The state government has announced new initiatives it hopes will boost tourism in Western Australia including an airline agreement, a nature-based safari camp and an updated events calendar, but has refused to divulge how much it will cost.
The state government has announced new initiatives it hopes will boost tourism in Western Australia including an airline agreement, a nature-based safari camp and an updated events calendar, but has refused to divulge how much it will cost.
Speaking at a Tourism Council of Western Australia breakfast, Tourism Minister Liz Constable announced that Tourism WA had established a partnership with the Perth International Arts Festival (PIAF) to secure an exclusive production called Pan.Optikum to launch the 2011 festival in February.
Other new initiatives include, extra funding over four years for the Hopman Cup, bidding for the National Short Course Swimming titles in June next year, the Ord Valley Muster, and a plan to set up a safari camp for the Bungle Bungles.
The government has also signed a three year deal with Singapore Airlines to market the state.
Dr Constable said the event will be "a free, family-friendly event featuring a mix of acrobatics, pyrotechnics, large-scale video effects and live music" which has perfomed around the world including the Glastonbury Festival in England.
"An event like this will help position PIAF nationally and internationally as one of the world's leading arts festivals and, to support this, Tourism WA will also establish a new marketing partnership with PIAF to promote the festival throughout Australia and South-East Asia," she said.
However Dr Constable would not reveal how much the state government invested to secure the Pan.Optikum production.
"That's a question that media always ask, how much, and we can't give you the answer I'm sorry because it's considered to be commercially in confidence," she said.
"If we start giving out the amounts of money we spend on each event then that will affect negotiatons with the next ones (event organisers) and the next.
"So we don't disclose those amounts of money."
Eventscorp executive director, David van Ooran previously told WA Business News that some events were commercially sensitive although he was able to provide funding details for existing events such as Ironman Western Australia which currently costs Tourism WA about $500,000 per annum.
Dr Constable hoped that the recently cancelled Red Bull Air Race will return in 2012, although there was no news at present.
"We will be working very hard to secure events ... and to build our events," she said.
"Events is a fascinating area and I think it's the next major area for me to actually spend a lot of time on.
"With the restructure in place, events become the next major focus.
"Maybe Victoria only has the sort of events program that we will envy.
"We've got a lot of catching up to do and I intend to do that catching up.
"The premier and I are at one on this and I think if you watch this space over the next year or so you will see some major advances."
Dr Constable highlighted the Singapore Airlines agreement to promote Western Australia to potential visitors in three of its key priority markets - Singapore, Germany and China - ensuring WA had an increased marketing presence in these countries.
She said Singapore Airlines and Tourism WA will undertake joint promotion of Perth and WA as tourist destinations in light of increasing numbers of visitors from Singapore over the years, with Singaporeans now making up the second-biggest group of visitors to WA.
And the safari camp catering for up to 20 visitors will be the first to be created under the state government's Naturebank program that aimed to develop low impact, sustainable nature-based tourism operations.
Intrepid Connections, a joint venture between Australian Pacific Touring and Intrepid Travel, has been chosen to develop the site following a call for expressions of interest.
Dr Constable said the new camp was a great example of how the Naturebank partnership between the Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) and Tourism WA worked to develop nature-based tourism in regional areas.
"Naturebank boosts WA tourism and also provides opportunities for indigenous investment, employment and capacity building while offering eco-friendly, sustainable accommodation and nature-based tourism experiences," Dr Constable said.
"Through Naturebank, DEC and Tourism WA will continue to identify potential visitor accommodation sites and undertake due diligence to prepare these sites for release."
