This is great news! Western Australia has won the rights to host the World Trails Conference in 2026 bringing the prestigious biennial industry event to the Southern Hemisphere for the first time.
Set to take place in Perth from 19-22 October 2026, the conference will showcase WA’s world-class trails and tourism destinations, bringing up to 600 trail experts together who influence trails and nature-based tourism globally.
The trails industry drives a significant contribution to economies around the world and is a major employer, with the USA leading the way with USD$135bh in economic value generated through trail-based activities and over 725,000 associated jobs.
Nature-based tourist are one of the primary target markets for tourism in Western Australia as a high yielding traveller and the conference provides the opportunity to position WA at the forefront of the international trails scene.
“Western Australia is home to some of the world’s most stunning and culturally significant trails, with over 1,000 sanctioned trails across the state and 391 within an hour’s drive of Perth,” said Neil Le Febvre, CEO at Outdoors WA.
“That makes us a real trails paradise and internationally, we are held in high regard for our strategic coordination across government and community in both our trail development, and our technical prowess.
“We’re excited to bring the best minds in the industry together from around the globe to both experience our world-class trails and inspire our local trails industry to even greater heights by sharing global best practices.”
Under the banner of “Trails for the Future: Connection, Culture and Conservation”, the conference will be hosted by Outdoors WA, the peak body for the outdoor industry in Western Australia and will celebrate the deep connection to country that has been nurtured for over 65,000 years.
Up to 600 delegates from 35 different countries are expected to attend, comprising tourism professionals, government policy makers, NGOS, conservationists, and Indigenous leaders to explore the future of trails, nature-based tourism and sustainable land management.
Key themes will include trail tourism best practice, learning connection to country from First Nations, conservation, technology and regenerative land management.
For more info click here.