A panel of tourism professionals have lauded the sector’s recovery post COVID-19 but detailed the challenges operators in Western Australia still face.
A panel of tourism professionals have lauded the sector’s recovery post COVID-19 but detailed the challenges operators in Western Australia still face.
Speaking at Business News’ Sector Briefing: The Future of Tourism event today, Tourism WA chair Di Bain said visitors spent a record $18.3 billion in the year ending June 2024.
Ms Bain said the numbers weren’t up where they were before COVID, but international numbers were at 82 per cent of pre-COVID levels.
The panel, which also includes Optus Stadium chief executive Mike McKenna, Broome International Airport chief executive Craig Shaw, and Australia’s North West Tourism chair Kym Francesconi, said one of the issues in the tourism sector was the baby boomer-tourist demographic.
Mr McKenna said accessibility in tourism for the ageing population could be a threat or an opportunity for Western Australia.
“Already, 33 per cent of the people who travel inside WA have some sort of accessible tourism need, and whether that be cognitive, whether it be physical, vision or hearing or even having dietary requirements,” he said.
“How we deal with that is the teaching, infrastructure, organisational… but the most important thing that the people who have accessibility needs say is that they need information.
“We can be the best state in the country at delivering accessible tourism. That means we don't have to fear the cliff that comes with an aging population.
“We can actually regenerate that same audience with the right information, the right infrastructure investments, giving them a great experience everyone else can enjoy.”
Mr Shaw said work has been done at Broome International Airports to improve the accessibility of the facility.
“By 2030 the baby boomers are all going to be 65 plus. As it stands today, there's around 50 per cent of people over 65 have a disability,” he said.
“If you think about that in the context of access and infrastructure, it's quite a bit of work to be done to make sure that our airports and our airlines are fit for purpose, in terms of making sure there's adequate accessibility for people that have special needs.
“But that's an Australia wide issue, of course, and certainly comes with the aging population.”
Ms Francesconi said travellers from the baby boomer generation were generally not afraid to spend their retirement on travel, but they won't be travelling with the same approach once they get older.
"How are we going to cater to them from an accessibility perspective, because they may have needs that a lot of us can't cater for?," she said.
"Then the other side of it is who's replacing them, and it's really a traveller [who] is more wanting to travel for good, wanting to give back, wanting more environmentally conscious. That's the traveller.
"So how can we help our operators get their businesses ready for the new traveller? Keeping in mind that you've got to run a business, it's got to be profitable, we only have so many resources [but] It takes time [and] it takes energy. How can we all help to achieve this without losing that profitability as well?"
Panel members also welcomed the state government’s initiatives into the tourism sector, including establishing the tourism investment committee of cabinet earlier this year.
In her keynote speech, Tourism Minister Rita Saffioti said there was a tourism investment delivery division team within the committee, led by a Coordinator General.
Ms Francesconi said the committee needed to be effective to cut through the red tape the state seemed to be burdened with.
“We welcome an investment committee, something that can push through the red tape, and we eagerly look forward to seeing some developments and progress in that space,” she said.
“For example, Broome is crying out for a conference facility that's of a significant capacity to actually make an impact.
“Broome needs more investment in accommodation across our whole region.”
Ms Bain said the initiative would streamline the roadblocks in the project timeline which deters investors.
“It's a wonderful initiative by our minister and our government, who've identified that there are issues and that they're working to the best of their ability to cut through the clutter,” she said.
“What we've got with the Coordinator General, and with a team of tourism-related people that will be working closely with the Coordinator General, is an ability to prioritise what projects should be put at the top.”
