Published on : Tuesday, November 4, 2014
The Top End is set to cement its reputation as a bird lover’s paradise with construction to begin soon on a new luxury bird hide in Kakadu.
The new tourism venture is being supported by the Giles Government and will be built at Bamurru Plains lodge, among the coastal floodplains of the Mary River.
“The Country Liberals Government is committed to growing the range of tourism experiences on offer in the Territory and this new venture will help to attract more tourists Bamurru Plains and Kakadu,” said Tourism Minister Matt Conlan.
Bamurru Plains lodge has been successful in obtaining a $114,000 grant from the Territory Government to help support the new project as part of a $1.3 million pool of NT and Federal funding for tourism infrastructure and development.
The Lodge will also contribute $38,000 to the new venture.
“Bird watching is an extremely lucrative and niche market, with this kind of visitor often affluent with a high disposable income.
This type of new infrastructure is exactly what we need in the Territory to grow this market.
“The coastal floodplains of Bamurru offer one of Australia’s most extraordinary birding spectacles. With 236 species of bird species listed in the Mary River region, it is a bird watcher’s paradise.”
The new bird hide will be raised six metres off the ground and will lie on the edge of the upper canopy of fringing woodlands giving it a treehouse feel.
The 24 square metre platform will provide incredible views over the floodplains and provide a vantage point for guests to enjoy gourmet meals while taking in the surrounding wildlife, birdlife and landscapes.
“As well as birding enthusiasts, the new platform will be a photographer’s dream with the volume of birdlife on the floodplain presenting unique photographic opportunities against the backdrop of stunning orange sunsets as geese fly back to their roosts,” said Mr Conlan.
“This long-term investment in infrastructure by the Giles Government will ensure the Top End becomes a ‘must-do’ destination for birders who will likely visit Bamurru as well as other regions in the Top End to view the many rare and endangered bird species of the NT.
“The latest statistics show we’ve stopped the visitor declines of the last decade, with a 7.6 per cent increase in visitors to the Territory for the year ending June 2014.
“This investment in the industry is another step along the road to develop Northern Australia and deliver a $2.2 billion visitor economy in the NT by 2020.”
Bamurru Plains is a luxury safari camp located on Swim Creek Station, near Point Stuart in the Mary River Region.
The property encompasses a variety of habitat including vast river frontage, coastal floodplains, savannah woodland, and paperbark swamps.
It is 10 kilometres from Kakadu National Park’s western boundary (100kms from Jabiru in Kakadu) and just over 100 kilometres east of Darwin.
As part of its commitment to grow tourism to the Northern Territory, Tourism NT is promoting the Territory as a must-visit destination and birdwatchers paradise.
Tourism NT recently exhibited at Birdfair in the UK, which is a world-renowned event for the birding market.
Representatives also recently attended the inaugural Australasian Bird Fair in Sydney (Oct 25-26), targeting domestic birding enthusiasts with information about birding in the Top End and Central Australia
Tags: Bamurru Plains, kakadu, Territory
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