After being a finalist each year since 2005, in 2009 Bunbury has taken out the Western Australian Top Tourism Town award. It has recently been announced that Bunbury is once again a finalist in the 2010 awards.
Sponsored by Golden West Network (GWN) this award includes $25,000 of advertising on GWN, one of the South West region’s free to air television providers.
In both 2008 and 2009, the Bunbury Visitor Centre also took out the category award for the best management and staff.
“Judged by the industry, these awards focus on how we work with the local community, businesses and tourism sector at a local and State level,” said Visitor Centre Manager, Felicity Anderson. “Our Tourism Strategy, endorsed by Council in 2009, is based on the synergy that can be achieved by working with all stakeholders, particularly the community and local businesses.”
She said that visitor numbers continue to increase and the opening of the new Perth Bunbury Highway has seen day dripper numbers swell by 23 per cent.
“One of our key draw cards is that we are a city with all the expected services and amenities but from any part of Bunbury you are no more than 15 minutes from natural areas,” Felicity Anderson said.
“We have Mangrove Cove right in the centre of the city, while Koombana Bay and Back Beach along with the Dophin Discovery Centre are just a few minutes walk from the CBD.”
With over 3,000 beds through a range of accommodation choices from four and half star through to backpackers, Bunbury is a popular destination for conferences and business related visits.
The Visitor Centre is a free booking agency, telephone (08) 9792 7205, email welcome@bunbury.wa.gov.au or go to www.visitbunbury.com.au
