The Kimberley region of Western Australia was celebrated in Melbourne on Wednesday night when over 60 travel industry representatives gathered at the launch of the ‘Kununurra Express,Virgin Australia’s new direct Melbourne to Kununurra flight service.
Hosted by Tourism Western Australia at Melbourne restaurant, Charcoal Lane, the event treated guests to ‘taste of the Kimberley’, including sampling native bush foods and enjoying performances by Aboriginal dancer Sermsah Bin Saad, who is originally from the Kimberley, and Kav Temperley from one of WA’s much loved WA bands, Eskimo Joe.
Paul Iskov – West Australian chef and owner of Fervor – a unique pop up dining concept that showcases local and native foods in unique locations across WA – joined forces with Charcoal Lane’s Executive Chef Greg Hampton to create cocktails and canapes featuring Hoochery Distillery rum and desert lime, and unique produce such as super food – Wild Gubinge, roasted boab tuber, wild rosella flower and pearl meat.
Event attendees included passionate east Kimberley tourism industry and operators such as El Questro, APT Touring, the East Kimberley Marketing Group and the Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley who shared their experiences and travel tips with travel decision makers, such as Flight Centre, Webjet, AOT, Travel Managers, Helloworld, Broome Kimberley & Beyond, The Kimberley Collection and Travel Counsellors.
On the night Rachel Stent from Four Corners Travel Armidale was the lucky winner of the Ultimate Kimberley Experience prize, which includes return direct flights from Melbourne to Kununurra for two and a collection of accommodation and tourism experiences valued at $12,000.
About the Kimberley Express
· The new direct Melbourne to Kununurra service operated by Alliance Airlines will commence on May 15, 2020. The flights will run three days a week – Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays – between May and August 2020, with economy tickets priced from $369 one-way all inclusive, with business class seats also available.
· Now easily accessible for a long weekend or a longer adventure – Kununurra is the gateway to a number of bucket list destinations and experiences in WA’s east Kimberley, including the magnificent waterways of the Ord River and Lake Argyle, the dramatic Bungle Bungle Range in Purnululu National Park, the gorges and waterfalls of El Questro and Home Valley Station. The area is also rich in Aboriginal culture; meet with local artists and learn about the history of the region at Waringarri Aboriginal Arts. Kununurra is also a starting point for one of Australia’s most adventurous road trips – the Gibb River Road, and the departure point for a number of APT Tours’ Kimberley product.
· Tickets are now on sale from Virgin Australia .
IMAGE: L-R:Michelle Gatzoubaros, Tourism WA; Ultimate Kimberley Experience prize winner, Rachael Stent from Four Corners Travel Armidale, Melbourne; Pat Monneron, Tourism WA; and David Menzel, Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley
