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TALKING TOURISM

Issue 799 Thursday, April 4, 2024                                              

 
 
 
 

Kaya ,

It’s been a busy week for growing access to 'WA the Dream State' from the seas and the skies.  

Richard Branson’s luxury cruise liner, Resilient Lady arrived at Fremantle Port on Tuesday this week for its maiden visit to Western Australia.  

More than 2,000 passengers and crew from the Virgin Voyages ship disembarked to experience the beautiful port city of Fremantle for the day, in what was sure to be a vibrant introduction to ‘WA the Dream State’. By season end, Fremantle Port will have welcomed nearly 30 cruise visits, bringing more than 36,000 passengers and 17,000 crew to the port city. 

Looking skyward, Western Australia is poised to achieve a full post-pandemic recovery of international visitors by 2025, thanks to record inbound aviation numbers, supported by the WA Government’s $75 million Aviation Recovery Fund. Perth Airport experienced its busiest month on record in January 2024, welcoming 1.39 million passengers. At the start of the year and for the first time since the state's borders reopened, the number of international flights surged beyond previous levels, with close to 1,000 international and nearly 1,780 interstate inbound flights across January. 

In a further boost to the aviation sector, Thai Airways has now recommenced its daily non-stop service between Bangkok and Perth. The return of this flight is set to bring an additional 256 inbound seats to Western Australia per day, which equates to more than 93,000 extra travellers a year. Alongside this, Singapore Airlines has added a fourth daily flight to Perth, adding 269 inbound seats per day, or over 98,000 per year. 

Since the pandemic, Tourism WA, in partnership with Perth Airport, has secured non-stop flights from 19 global destinations including Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Johannesburg, London, Paris, Rome and Tokyo, and we continue to work hard to bring even more direct flights to WA.  

Carolyn Turnbull
Managing Director

 
 

WHAT'S NEW

 

Virgin Voyages’ Resilient Lady cruises into Fremantle
Virgin Voyages’ luxury cruise liner, the Resilient Lady, docked in Fremantle Port on Tuesday for its maiden voyage to WA. With more than 2,000 passengers and crew onboard, it was one of the state’s biggest cruise ship calls of the season. To mark the occasion, a ceremonial plaque exchange took place and other activities to welcome passengers and crew. The Resilient Lady’s visit is one of 140 cruise ship visits to WA’s nine active port destinations this cruise season. Read more about cruise tourism in WA here. 

Header image credit: Osprey Creative 
 

WA soaring high and on track for full aviation recovery
Perth Airport clocked its busiest month on record in January with 1.39 million passengers, a 107 per cent recovery compared to 2019 figures. The upward trend continued in February when flight numbers reached 108 per cent compared to the same period in 2019 and Perth Airport reports international passenger numbers have surpassed pre-COVID levels. The state is expected to meet the national forecasted recovery for international visitors by 2025. Find out more here. 

 

Industry expertise coming to Maximum Occupancy West Coast Conference 
The inaugural Maximum Occupancy West Coast Conference is set to be held on Tuesday, 16 April in Perth, in partnership with the Australian Hotels Association Western Australia (AHA). The one-day conference will feature more than 50 national and global industry experts, with the keynote to be delivered by Deputy Premier and Minister for Tourism Rita Saffioti. Tourism WA Managing Director Carolyn Turnbull will join AHA CEO Bradley Woods and Business Events Perth CEO Gareth Martin for a panel discussion on what the future holds for WA's tourism and accommodation industry. Register here.

Jetstar’s South West sale on now
Following the commencement of Jetstar’s non-stop flights between Sydney and Busselton-Margaret River last week, a tactical sale has launched today offering discounted flights on the new route, starting from just $135* one-way. Flights between Melbourne and Busselton-Margaret River are also on sale. The campaign is live now across TV, video on demand, radio, out-of-home digital billboards, digital and social media, as well as Jetstar’s owned channels. A range of influencers and content creators are also currently visiting the destination to share content with their audiences. Find out more about the campaign here. 

 

Campaign inspires young West Australians to live and work the dream
Tourism WA has launched a paid media campaign and content partnership with Perth is OK! to inspire and educate young West Australians on how they can build their dream career in WA’s tourism and hospitality industry. Delivered as part of the Choose Tourism Grant Program, the campaign is being funded by the Australian Government through Austrade. Industry operators are encouraged to leverage the campaign by registering and listing job vacancies for free on
westernaustralia.jobs. Find out more on the Dream Careers Hub here. 

 

Stadium Station now open every day
Visitors to the Optus Stadium precinct can now benefit from greater accessibility, with trains now stopping at Stadium Station seven days a week. Daily services commenced earlier this week after previously being limited to event days, weekends, and public holidays. Just a five-minute train journey from Perth, the precinct offers access to Optus Stadium, scenic riverside walking and cycle trails, Matagarup Zip+Climb, a sensory playground, parklands, and barbeque and picnic facilities. Find out more here. 

 

BE Perth to host South West briefing
Business Events Perth (BEP), in collaboration with Australia’s South West, is hosting a ‘Business Events Breakfast Educational’ on Friday, 19 April at Southcamp Dunsborough. This briefing will provide an in-depth understanding of BEP and how the South West region can seek more corporate and business events opportunities. It will also provide a wider overview of the business events sector and more information about BEP's upcoming event, MEET IN WA – SOUTH WEST, on Thursday, 7 November 2024. Register here. 

Nominate for the WA Tourism Awards
Industry members are encouraged to nominate high-performing businesses for the 2024 Perth Airport WA Tourism Awards, which are now open. The awards recognise tourism businesses for their commitment to excellence, providing a platform to celebrate achievements and innovation, and an opportunity to raise their profile among the industry and consumers. Read more here.
 

 

Perth workshop registrations open
Registrations for Tourism Council WA’s Perth workshops on May 14 and May 15 are now open. To learn how to better cater to travellers of all abilities, take part in the
Accessible Tourism workshop, and learn how to integrate different marketing channels with Your Tourism Business Online: Google, SEO & SEM workshop. Join the Intermedia Social Media workshop to enhance your online promotion skills and improve your photography skills for your digital campaigns with the Photography for Tourism workshop.
Read more here. 

 


Looking for staff?

Register your tourism and hospitality job vacancies for free on westernaustralia.jobs 
to take advantage of the initiatives being delivered as part of Tourism WA's

Tourism Workforce Development Program. 

 

INDUSTRY EVENTS

 

April 15 – AHA Perth Airport Accommodation Awards for Excellence | Perth/Boorloo 
May 19-23 – Australian Tourism Exchange | Melbourne, VIC, Australia 
June 4-6 – Global Sustainable Tourism Summit | Brisbane, QLD, Australia
June 10-12 – WA Tourism Conference | Mandurah/Coodanup 
June 24 – AHA Hospitality Supplier Awards | Perth/Boorloo 
June 25-26 – AHA Hospitality Expo | Perth/Boorloo
August 5-7 – ATEC's Explore WA Trade Event | Perth/Boorloo
September 3-6 – 26th Australian Cruise Association Conference | Adelaide, SA, Australia
October 8-10 – World Travel & Tourism Council Global Summit | Perth/Boorloo
October 9-11 – Australian Regional Tourism Convention | Mackay, QLD, Australia
October 13-18 – G'day Australia | Perth/Boorloo 

For information on upcoming industry events, visit our corporate website. 

 

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