend more while they are travelling in WA.

Vasse Felix wins major international award

Margaret River winery Vasse Felix has been named New World Winery of the Year by leading American publication Wine Enthusiast. It’s the first time a WA winery has taken the honour in the annual Wine Star Awards, and only the fourth time in the awards’ 18 year history the gong has gone to an Australian winery. The win coincides with the 50th anniversary of commercial wine growing in the Margaret River region, with the first commercial vineyard planted at Vasse Felix by Perth cardiologist Dr. Tom Cullity.

Two Feet & a Heartbeat launch Kings Park walking tours

Perth tour operator Two Feet & A Heartbeat have launched a new Wildflower, Nature and Wildlife tour. The tour visits three of the best wildflower locations in the centre of Perth, including one of the world’s largest inner-city parks, Kings Park, quaint Queens Gardens and the secluded Heirisson Island. Tours run on Friday, Sunday and Monday, from November to April, 9am – 12.30pm. Keep an eye out on a $25 special on offer across the school holidays.

New crayfishing experience launches in Mandurah

Mandurah Cruises is offering a unique experience for those who enjoy eating WA’s seafood delicacies. The new Wild Seafood Experience tour allows international and domestic customers to catch their own crayfish in the pristine waters off Mandurah’s coastline, located a one hour drive south of Perth. With an abundant crayfish population, groups will be able to experience pulling up the pots and eating their fresh catch of crayfish, which is then cooked on board in front of them. The tours will run year-round on board a newly refurbished luxury vessel.

2018 - what's to come in Western Australia

This year has been a big one for Western Australia, and it’s only going to get bigger in 2018, with a number of exciting new projects and experiences coming to life. Everyone is starting to talk about WA, and with Perth, the State’s capital city undergoing such a significant period of change – that’s not about to stop anytime soon. We’ve put together a rundown of what will be trending in WA for 2018.

New public precincts
Yagan Square will to open to the public in early 2018, and is set to become one of the city’s most popular community, meeting and celebration places. It will be a hub of activity during the day and night with cafes, restaurants, green spaces, native gardens, public art, interactive digital media, pop-ups and shopping providing plenty to see and do.

Situated 15-minutes from the CBD, Scarborough’s ongoing revitalisation project aims to create one of Australia’s best beachfront destinations, while creating a vibrant hub of activity with new restaurants, cafes, shops and entertainment. Forming the centrepiece of the redevelopment is the Scarborough Pool Facility, due to open on 22 January 2018. The 8-lane, 50-metre beach-side pool will be a popular spot for locals and tourists this summer.

Perth’s east end, spanning from Barrack Street in the west to Hill Street in the east, will start to transform throughout 2018 thanks to not-for-profit group, Historic Heart of Perth. The project aims to reinvigorate and revitalise the area, with a vision to create an identifiable neighbourhood with a strong sense of place. A number of art-led initiatives are currently in the works, with the first being the installation of 65 planter boxes featuring native wildflowers. This project is ahead of the opening of The Westin – a five star, 368-room hotel which will be situated in the area, and is set to open in April 2018.

Another exciting development is Fremantle’s Kings Square Renewal. The $270 million project is one of the biggest in Fremantle’s history, and will see the area transformed into a vibrant cultural, community and commercial hub. The redevelopment, which is expected to be finished by late 2019, will include specialty retail and dining precincts, new commercial spaces including office accommodation, a revamped city square with landscaped grassed areas, public art and new street furniture, plus a new civic chamber and state-of-the-art library and visitor centre experiences. 

A new world-class venue – Perth’s Optus Stadium
Perth is fast becoming a sport-lover’s dream destination following the construction of the 60,000 seat Optus Stadium, which will officially open in January 2018. The stadium will be one of the major sporting and entertainment venues for Perth and one of the top international sporting venues in Australia.

The stadium will officially open to the public on January 21 with a Community Open Day, followed by the One Day International cricket match between Australia and England. Tickets for the match sold out in days, which will make it the most attended sporting event in WA’s history.

It’ll also be home to Australian Rules Football in WA, with the first AFL game to be between the Fremantle Dockers and Collingwood women’s teams on February 10, followed by the main season with the first game at the stadium on March 25.

In March, the opening round of the 2018 National Rugby League Telstra Premiership season will kick off at the stadium on Saturday March 10 with a double header as the Canterbury-Brankstown Bulldogs take on the Melbourne Storm, and the South Sydney Rabbitohs clash with the New Zealand Warriors.

