| WA Cruise Exchange a hit

KEY cruise line execs & ground handlers descended on Crown Towers Perth late last month for Tourism Western Australia’s fourth WA Cruise Exchange.

The event included business-to-business appointments, exposing 21 cruise-ready products and regional port destinations to reps from some of the industry’s major players.

Attendees also took part in a two-day familiarisation trip to Exmouth on the Coral Coast, which included experiencing the world heritage-listed Shark Bay and Ningaloo Reef — the largest fringing reef on Earth — and Cape Range National Park.

Pictured with “Kinky” the whale shark in Exmouth are: Leah Thompson, Great Southern Rail; Matthew McKeown, Carnival Australia; Ben Knaggs, Ningaloo Visitor Centre; Toby Biddick and Jeff Barnard, Abercrombie & Kent; Anne Hope, Cruise & Maritime Voyages; Courtney Brooks, Royal Caribbean Cruises; Debbie Ferguson, Exmouth Diving Centre; Tina Nguyen, AOT Group; Christine Cole, Tourism WA; James Coughlan & Stephen Rivera, Intercruises Shoreside & Port Services; Michael Mijhalov, Carnival Australia; Martin Bidgood, Intercruises Shoreside & Port Services; Tyler Wood, Bob Wood Cruise Group and Kristy Bryan-Smith, from the Ningaloo Visitor Centre.