The inaugural BE reWArded Mega Famil, organised by Business Events Perth (BE Perth), drew to a close on December 3, 2024, after a full day of meetings between travel buyers and Western Australian suppliers.
In attendance were 24 event organisers and corporate travel agents, some of whom were in Perth for the first time. There were seven attendees from Singapore, five from Malaysia, as well as another 12 from various cities across China (Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou).
“We usually run a ReaWAaken famil in March every year, but we realised that the needs for associations versus corporate meetings and incentive travels were very different. This is why we decided to branch out this year,” Alex Ng, director business development – corporate & incentive at BE Perth told TTGmice.
The three markets were specifically chosen because they were the “largest corporate and incentive travel contributors” to Western Australia, with each market having surpassed pre-Covid levels in the last financial year of July 2023 to June 2024.
Ng attributed this recovery to improved direct air access and frequencies to Perth from Singapore via Singapore Airlines; Kuala Lumpur via Malaysia Airlines; Guangzhou via China Southern Airlines; and Hong Kong via Cathay Pacific.
Incentive travel-ready experiences that were introduced to the 24-pax group included animal encounters at Caversham Wildlife Park and wine tasting at Sandalford Winery, both in Swan Valley; a teambuilding experience and Segway tour on Rottnest Island; and a Wild Seafood Cruise and Lobster Lunch in Mandurah.
Western Australia’s local produce was also highlighted at several restaurants, from a four-course meal at the Wild Swan restaurant on Mandoon Estate to a causal farewell dinner at Miss Mi in Novotel Perth Murray Street.
These experiences culminated in a gala dinner hosted in the Victory Lounge at Optus Stadium, where delegates were also treated to a Christmas-themed light show that demonstrated the venue’s event prowess.
Ng said Perth and its surroundings could comfortably handle 200 to 300 pax at a given time, adding that larger incentive travel groups tended to arrive in several waves. The destination welcomed several large groups this year, such as Amway Taiwan (March 2024, 1,000 delegates), BE Lifestyle Malaysia (May 2024, 1,200 delegates), and Perfect China (June 2024, 2,000 delegates).
“Our main objective for running the BE reWArded Mega Famil was to showcase Perth and Western Australia’s capabilities to offer unique and sustainable experiences for MICE clients in a safe, natural, and welcoming environment, riding on our recent success of hosting (the aforementioned) large incentive travel delegations,” Ng stated.
