RE//Perth warms up winter in Northbridge
Perth’s new winter arts and cultural festival RE//Perth kicked off in Northbridge this week, activating multiple spaces in a celebration of creativity and urban exploration. Timed to coincide with the winter school holidays, the main RE//Perth program will run until Sunday, 14 July, with hero production 'The Mirror' running until Saturday, 27 July. Its varied program also includes kids’ activities, bespoke dining experiences, live entertainment and performances, and sustainable fashion activations. This new homegrown festival is being delivered by ARTRAGE and supported by Tourism WA. Read more here. 

Image credit: City of Perth

Final days to apply for The Dream Collective
Applications close next Friday for Tourism WA and Tourism Council WA’s recognition program, The Dream Collective Western Australia. This exciting new program has been developed to promote and showcase the best of Western Australia’s tourism offerings, recognising the state's leading tourism operators who consistently deliver high-quality visitor experiences. To be considered for inclusion, tourism operators must meet the eligibility criteria and participate in an annual evaluation process across a set of criteria, including customer reviews, online platforms, marketing activity, training, accreditation and awards. Applications close Friday, 12 July. Apply here.

UFC 305 tickets go on sale
Pre-sale tickets are now available for Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fans, ahead of the UFC 305 blockbuster showdown in August. Currently the only UFC Pay-Per-View event in Australia in 2024, UFC 305 will be broadcast live to more than 975 million TV households in more than 170 countries and territories in 50 different languages. Last year’s event, UFC 284, broke records including the highest grossing ticket revenue for any arena in Australia and injected a massive $16 million into the WA economy. Supported by Tourism WA, the 2024 event is expected to draw similar crowds, with general tickets to go on sale tomorrow. Read more here.

Image credit: Getty Images

Traditional Owners named godparents of ‘Seabourn Pursuit’
A special naming ceremony has been held for the Seabourn Pursuit, the latest vessel from luxury cruise and expedition travel line, Seabourn. The vessel recently undertook its maiden voyage in the Kimberley region with the Wunambal Gaambera People, custodial owners of Ngula Jar Island, formally recognised as the vessel’s godparents at a naming ceremony held over the weekend. It marked the first time in maritime history that Traditional Owners have been named as the godparents of a ship. Tourism WA is supporting the Wunambal Gaambera People to realise their aspirations of delivering cultural immersion to cruise passengers, by investing in new performance infrastructure at the island. Read about WA's cruise industry here. 

Image credit: Seabourn Cruise Line

Street artist RONE captivates WA
This week, Perth welcomed an immersive art exhibition by acclaimed street artist, RONE, to The Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA). On display until Monday, 30 September, RONE has brought the full installation of TIME • RONE to WA, creating brand-new spaces specifically for the Western Australian exhibition and two new mural works exclusive to Perth. Supported by Tourism WA, the sensory art exhibition, offers a beautiful and emotive snapshot into mid-century Australia. This exhibition is also a global exclusive for Perth and will be RONE’s only showcase in 2024, expected to attract over 100,000 patrons to AGWA. Read more here.

Image credit: © RONE 2024, supplied from AGWA

UK luxury agents get a taste for WA
Tourism WA recently trained 16 luxury buyers on its barefoot luxury product and exclusive experiences at Tourism Australia’s B2B Luxury Getaway event in the UK. The event consisted of two days of one-to-one meetings during which buyers learned about product that their high-net-worth clientele could book and why Western Australia should be on bucket lists. There were also networking activities to foster lasting business relationships, including a tasting of Australian wine by a Master of Wine which included product from the Margaret River Region. Find out more about the UK Market here. 

New workshop for trail tourism operators
Tourism businesses are invited to a free workshop on Tuesday, 13 August to learn how to develop new products and experiences that leverage Western Australia’s world-class trail infrastructure. The workshop will have a focus on Esperance and surrounds, ahead of Esperance’s inaugural GROUNDED – Hiking Festival launching on Friday, 20 September. The Tourism WA-hosted workshop will cover new products targeted at interstate and international destination trail users, and opportunities to deliver 'hero' experiences. Hosted at Esperance Chalet Village, it is designed for existing and aspiring tourism operators looking to leverage WA's exceptional national parks and trail networks. Register here.

Latest research reveals value of WA Visitor Centres
New research has revealed visitor centres in Western Australia directly generate an estimated $261 million and indirectly up to $740 million in visitor spend per annum. In 2023-24, Tourism WA commissioned Painted Dog Research to analyse the value of visitor centres across the state through surveying more than 2,300 visitors, in close consultation with Tourism Council WA. The findings have been summarised into an informative infographic, alongside insights from Tourism Council WA's economic analysis, tourism businesses survey, and Visitor Centre managers' survey. Access the valuable insights tool here.

Tourism WA’s cruise ready workshop registrations close soon
Registrations are still open for Tourism WA’s ‘Cruise Ready Workshop’ being hosted on Wednesday, 17 July. Hosted in Perth as part of the WA Cruise Exchange, the workshop will provide insights into how to successfully service the cruise market, share valuable information on the state of the industry during the return of cruise, discuss protocols and logistics, identify the future opportunities in a growing sector and discuss how to work with destinations to deliver world-class experiences. Guest speakers include Jill Abel, CEO of Australian Cruise Association, and specialist ground handlers. In person attendance is encouraged or online streaming is available for regional WA attendees. Join here by Thursday, 11 July.  

Kalgoorlie workshops announced
Tourism Council WA will hold a range of workshops for tourism businesses in Kalgoorlie on Tuesday, 20 August. Discover methods to increase conversion and revenue by targeting the right demographic for your sales funnel with the Understanding Target Markets workshop. Businesses can also gain insights into accessible tourism and tap into a growing market of travellers with diverse needs through the Accessible Tourism workshop. Take part in the Sustainability Briefing to better understand how to apply sustainability principles in your tourism business and attend the Tourism Connect to network with local tourism operators and hear the latest advocacy Tourism Council WA has undertaken. View the full list of workshops here.