Business Traveller (Asia-Pacific)
IN THE ZONE
Perth may be Western Australia’s state capital, but sharing a time zone with some of Asia’s major cities gives it a useful advantage that it is keen to exploit
It’s 7am and I’m standing on the hilltop of Kings Park overlooking a strip of skyscrapers, glinting in the early sunshine, beside the wide, calm Swan River. Perth’s CBD may look small for the capital of a state that stretches over 2.5 million square kilometres, but the city has grown exponentially in the last decade, bankrolled by a thriving mining industry. Despite the mining decline, Perth’s relative proximity to the rest of the world, particularly Asia, suggests the Western Australia hub has an exciting future ahead in business and tourism.
Australia is famed for being far away from everything, but when you realise Perth is in the same time zone as Beijing, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Manila, Taipei and Bali, suddenly “down under” is looking more “round the corner”. Factor in the laid-back but increasingly sophisticated lifestyle and it becomes a decidedly attractive option.
When you arrive in Perth for a conference (the international airport being a convenient 20-minute drive from downtown) you’ll notice the pace of life undergoes a sudden brake compared with many of Southeast Asia’s frenetic cities. St George’s Terrace is the main artery of the CBD, home to office buildings, business hotels, F&B outlets and retail space. Calm streets by day grow to a civilised buzz on weekend evenings, but weekdays you’ll be hard pushed to find an independent restaurant that serves after 9pm.
INDUSTRIAL EVOLUTION
The city has transformed itself since its so-called “Dullsville” days, and lord mayor Lisa Scaffidi tells me she believes Perth’s time has come. “Perth is like a sophisticated young west coast woman who has come through her gawky teenage phase, evolved and matured. She’s realising her allure and now she is flaunting it to the world.”
Scaffidi has faced the decline in mining head-on, saying that not only has it taught the city not to be reliant on commodities like oil, gas and iron ore, but that it has allowed other industry sectors to shine, like pharmaceuticals, education and particularly tourism. “Nationally people are visiting Perth more. They used to write it off as the little city on the west coast, but word has spread as to the changing face of Perth. People are coming over and are blown away.”
Construction is noticeable around the city, particularly towards the banks of the Swan River around Elizabeth Quay, the new home for festivals, ferry tours to Fremantle and dolphin watching. Soon new hotel brands Ritz-Carlton, Westin and one of three Doubletree by Hiltons will take shape. The additional rooms combined with the mining downturn will ease occupancy levels from a previous average of 80 and 90 per cent, allowing space for more MICE and leisure guests.
“International business tourism is growing right now, with a lot of convention business,” says Scaffidi. “Extending stays pre- and post-business is an area we’re looking to grow.
”We are no longer looking east to Melbourne and Sydney, more north to same time zone countries in Asia,” she adds. “We’re focusing on marketing ourselves as the gateway to Australia for Asia. With around 25 international airlines flying in, access has opened up incredibly and with increasing FIT tourism we are getting our fair share of leisure tourism too.”
Middle Eastern airlines like Emirates, Qatar and Etihad have increased flights to and from Europe,
offering an alternative route to flying via Hong Kong or Singapore. The number of international, regional and domestic airlines flying through Perth now counts over 30. Halfway through a A$750 million (US$560 million) transformation, Perth Airport has recently celebrated its new Terminal 1 expansion, with a new runway forecast to be completed before the end of the decade.
Asia is very much the focus at Tourism Western Australia too. Chief executive officer Stephanie Buckland points out there are already a large number of business travellers from Singapore, Indonesia, Hong Kong, China and Japan coming to town. With the softening in the mining sector the city has an increased capacity to host large conventions; Shell’s recent LNG18 event at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre in April is a good example.
“We are as close to Singapore as we are to Sydney,” she says. “Asia is our primary consumer and China is our number one source for international students, second for inbound tourism after the UK. Ten years down the track my prediction is that China will be our number one inbound market, driven by business, migration and education.
“In mainland China the consumer is shifting from group travel to FIT more quickly than many anticipated. Perth and the wider region are really well placed to take advantage of this.”
She also highlights the increase in the cruising industry, with a lot of work done to ready ports like Fremantle for Chinese visitors.
