AirAsia X New Perth Route Good For Western Australia

As any property investor knows, you can have the most beautiful property in the world, in the cheapest place in the land but if nobody can reach you there is unlikely to be a liquid property market. Transportation links have never been more vital to the property market and more areas around the world are battling to attract a whole host of airlines to their shores. Western Australia is the latest to catch the eye of Malaysian based AirAsia X, the largest budget airline in the region of South East Asia and one of the fastest growing companies in the world of budget airlines.

Tourism Minister Sheila McHale recently announced a tie-up between Tourism WA (Western Australia), AirAsia X and Westralia Airports Corporation which is set to inject anything up to AUD$100 million a year into the Western Australian economy. The move is part of an ongoing venture to increase the transportation routes and links between Australia and Malaysia. While both Malaysia and Australia are very important tourist destinations the introduction of direct flights between Kuala Lumpur and Perth offers the potential for an array of cross marketing opportunities aimed at increasing visitor numbers for both countries.

Many in the Australian tourist market feel that this is payback time for the 40,000 visitors a year which take the short trip from Western Australia to Malaysia, injecting some AUD$157 million a year into the local economy. It also opens the Australian property market to investors from the Malaysia region, many of whom are enthusiastic about the potential for the Australian property market.

This new direct link from Perth to Kuala Lumpur also opens up the Perth area to a whole host of new visitors, the increased spending they bring and the need for greater tourist accommodation and entertainment venues. It will be interesting to see how the area benefits from the infamous ‘Ryanair effect’ link and the so-called budget airlines affect.