The tourism industry has called on the State Government to commit more funding to international marketing in the wake of promises from the recent election.
The tourism industry has called on the State Government to commit more funding to international marketing in the wake of promises from the recent election.
Tourism Council WA president Ron Buckey said Western Australia needed to get back into the international tourism market as soon as possible if it was going to improve the number of international visitors to the state.
Mr Buckey said international tourist numbers to WA were not as good as they could be because the State Government hadn’t allocated enough money to tourism for the past couple of years, and international marketing had suffered.
“I hope a Gallop Government election promise of $3 million a year for the next four years, specifically for marketing WA as a tourism destination, will improve the situation,” he told WA Business News.
“Previously there has not been enough money in the Tourism WA budget to do this and the market has suffered.
“We need to get WA back onto the scene that it has slipped away from.”
Perth Airport passenger statistics indicate that the number of international passengers at the airport for the six months to December 31 2004 (975,718) grew 11 per cent compared with the same period in 2003.
But data Perth Airport obtained from the Department of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (DIMIA) showed the number of foreign visitors had decreased by 3 per cent during the same time.
Perth Airport chief executive Graham Muir said earlier this year the decrease was a major concern for businesses involved in the travel and tourism industry, and particularly that fewer people from places such as the UK, Malaysia and Indonesia were visiting WA.
Mr Muir said the surge in overseas travel by Australians was the main contributing factor affecting international passenger growth.
“Western Australians have always been keen international travellers and the stronger Australian dollar, combined with great value air fares on offer, has encouraged more people than ever before to depart the country,” he said.
Martin Wright, managing director of City Sightseeing, a double-decker tour bus operating in the city, said although the company started a year ago, income had increased from month to month.
“There was a summer surge in November then it flat lined and for the last three weeks we have been very busy,” he said.
The Commodore Hotel (formerly the Chateau Commodore Hotel) general manager Tony Pallotta said that, for the 12-months to December 2004, occupancy and average room rates were both up slightly.
“International guests were both up and down. Japan was very strong, New Zealand was up slightly and the UK stable,” he said.
“However, the US, South Africa, Thailand and Singapore were down.
“There could be a range of reasons for this, the exchange rate has worked against us and world events all could have a part to play.”
