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Welcome to this week’s edition of Talking Tourism newsletter.
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New $150 million package to support WA tourism
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Some of WA’s tourism icons will benefit from a $150 million tourism package as part of the WA Recovery Plan. Perth Zoo will get a new $10 million café and function centre, Kings Park will get more than $1 million of improvements while the Bibbulmun Track and Munda Biddi Trail will receive a $1.19 million upgrade, including renewing camp sites, bridges and sections of the track. There was a $3.84 million investment into the Camping with Custodians program to help communities on the Dampier Peninsula build a new camp site and upgrade another two. A $10 million access road will open up the Pilbara’s Murujunga National Park and support the development of the Living Knowledge Centre in a boost for Aboriginal cultural tourism experiences and Tourism WA’s Tourism Attractions Case Management framework received $1 million. Read more on the Tourism WA corporate website and find out more about the projects here.
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Geraldton to host WA Regional Tourism Conference
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Geraldton will host the 2021 Perth Airport WA Regional Tourism Conference. The event, to be held from May 3 to 5, 2021, is supported by Tourism WA and the City of Greater Geraldton. It is presented by Tourism Council WA, Visitor Centre WA, Caravan Industry Association WA, WA Indigenous Tourism Operators Council and the Forum for Advocating Cultural and Eco-Tourism Inc (FACET). Geraldton was awarded the event in recognition of its commitment to recovering as a regional tourism destination and growing its appeal to international, interstate and local WA visitors. Held across three days, the conference gives delegates professional and business development opportunities, networking, and the chance to hear from industry-leading speakers. For more information, visit Tourism Council WA’s website.
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Two new tourism jetties for Geraldton
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Two new jetties are expected to boost tourism along the Batavia Coast. Around $3 million will be spent on construction, with a jetty for vessels up to 25 metres to be built at the Batavia Coast Marina, while the other will be located at Geraldton Port’s eastern breakwater to accommodate larger vessels. Both jetties will be designed to make it easy for passengers to board and disembark vessels, with the new infrastructure expected to generate an additional $1.9 million in annual visitor expenditure by 2031. The jetties will support local marine-based tourism opportunities such as fishing and diving charters, glass bottom boat tours, whale watching, aquaculture farm and maritime history tours, including visits to the pristine Houtman Abrolhos Islands National Park. Construction of the jetties will begin next year. For more information, read the WA Government media statement.
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Brits invited to keep dreaming about WA
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The vibrant pink waters of Hutt Lagoon, the awe-inspiring Horizontal Waterfalls and the otherworldly Pinnacles are being promoted to high value UK travellers in the Daily Telegraph. In partnership with Tourism WA and Tourism Australia, editorial and advertorial content is appearing in print and online to showcase the adventures that await in Western Australia, when international travel is able to restart in the future. The latest phase includes features on extraordinary road trips, nature and wildlife experiences, and promoting Perth as Australia’s western gateway to encourage those most pre-disposed to plan and book travel to dream of Western Australia. The hub can be viewed here.
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Free PIVOT program for WA small businesses
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The Small Business Development Corporation (SBDC) has launched a skills development and mentoring program to support WA small business owners. The PIVOT program, valued at $4,500 per participant, is funded by the WA Government as part of the WA Recovery Plan. It’s free for eligible small business owners who have a small business as defined in the Small Business Development Corporation Act 1983, including sole traders; a valid and active Australian Business Number (ABN); and who are committed to undertaking the requirements of the program over a six-month period commencing August 31, 2020. More information about the program is available here. Applications close at 4pm on August 17, 2020.
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Our Story ‘Deep Dive’ sessions in Albany and Denmark
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More than 40 people from the local tourism industry attended Tourism WA’s Deep Dive workshops in the Amazing South Coast region yesterday. The workshops provided an opportunity for local tour operators and accommodation providers to sharehow their destination offers visitors the Spirit of Adventure. Albany and Denmark were the latest destinations to host the workshop, following successful sessions in Geraldton, Pemberton and Bunbury. The Our Story: The Spirit of Adventure project will help WA develop a strong tourism brand that inspires more travellers to visit. The workshops followed a successful July school holiday season for the Amazing South Coast region. Tourism WA will host more regional Our Story workshops later in the year. For more information on holding a workshop in your area, please email us.
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Online Aussie Specialist training platform available
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Tourism Australia is offering a local version of its Aussie Specialist Program. Australian travel agents are being provided access to a free online training platform to help them sell domestic tourism experiences. The initiative is a local version of Tourism Australia's international Aussie Specialist Program and has been designed to equip agents with relevant, up-to-date information and showcase new regions, destinations and experiences within Australia. It offers training modules, itinerary suggestions, fact sheets, industry news and monthly email updates. Click here to register.
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Beware of tourism listing scam
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Members of the Australian Tourism Data Warehouse (ATDW) have recently been hit with various ‘directory listing’ requests from an organisation appearing to be affiliated with Tourism WA. These requests usually come in the form of an email inviting you to check, verify, renew or claim your listing. The scam company creates the impression that the tourism businesses already have a listing with it. Tourism WA does not charge operators to list on its website. For more information, head to the ScamWatch website.
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Business Events Boost Program for domestic recovery
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Applications for the Business Events Boost Program, a domestic partnership initiative to support industry-led business events marketing and distribution projects, are open. The new program aims to support the Australian business events industry in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. For full details of the program download the Business Events Boost Program 2020/21 Prospectus. Applications close September 30, 2020.
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