SITUATED on Australia’s west coast, Perth is a city of both natural and urban life that’s undergoing major structural changes due to investments in tourism infrastructure and hotel operations. The town once recognised primarily for its mining activity is now a hub for business travel, luxury hotels, and opportunity.
The Sebel West Perth Aire Apartments, which opened in July this year, added 64 new studio apartment style rooms to Perth’s resurging accommodation market. Located in west Perth on the CBD fringe, the hotel is close to key tourist attractions including Perth Arena, Kings Park and Botanical Garden, and is accessible within 15 minutes by road from Perth International Airport.
“The city is experiencing a resurgence in new hotel product and The Sebel West Perth Aire Apartments embodies the sophistication and inviting living spaces that our guests expect,” said AccorHotels Pacific chief operating officer, Simon McGrath.
The property’s amenities include a 22m heated swimming pool, fitness centre, sauna, outdoor dining area; along with a conference room and undercover car parking.
Another hotel to join Perth’s portfolio is QT Perth. The 18-storey building on the corner of Murray and Barrack Streets features 184 guest rooms, a signature bar & grill restaurant concept, rooftop bar, cafe and seven conference rooms.
To further expand its share of the corporate and conference markets Metro Hotel Perth has appointed business development executive, Stephanie Iosia. She is responsible for sourcing new corporate accommodation business and conference business opportunities.
Metro Hotel Perth’s director of sales and marketing, Deborah Carr said the position was created as part of its planned strategy to capture a larger slice of Perth’s corporate and conference business, following the hotel’s major $14 million redevelopment, which included a newly-built 53-room “Aspire Wing”, a new Red Bill restaurant and bar, along with new function rooms, reception area and lobby.
“We believe that the worst is over for the WA economy, and Perth has enormous potential for growth in both the corporate and conference tourism markets. The location of Metro Hotel Perth in the south of the city means it is perfectly positioned to benefit from this growth,” Carr said.
WA’s interstate visitor market is also starting to show signs of growth, according to the National Visitor Survey for year ending June 2018 released by Tourism Research Australia.
The study showed that the total number of interstate visits increased 11.3% to 1.48 million, with 27,000 more interstate holiday makers compared to the same time last year, an increase of 7.5%.
Overall interstate spend in WA has increased by 4.7% to $1.52 billion and spend from holiday makers increased by 7.5% to $628 million.
While the number of interstate visitors grew, the average length of stay dropped from 9.2 to 7.1 nights and the number of overall nights fell by 14.1%.
Along with infrastructure investment, the WA Government has announced a $30 million partnership between Tourism Western Australia and Perth Airport to attract new airline routes into Perth and grow its reputation as Australia’s western gateway.
Current opportunities being explored include increased capacity from China and new direct routes from Japan, India and Europe.
Tourism Minister Paul Papalia said the funding contributions would be used for destination marketing agreements with individual airlines to help drive demand for the new routes.
Perth has also been chosen as the host destination of Dreamtime, an industry networking event from 2 to 3 December 2019. The conference welcomes qualified buyers from key markets including Greater China, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, India, New Zealand, USA and the United Kingdom.
“With new hotel infrastructure developments, new international non-stop flights from London and a growing incentive offering, Perth is continuing to raise its profile internationally,” said Tourism Australia managing director John O’Sullivan.
