Two winners announced as WA’s premier Trail Towns

The popularity of mountain biking and bushwalking has created a mini tourism boom for many regional towns, but Dwellingup and Collie, with over 675 kilometres of trials between them, are the standouts — and they were crowned WA’s premier Mountain Bike Trail Towns by Trails WA last week.

The Trail Town initiative, which aims to boost WA’s regional centres by promoting the trail towns as tourism hotspots, has played a major part in the tourism boost for the towns.

Trails WA, the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DCBA) and the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC) collaborated to develop Trail Town standards that cover criteria such as trail infrastructure, landscapes, tourism marketing, maintenance and community engagement.

Regional towns that meet these standards can earn the title of a WA Trail Town and use the Trail Town logo in their promotions.

Suzanne Hillier, Chairperson of Trails WA says the benefits of achieving WA Trail Town status are numerous.

“The Trail Town initiative goes beyond mere recognition; it focuses on transformation,” Ms Hillier said.

Cutting loose on the Dwellingup mountain bike trails.
Camera IconCutting loose on the Dwellingup mountain bike trails. Credit: Trails WA

“By embracing these standards, towns can reimagine themselves as vibrant activity hubs, attracting visitors, driving commerce, and fostering community pride.

“It not only enhances visibility among outdoor enthusiasts but also draws destination trail users and holidaymakers — making it easier for them to plan their next trail-cation.”

Dwellingup

Just over an hour’s drive from Perth, Dwellingup has an abundance of nature-inspired experiences, so it is no surprise that it was also announced as the 2023 National Top Tiny Tourism Town.

The tiny hills hamlet is home to an extensive network of mountain bike trails ranging from easy-flowing single track to hard-core trails with frightening names like Karrakatoa, Busted Nuts, Bam Bam, and Tombstone.

There are 35 trails in the area with a combined length of just over 275km and they attract more than 34,500 users every year.

Collie

Collie may be a little further away, but it trumps Dwellingup with its sheer number of trails. Mountain bikers will find a huge range of tracks of varying difficulty around Wellington National Park and at the Arklow Trail Network.

The area around Collie boasts 59 trails with a combined length of just over 400km that attracts more than 20,000 users every year.

You can find out more about the trails and the towns at trailswa.com.au.

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