Where on Earth but Perth
Hi All,
The Perth Conference organising committee is launching our promotion & marketing for next years Perth District Conference.
The information that follows is provided for members of D9800 and their partners. We would appreciate if you could circulate this information to every Rotary member of your club as well as their partners.
Come and Visit Perth in March 2010
Perth is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful cities in Australia. Perth is located on the banks of the magnificent Swan River, with the Swan Valley to the East, historic Fremantle & the beaches to the west, and Margaret River & the south east region to the south.
South West of Western Australia is one of Australia’s most popular tourist areas, and we encourage Rotarians to add a few days before or after the conference, to take in the sights of this wonderful area of Australia.
Conference Dates
The main conference sessions will commence at 9.00am on Friday 5 March 2010, and will finish at lunchtime on Sunday 7 March 2010. Because of the time difference between Melbourne & Perth, it is not possible to leave Melbourne on Friday 5 March 2010, and arrive in time for the 9.00am start of the conference.
As delegates will need to travel to Perth the day before, we will be holding an optional cocktail function on Thursday evening 4 March 2010. If you wish to attend, this will be an extra cost to your registration.
Venues
Conference Sessions
The conference sessions will be held in the award winning Perth Convention Exhibition Centre (PCEC), situated on the banks of the Swan River, 500 metres from the Perth CBD. The convention centre was built in 2005, and is considered one of the best conference venues in the country.
Saturday night dinner
The Saturday night dinner will be held at the Government House Ballroom. The ballroom is in St Georges Terrace, about 500 metres east of PCEC, and in the centre of Perth. The ballroom was fully restored about 5 years ago, and is a magnificent venue for our conference dinner.
Program
§ Thursday 4 March 2010 – Informal cocktail function from 7.00pm till 10pm. This will be an optional function, and will be an additional cost for delegates who wish to attend.
§ Friday 5 March 2010
· 9.00am – 12.30pm – Official opening, first & second plenary sessions.
· 12.30pm – 1.30pm – Seated lunch in ballroom at PCEC
· 1.30pm – 5.00pm Plenary sessions three & four
· Evening – club dinners
§ Saturday 6 March 2010
· 7.30am – 8.30am – optional breakfasts
· 8.30am – 12.30pm – plenary sessions five & six
· Afternoon – free time to explore the city of Perth
§ Saturday 6 March 2010 (Evening) – Option 1
· 7.30pm – midnight – Gala Dinner at Government House Ballroom. This function is limited to 350 delegates on a first in basis
Saturday 6 March 2010 (Evening) – Option 2
· 7.30pm – 11.00pm – Swan River cruise and dinner
Sunday 7 March 2010
· 7.30am – 8.30am – Ecumenical service
· 9.00am – 12.30pm – Plenary sessions seven & eight, and conference close
§ Monday 8 March 2010 – Public holiday in Melbourne
Weather
Perth is blessed with a fantastic weather at this time of the year. March temperatures average 27-30 during the day, and 15-18 overnight.
Travel
There are a number of options for delegates coming to the Perth conference.
Because there are multiple travel options, the conference organising committee will source a number of preferred travel options, which we will publish on the conference website.
Train
We understand that some clubs are investigating train travel to Perth. We are unable to provide any preferred rates for this option.
4WD Tours
Organisations associated with Rotary are organising a 4WD tour before or after the conference. Details of this will be available on the conference website, or you can contact Annie McGennisken RC of Keilor East 0418120374 or more details.
Plane
Most delegates will travel by plane.
We have had talks with the major airlines, and we are hopeful of having some preferred rates which we will publish on the conference website. We can’t guarantee that these rates will be the cheapest rates available, as airlines are reluctant to discount seats 9 months before the conference. Flights costs may change later in the year, as the conference gets closer and seats have not been booked. The airlines have suggested to us that the cheapest prices are now, and that prices will increase as we get closer to the conference.
Delegates are responsible for making their own travel arrangements.
Every Monday we will publish the cheapest flights available on the internet on the conference website.
The cheapest Melbourne/Perth return airfares on the web on Monday 13 July 09 are:
Tiger Airlines – $216 return
Virgin Blue - $394 return
Accommodation
Perth is blessed with a range of accommodation options.
Like any other capital city, the closer you get to the CBD, the higher the rates.
Perth has more than 2000 beds within 500 metres of the PCEC, so if you want to stay close there are plenty of options.
Accommodation in the Perth suburbs 4-5 kms from the PCEC, will be less than half the price of CBD accommodation.
The organising committee has negotiated a number of rates for 5, 4, 3 star, and apartment accommodation in Perth. These rates will be listed on the Conference Website in the next 2 weeks, and can be booked with your registration.
Remember that accommodation is the delegates responsibility. Clubs or delegates are free to source their own accommodation options, if you don’t want those offered on the Conference Website.
Unlike Melbourne, Perth is blessed with a larger number of serviced apartments. Two bedroom, two bathroom apartments are a great option for two couples. They are far more spacious than a hotel room, and are considerably cheaper.
Registration
Early bird registration will open for delegates on 15 September 2009, and will close on 5 December 2009.
Delegates who book during this period, will receive a discount on the normal registration.
Registration can be done online via the conference website, or by printing the registration form and mailing it.
Note : The Saturday dinner at the Government House Ballroom is limited to 350 delegates. We will accept the first 350 bookings only. If you are not quick enough and miss out, the optional function will be a Swan River Cruise.
Late registration will be available from 6 December 2009, until 28 February 2010, but the early bird discount will be removed.
All delegates will be required to pay the conference registration.
There will be 2 Saturday night functions, the dinner at the Government House Ballroom, and the optional Swan River Cruise. These will be charged separately on your registration. There will be no requirement to attend these functions. If you don’t want to attend either function, then you only need to pay the conference registration.
The conference registration costs will be published on the website on 15 September 2009.
We have done our budgets, and we expect that the registration price will be very similar to the Launceston registration cost.
Website
The conference website is now up and running.
The website will be updated with information at least once per week, and will be an essential source of information for delegates.
Speakers
The theme of the conference is to highlight the State of WA.
We will provide a range of exceptional speakers, which will inspire you, and make this a conference not to be missed.
We have already confirmed prominent West Australians, burns specialist & Australian of the Year Dr Fiona Wood, and WA business women Janet Holmes A Court. We are well advanced with negotiations for additional speakers, and these will be announced on the website shortly.
Tours
The number of enquiries that we have received, indicates that many delegates will take the opportunity to do a tour of Perth & WA prior to, or straight after the conference.
We are currently talking with tour operators, and will shortly publish some tour options on the website.
Travel Around Perth
Perth and its surrounds are well serviced with public transport, including trains, buses and river ferries.
The main Perth bus terminal is only 50 metres from the front door of the PCEC.
Perth has an extensive train network which extends well out of the CBD. There is a train station 100 metres from the PCEC.
Like Melbourne, Perth has a free Blue Bus service which operates within the CBD.
Conference Secretariat
Additional information is available from the conference website, or you can e-mail the secretariat at kimd@kimdeneys.com.au
Where on Earth but Perth
Ross Smith
Rotary Club of Werribee
Perth Conference Chairman