Talking Tourism

$5 million marketing deal signed with Singapore Airlines

Tourism Minister Paul Papalia was in Singapore last week to sign a three-year global cooperative marketing agreement between the State Government, through Tourism WA, and Singapore Airlines to promote WA as a desirable holiday destination to people across the globe. The $5 million three-year agreement will include multiple sales and marketing campaigns in 10 key international markets, including the UK, Germany/Switzerland, India, China, the US, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Japan, Indonesia and Singapore. The campaigns will include promotional airfares and travel packages to WA and will be promoted through a range of digital, print and TV advertising. Singapore Airlines, which has worked in partnership with Tourism WA for the past 20 years, will promote affordable fares to Western Australia in those key international markets. For more information, head to our corporate website.

Culinary stars align for Western Australia Gourmet Escape

British chef, restauranteur and TV personality Marco Pierre White will be among more than 50 food and wine personalities to appear at the inaugural Western Australian Gourmet Escape presented by Wesptpac, in November. Pierre White will join other stars of the international food scene, including David Chang founder of the Momofuku restaurant group and Kobus van der Merwe, chef of Restaurant of the Year; Wolfgat. This year’s festival will run over 10 days at three WA destinations; the Swan Valley, Perth and Margaret River. A host of Australian culinary talent will also feature at the festival, which opens in the Swan Valley and Perth from November 8 to 14 and continues in Margaret River from November 15 to 17. The program will include a return of the Westpac Gourmet Beach BBQ and Gourmet Village at Leeuwin Estate, and new activities such as the World Gourmet Symposium. Western Australia Gourmet Escape presented by Westpac is proudly supported by the State Government through Tourism WA’s Regional Events Program. Read more on our corporate website.

Contestants plate up WA offerings to east coast market

Some of the State's best local produce and attractions are being shown across Australia in prime time this week, with the broadcast of WA Week on MasterChef Australia from July 7 until tonight (July 11). Contestants continued to put their culinary skills to the test in challenges at a range of stunning locations around WA, including Optus Stadium, Perth city, the Swan Valley, the Margaret River region and Rottnest Island. Episodes will showcase Perth's transformation, the State's natural beauty and potential road trip routes to explore. To encourage viewers to travel to the WA locations included in MasterChef Australia, the State Government, through Tourism Western Australia, will launch a campaign partnering with Jetstar to promote affordable airfares, and Helloworld Travel to promote holiday packages to east coast visitors. MasterChef judge and WA enthusiast George Calombaris is adding his star power to the campaign, which highlights the Swan Valley, Perth and Margaret River and will run until the end of September. To find out more about how businesses can get involved with the campaign, visit our corporate website.

All aboard international WA tourism campaign

A new marketing campaign that will see the interior of train carriages covered in iconic WA images, is set to captivate the commuter audience in Singapore and encourage them to book a Western Australian holiday. Tourism Minister, Paul Papalia, launched the campaign last week in Singapore and travelled to Serangoon Station on the WA-themed train, speaking to commuters about what WA offered as a holiday destination. The campaign is part of an agreement between the State Government, through Tourism WA, and leading Singapore travel agency, Dynasty Travel, to sell competitively priced itineraries from Singapore to Perth, the Coral Coast and the South West, booked through Dynasty Travel. Large-scale high-impact images of distinctly Western Australian locations are part of the campaign that will dominate four train carriages on Singapore’s busy North East Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) train line, as well as Serangoon MRT station. As part of the agreement, Dynasty Travel will also promote Perth and WA as a highlight destination at their annual Thanksgiving travel fair in July. For more information, head to our corporate website.

Guide to plan a great holiday in WA officially launched

Selfies with quokkas on picturesque Rottnest Island, sampling fresh produce at the bustling Fremantle Markets or visiting the iconic Busselton Jetty are just some of the highlights of a trip to WA showcased in a new Tourism WA Muslim Guide to Western Australia. Officially launched by Tourism Minister Paul Papalia in Malaysia, the guide promotes WA as a Muslim-friendly travel destination, providing information about halal food and mosque locations as well as an overview of the many attractions WA has to offer. The guide will be distributed to agencies across Malaysia that promote Western Australia. It was produced with popular Malaysian actor and social influencer Elfira Loy, who has more than four million social media followers and shared her experience of visiting WA at the launch event. For more information visit our corporate website.

