New Perth attractions and experiences would drive visitation and jobs

A new campaign calling for an overhaul Western Australia’s approvals process to enable the development of a series of tourism attractions has been launched by the Tourism Council of WA.

The New Attractions for Perth advocacy campaign advises that new and diverse experiences, which would make Perth an exciting destination with unique activities for everyone, are being held back by multiple layers of bureaucracy.

Calling for a streamlining of the approvals process, Tourism Council of WA Chief Executive Evan Hall yesterday unveiled 16 proposed new attractions and experiences within Perth which would encourage visitors to stay longer.

Advising that it had been more than 25 years since Perth has welcomed a new major attraction, Hall estimated the new attractions would result in an additional $165 million spent by visitors in Western Australia, generating 1,116 full-time equivalent jobs.

Hall said the new attractions did not require taxpayer funding, but they did require approvals by multiple Government agencies, highlighting that new attraction proposals typically met the highest environmental and safety standards, but they often struggled to survive costly and time-consuming approval processes.

Hall stated “the proposed new experiences announced today are supported by the people of Perth, with an average 87% of Perth residents supportive or neutral to the 16 proposed attractions.

“Regulatory agencies should take into account broad community support for these attractions, and the jobs they will create, when assessing proposed new attractions.”

Only 13% of international visitors to Perth visited an attraction during their trip, which is the lowest of any major Australian city.

Advising that when facilitated by Government, new attractions can be quickly progressed through multiple approval authorities, Hall added “new experiences have been approved on Rottnest Island, which has the highest standards of environmental protection. These new experiences have been strongly supported by the Rottnest Island Authority and are helping to drive increased visitors to the island.”

Tourism Council WA is recommending the Western Australian Government prioritise and streamline approvals for private investment in new attractions and upgrades to existing attractions.

Hall concluded “a whole-of-government approach should be taken for facilitating approvals, including considering broad public support.”

The 16 proposed new attractions are:

• Perth Cable Car
• URBNSURF wave park at Alfred Cove
• Resort Deck on the Swan River
• Thermal Baths by the Swan River 
• Thermal Baths on Rottnest Island 
• Ropes Course and Zipline on Rottnest Island
• Optus Stadium Roof Climb
• Swan River Zipline 
• Optus Stadium/Matagarup Bridge Climb
• Helicopter Tours from a Swan River Helipad
• BBQ Buoys on the Swan River
• Experiential Eco-Accommodation by the Swan River
• Perth Abseil
• Ropes Course in Kings Park
• Experiential Eco-Accommodation in Kings Park
• Seaplane Tours from the Swan River

Facilitating new attractions and experiences is a key component of the Western Australian Government’s Two-Year Action Plan for Tourism. The Western Australian Government’s new Market-Led Proposals Policy and Streamline WA initiative can assist streamline approvals for new attractions.

Click here to view Tourism Council WA’s New Attractions for Perth document.

Images: An artists impression of the Perth Cable Car - commissioned by the Tourism Council WA in 2016 (top) and the proposed Swan River Deck courtesy of Swan River Deck/Northstar Development (below).