The State Opposition has criticised the Government’s latest tourism strategy, labelling it as a “dumb idea”.
Yesterday, the Tourism Minister, Liz Constable launched the campaign, saying it will showcase hundreds of destinations and experiences around the state, using the internet to gain maximum exposure.
It also includes an international competition to win a nine week taxi ride around WA which will be filmed and broadcast globally.
The Opposition’s Tourism spokeswoman Ljiljanna Ravlich says the Government is wasting taxpayer’s money on an ineffective strategy.
“I think it is a dumb idea to be quite frank with you because I really don’t know how this is going to play out in other markets.”
Ms Ravlich also says the campaign paints an inaccurate picture about the true size of WA.
“They must think that Karijini National Park is within 20 kilometres because quite clearly nobody would be catching a taxi from Perth Airport to Karijini National Park so I think apart from anything else it has the capacity to mislead.”
But, Dr Constable said the taxi ride will draw international attention to WA’s tourist attractions.
“A lot of people travel by road and everyone identifies with taxis, wherever you go in the world there are taxis so it’s sort of an international symbol of travel.”
Dr Constable said the campaign reflects changes in the way modern travellers access information to plan holidays.
“We felt the time had come to not only involve the traditional media in newspapers, television and radio but also an internet competition and campaign as well so it’s time to refresh and do something new and innovative.”
The tourism strategy will cost $5.5 million.
