With the City of Perth’s support, the Western Australian Indigenous Tourism Operators Council (WAITOC) is leading the way in Aboriginal cultural tourism, with almost 50 authentic Aboriginal products and experiences for Perth visitors to enjoy.
A $40,000 key sector development sponsorship will help support WAITOC’s Aboriginal Tourism Academy and provide further Aboriginal tourism experiences that locals and visitors desire.
A business mentoring program, the Academy assists Aboriginal-owned businesses in gaining advice from a tourism expert in a highly individualised manner. A video of the City of Perth’s collaboration with the Academy can be found here.
Deputy Lord Mayor Sandy Anghie said the City’s continued support towards the Aboriginal Tourism Academy was helping to close the Aboriginal tourism supply gap by growing available product and unique experiences in Perth.
“Tourism WA research shows us that 81 per cent of visitors to Western Australia want an Aboriginal tourism experience, but only around 17 per cent are getting this experience,” she said.
“The Aboriginal Tourism Academy is providing great outcomes for Perth. Now, visitors to Perth have the opportunity to take part in the growing number of Aboriginal tourism experiences.”
WAITOC CEO Robert Taylor said following on from the success of the 2020 program supporting the growth of Aboriginal tourism experiences, the Destination Perth region now had the second largest number of members out of the five tourism regions in WA.
“This is a great outcome as four years ago there were only a very small number of Aboriginal tourism experiences available to visitors,” he said.
“Perth is the gateway to WA and there are now almost 50 authentic Aboriginal products and experiences for visitors to enjoy.”