And in a coup for soccer fans, Premier League powerhouse Chelsea Football Club will head to Perth in July or August for an international match against Perth Glory Football Club. The match will be the first international soccer club appearance at Optus Stadium, and an Australian exclusive.

Live music performances will also be part of the stadium’s offering with major international artists Ed Sheeran performing on March 2 and 3, and Taylor Swift on October 19.

Accommodation openings
Perth now offers some of the best value hotel and short-stay accommodation in Australia following the raft of new and refurbished properties that have opened in the CBD and surrounding urban and coastal areas.

It’s about quality and quantity with a broad selection of boutique, big name and luxury accommodation options set to open in Perth. This includes The Westin – a five star, 368-room hotel in Perth’s east end, set to open in April 2018. The historic Melbourne Hotel in Perth’s CBD will reopen in early-2018 following a major refurbishment, with the heritage-listed property transformed into a seven-storey, 4.5 star hotel with 73 new or refurbished rooms, and new dining experiences.

Other hotels earmarked to open in Perth in 2018 include the QT on Barrack Street in Perth CBD, and DoubleTree by Hilton in Northbridge.

The RitzCarlton will make its first foray into Australia in 10 years, with the opening of a 204-room hotel at Elizabeth Quay in 2019.

Meanwhile, on Perth’s Rottnest Island, Pinky’s Eco Retreat will open in time for summer 2018/19, which is set to offer 86 glamping tents, as well as a bar, café, restaurant and function area. Hotel Rottnest is also set for a major refurbishment.

Since 2012, 24 new or redeveloped hotels have opened in and around Perth, adding more than 2,200 new rooms to the local market. In the next four years, a further 15 new or redeveloped hotels will come online, adding more than 2,300 new rooms.

Humpback whale swims at Ningaloo Reef
Humpback whale interaction tours have been given the green light to continue for the 2018 season. The tours will return to Exmouth and Coral Bay from August to November 2018, following the successful inaugural season in 2016. The tours offer a once in a lifetime opportunity to interact with the whales as they swim by or rest in the temperate Ningaloo waters, and complement the region’s other nature-based offerings such as whale shark swims, and manta ray interactions.

Direct aviation access
History will be made when Qantas’ daily direct Perth to London flights take off in March 2018, becoming the first regular passenger service directly linking Australia and Europe. Many visitors from Europe are expected to kick-start their Australian experience with a stay in Perth, while people from other Australian states will fly domestically to Perth and stay before connecting to the non-stop London service, the world’s third-longest passenger flight.

Qantas will mobilise its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner fleet for the 14,500 kilometre each-way journey. Enhanced cabin design, improved air quality, and technology to reduce noise and turbulence are all designed to make the long-haul journey more comfortable for up to 236 passengers across business, premium economy and economy.

In other aviation news, international air services linking Broome in the Kimberley to Singapore, will be tried from June 2018. SilkAir, the regional arm of Singapore Airlines, will operate four return flights to the exotic pearling town using Boeing 737 aircraft, which can carry 150 economy and 12 business class passengers.

WA on the big screen
WA will again have its chance to shine on the big screen in 2018, with the release of Breath, which was shot in the State’s South West around the picturesque town of Denmark. Based on the award-winning novel by celebrated WA author Tim Winton, Breath is the directorial feature film debut from Hollywood actor Simon Baker (The Mentalist, The Devil Wears Prada), who also stars in the film. Simon Baker said: “Breath is a story that resonates with me, not only as a surfer and a parent but ultimately as a child reared on the magnificent Australian coastline. I’m excited to show the trailer to audiences here and to bring Tim Winton’s classic story to the big screen.” Breath is produced by Emmy-winning United States producer Mark Johnson (Breaking Bad, The Notebook, Rain Man), and Australian producer Jamie Hilton of See Pictures (The Little Death, The Waiting City, Backtrack). Breath releases in Australian cinemas in May, 2018. The release of Breath follows a raft of films and documentaries shot in WA including Ben Elton’s Three Summers which was filmed around the Peel region south of Perth, Jasper Jones with Toni Collette and Hugo Weaving (Pemberton in WA’s South), Red Dog and Red Dog: True Blue (the Pilbara region in WA’s North), Bran Nue Dae (Broome in WA’s North), surfing film Drift starring Sam Worthington (Margaret River), Son of a Gun with Ewan McGregor (Perth, Fremantle, Kalgoorlie), and Baz Luhrmann’s Australia with Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman (the Kimberley in WA’s North).