Travelling turnaround

In good news for the tourism industry, the number of passengers travelling through Perth Airport in the 2003-04 financial year has surpassed pre-September 11 numbers.

The effect of September 11, SARS, the Bali bombing and war with Iraq have all had an enormous impact on the tourism industry and the recovery of passenger numbers show a new confidence in the tourism market.

Perth Airport welcomed more than six million passengers in 2003-04, with a significant increase in domestic and international passenger numbers.

Domestic passenger numbers for the fiscal year grew 15 per cent compared to the previous financial year and 19 per cent compared to pre-September 11, 2001 figures.

There was a 10 per cent growth in international travel compared to the past financial year and 7 per cent growth compared to pre-September 11 figures.

Perth airport general manager Richard Gates said travelers from Europe, Malaysia, New Zealand and South Africa had shown particularly strong growth, due to expanded international services between Perth and those destinations.

Mr Gates said the number of passengers traveling to Bali was up on the previous financial year, but had not recovered to pre-September 11 numbers.

Tourism Council president Ron Buckey said the council was delighted with the increase in numbers.

“It is a significant milestone for the number of people coming through the airport to be back to pre-September 11 numbers,” he said.

“It has been a long time and a number of operators have suffered, but it just shows the resilience of the industry.

“We are delighted with the expansion of the international airport, and are looking forward to the opening of the convention centre.

“We just need to ensure that maximum capacity can be achieved for the convention centre through marketing funding.”

The Esplanade Hotel Fremantle general manager, Rodney Coates said the industry had been devastated in recent years but had fully recovered and the people coming through the Esplanade reflected the figures from the airport.

“We have seen a real increase in domestic numbers in the past 12 months,” he said.

“Our business outlook is good, and we are excited about the future.”