Hon. Paul Papalia CSC MLA with Alicia Seah, Director of Marketing and Communications at Dynasty Travel Singapore

(July 1, 2019) Western Australia Tourism Minister, Paul Papalia, had a busy day in Singapore on July 1, 2019 signing agreements with travel agency, Dynasty Travel and Singapore Airlines with which they have had many in the past. Singapore is considered a key international market for Tourism WA. In 2018, 82,500 leisure visitors from Singapore spent $143.7 million. 

These new agreements are part of a bumped-up tourism campaign with extra money for marketing. “Growing tourism is key to the State Government’s plan to diversify the economy, create jobs and develop business opportunities,” stated Minister Papalia. “Increasing the number of people travelling to Western Australia from overseas will help achieve these objectives, which is why we committed an extra $12 million to Tourism WA’s international marketing activity. It is the biggest international marketing push in the State’s history, and we hope to see thousands more people come to WA as a result of this surge in activity.” 

One new marketing campaign sees the interior of MRT carriages covered in iconic WA images, will captivate the commuter audience in Singapore and encourage them to book a Western Australian holiday.  

In the morning the Tourism Minister launched the campaign in Singapore and travelled to Serangoon Station on the WA-themed train, speaking to commuters about what WA offered as a holiday destination. “The WA-themed train station takeover will transform an ordinary commute into an extraordinary larger-than-life WA experience for millions of potential tourists,” the Minister stated. Close to one million commuters use the MRT line daily, while Serangoon Station services the nex shopping mall; the largest in north east Singapore. The campaign is part of an agreement between the State Government, through Tourism WA, and leading Singapore travel agency, Dynasty Travel, to sell competitively priced itineraries from Singapore to Perth, the Coral Coast and the South West, booked through Dynasty Travel. 

Large-scale high-impact images of distinctly Western Australian locations are part of the campaign that will dominate four train carriages on Singapore’s busy North East Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) train line, as well as Serangoon MRT station. Minister Papalia added: “We’re excited to partner with Dynasty Travel on this high-profile campaign to attract more Singaporean travellers to WA. The WA images will capture people’s imaginations, while the itineraries featured alongside them will map out a WA journey to show just how easy and affordable a holiday to our State can be when booking a Dynasty travel package.Nature’s Window in Kalbarri, kangaroos on the beach at Lucky Bay; Esperance, and the wildflowers of Coalseam National Park are all showcased in the marketing, along with instafamous images such as Rottnest’s quokkas, the Hutt Lagoon (Pink Lake) of the Coral Coast region and Crawley’s blue boat shed on the edge of Perth’s Swan River.

As part of the agreement, Dynasty Travel will also promote Perth and WA as a highlight destination at their annual Thanksgiving travel fair in July. The fair attracts thousands of potential holiday-makers and is held one of the biggest shopping malls in Singapore, Marina Square.

 The Dynasty Travel deal forms part of the unprecedented $12 million international marketing boost announced by Premier Mark McGowan and Tourism Minister Paul Papalia in March, to grow the number of people visiting WA from overseas. Contributions from partners are expected to bring the figure spent on promoting WA internationally to around $20 million over the next 14 months.

$5 MILLION MARKETING DEAL WITH SINGAPORE AIRLINES

In the afternoon Tourism Minister Paul Papalia signed a three-year global cooperative marketing agreement between the State Government, through Tourism Western Australia, and Singapore Airlines, who will work closely to promote WA as a desirable holiday destination to people across the globe. “I’m delighted to be here in Singapore to officially sign this exciting marketing agreement with one of the world’s greatest airlines, Singapore Airlines. Our partnership with Singapore Airlines, which dates back to 1999, will be extremely important in attracting more people to Western Australia, from all across the globe.”

(Left to right) Kelsie Johnston, Director, Markets, Tourism Western Australia; Singapore Airlines cabin crew; Honourable Paul Papalia CSC MLA, Western Australian Minister for Tourism; Campbell Wilson, Senior Vice President Sales and Marketing of Singapore Airlines; Singapore Airlines cabin crew; Ranjan Jha, Senior Manager, Branding and Marketing, Singapore Airlines.

The $5 million three-year agreement will include multiple sales and marketing campaigns in 10 key international markets, including the UK, Germany/Switzerland, India, China, the US, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Japan, Indonesia and Singapore. 

Singapore Airlines Senior Vice President Sales and Marketing, Campbell Wilson said the continuation of this strategic partnership is a testament to its dedication to the Australian market. “I am sure that more travellers will be encouraged to visit the beautiful sights and attractions Western Australia has to offer.”

 The campaigns will include promotional airfares and travel packages to WA and will be promoted through a range of digital, print and TV advertising. Singapore Airlines, which has worked in partnership with Tourism WA for the past 20 years, will promote affordable fares to Western Australia in those key international markets. 

“The aim is to fill those planes through promotional airfares and offer visitors adventure-filled travel packages so they can experience all our amazing state has to offer while they’re in WA. It is hoped the combined campaign activity in Singapore will generate more than 11 thousand visitors.”