BOUTIQUE BLISS
The latest hotel to open in Perth is Como The Treasury (comohotels.com/thetreasury), a complex that’s spread across three beautiful 19th-century heritage state buildings. The calming 48 guestrooms may have an executive-worthy rack rate starting at A$595 (US$430) a night, but th they come with perks like welcome glasses of bubbly, shirt pressing, shoe polishing, complimentary minibars an and turndown canapés. The 20-metre pool is flooded with light, a great way to start the day, and the gym has inspiring city views too. Food and beverage options are plentiful, with Petition’s be beer bar offering A$6 (US$4) craft beers, Enoteca pouring Margaret River wines, among others, and Telegram Coffee’s A$3 (US$2) cups of joe. Go large at all-day dining Post, larger at David Thomson’s wildly popular Thai street food hangout Long Chim, and largest at the high-end Wildflower where Australian ingredients get superb, fine-dining treatment. Talking of treatments, the Como Shambhala Urban Escape is a true sanctuary of aromatic peace and healing, there’s quality yoga in the quiet basement, and several shops all selling W Western Australia products, from fashion to candles and chocolates. On a mor more serious note, the 20-seat boardroom is perfectly d designed for exclusive meetings. “We are targeting th the executive level of guest and have had corporates who have repeated their stays six times already,” says general manager Anneke Brown. “The hotel is perfect for business travellers – they don’t have to leavele the building with our boardroom and so many dining options.” Previously, The Richardson Hotel & Spa (therichardson.com.au)(theric was the only real celeb-worthyworth pad in town, and jocular Irish owner Joe OxleyO is delighted to have more competition in the city. “Anyone out there promoting Perth to that level of clientele benefits everyone,” he says. Located just west of the CBD action, Oxley says his hotel attracts celebrities, businessmen who don’t want the usual business hotel routine, and leisure guests. The 74 spacious rooms and suites with balconies, indoor pool, The Spa, French dining at Opus, and breakfast and
lunch at The Conservatory, are matched in style by incredibly clued-in and helpful staff who offer exactly the kind of welcome you’re looking for when you arrive in a city.
There’s also a growing band of boutique hotels catering to the Gen Y movers and shakers. The Alex Hotel (www.alexhotel.com.au) is a Northbridge gem. Pared down to stylish basics, the 74 rooms have no room service, wardrobes or minibar, so communal areas on the first or ground floors include an honour bar, free coffee and tables conducive to collaborating over projects, and there’s a small rooftop terrace.
At the other end of the accommodation scale, James Packer’s Crown Towers (crownperth.com.au) is scheduled to open in December, east of the CBD. The 500-room tower is promising apartment-size villas, smoking rooms and to appeal to Asian guests. For sports fans, the view over the Swan River looks towards the new stadium.
This will be the new addition to Packer’s already successful casino resort complex Crown Perth, which includes Crown Metropol and Crown Promenade. The dining options here are phenomenal – eat at Nobu, the beautifully designed Guillaume or Chinese restaurant Silks, among others. Kick back at Isika Spa or in the exclusive adult-only pool with butler service, cabanas with flatscreen TVs and sofas, or crank it up with a flutter in the casinos and Vegas-style entertainment.
Back on the St George’s Terrace strip, go back in history at the Parmelia Hilton Perth (hilton.com). First opened in 1968, but recently refurbished, the hotel boasts 284 contemporary rooms and suites (the King suite is a spacious corner room), a rooftop pool and the iconic Adelphi restaurant, which keeps the regulars returning. There’s a dedicated floor for meetings and events with facilities that can host from five to 450, including the Argyle Ballroom and the Outdoor Piazza, while just across the road is the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre.
At the Hyatt Regency Perth (perth.regency.hyatt.com), rather than a dedicated events floor, the hotel has niche spaces, meeting and conference rooms, plus a ballroom, dotted around its many floors. Several Asian cuisines are served at Joe’s Oriental Diner, with fine dining at Café and casual coffees at La Strada, and you’ll get the neighbourhood bar feel at Plain Street Bar. There’s a bijou Club Lounge with stunning views of the Swan River, as well as a rooftop pool, tennis court, spa and fitness centre to keep you healthy between work appointments. The 367 rooms and suites are modern and slick, and start with standard rooms that are the biggest in town.