AirAsia X deal to bring more overseas holidaymakers to WA

The State Government, through Tourism WA, has teamed up with AirAsia X to promote holidays in WA to people in Malaysia as well as India, China and Japan. Tourism Minister Paul Papalia announced the cooperative agreement in Malaysia last week at Air Asia headquarters. The deal, worth $1 million, has the potential to bring thousands of holidaymakers to the State. AirAsia X is a leading long-haul, low-cost airline operating primarily in the Asia-Pacific region serving 31 destinations across Asia, Australia, Middle East and the United States of America from two hubs: Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok. The agreement with AirAsia X will see joint marketing campaigns developed to promote flights to Western Australia including flight deals, print, television, radio, cinema and online advertising. It will not only promote Western Australia in Malaysia but also in AirAsia’s connecting markets such as India, China and Japan.  For more information, head to our corporate website.

CinefestOZ reveals $100,000 Film Prize finalists

CinefestOZ has revealed the five Australian films that will be in the running for the 2019 $100,000 Film Prize. GO!, H is for Happiness, Hearts and Bones, Judy and Punch and Measure for Measure have all been selected to compete for Australia’s biggest film prize, which recognises the best Australian feature film or feature-length documentary. The CinefestOZ Film Prize is awarded on Gala Night by a five-member industry jury, this year chaired by award-winning actress-turned director Rachel Ward. Early Bird tickets for are available through the CinefestOZ website. The full film and event program and ticket sales goes live on July 26. CinefestOZ is supported by the State Government through Tourism WA’s Regional Events Program.

Submit your Travel Club offer to Aussie Specialists

The Aussie Specialist Program is Tourism Australia’s platform for training international frontline travel sellers, plus inbound tour operators in Australia. Tourism WA has partnered with Tourism Australia to deliver a WA-specific module, increasing product knowledge about the State to get more people to travel to WA and explore its regions. Aussie Specialist agents are highly engaged sellers and this is an opportunity to submit a Travel Club offer to experience your product first-hand. For more information and to submit your offer, visit the website.

Rebirth of Perth covered in US media

Perth’s remarkable transformation and growing reputation as a holiday hotspot have been profiled in US publication Fortune to nearly 7.7 million monthly online viewers. Hanna Lott-Schwartz visited Perth for this year’s ATE event and her article highlights the city’s new hotels and public infrastructure, its burgeoning foodie scene and the Perth Hills’ wine trail offering. Read the article here.

Air NZ campaign supports direct flights

Kiwis were invited to discover a different side of Australia in a recent campaign with Air New Zealand. The campaign highlighted experiences that show a different side of Perth and WA. It included digital and social advertising to build destination awareness and consideration for travel to Perth, with a special airfare driving bookings on the daily Air New Zealand services from Auckland, and seasonal services from Christchurch.

Australia Marketplace China 2019 registrations close soon

Tourism Australia’s China flagship trade event, Australia Marketplace China 2019 will take place in Chengdu, China from November 11 to 15. The program includes pre-scheduled meetings between buyers and sellers, and networking events. The event is an opportunity for WA tourism operators to establish business relationships with key qualified travel agencies and tour operators from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Tourism WA is participating in the event and encourages WA operators  to attend. For more information, please click here. Applications close on July 16. 

Accreditation to re-brand your business in 2019

Following more than 20 successful years of recognising high-quality tourism businesses, the Australian Tourism Accreditation Program will be re-branded to better promote your business. The new Quality Tourism Framework will combine multiple tourism accreditation, business development and awards programs into a single, user-friendly online tool to develop your business and grow your market, paired with new, modern branding to promote your status as a Quality Tourism Accredited Business. To find out more, visit the website.