Rooney of England

It’s been 4 long years in the waiting, but finally we’re back. The World Game takes centre stage again and at Planet Inn we have both Fox Sports and Setanta on the big screen in our licensed bar lounge.

Relax and enjoy the games with an Aussie beer or two in our multi-cultural environment.

Follow the progress of your Nation’s team. Wayne Rooney (featured) will be among the stars hoping to set the World on fire, giving their all for their Country.

Come on England and come on Australia!

Miss-Planet-Inn-Girls-2009

We’d like to express a big thank you to all of those lovely ladies who sportingly agreed to enter this ‘bit of fun’ competition. All of the girls looked fantastic and put a fair few smiles on faces around the world.

You may recall that we ran a voting competition among our website readers to let you decide on your favourite.

The competition was slightly dubious given that only one of the girls was still staying at the hostel and was therefore attracting more interest from current and recent guests. One voter admitting to casting multiple votes in favour of their favourite!

So as far as I am concerned all of the girls are ‘winners’ just for having the sense of fun required to be involved, not to mention the looks and personalities!

All of the girls expressed a desire for ‘World Peace’ and all looked great in their bikinis as well as their evening gowns!

Interestingly, all of them were very reluctant to submit their photos of choice, yet all of them whinged at me when I had to select photos which did not show them in their best light! “No, not that photo!” was the usual cry!

From Here to Eternity!

Anyway, to cut a long story short, we, voting adjudicators, in their ‘wisdom’(?) finally decided that as Aoife McSharry was leading the votes just when our website host decided to relocate the site, (thus losing the votes), we would give her the prize.

So Aoife became the inaugural ‘Miss Planet Inn 2009′ and received a week’s free rent at Planet Inn, along with some free drinks. We can’t show photos of her being crowned (a) because she was ‘otherwise engaged’ with a new boyfriend when we were going to hold the ceremony on Christmas Day and (b) because we didn’t actually have a crown yet!

It’s not a perfect world!

Scott was always good at catching things!

Speaking of which, congratulations also to Scott Hillis for being the only entrant for ‘Mr Planet Inn Backpacker 2009′ and therefore, the winner by default! Thanks for being a good sport mate!

We hope to see all of you back at Planet Inn again soon, and the good news is that we can now start a new competition for this year. Everyone who has ever stayed here is welcome to enter! This year we will do it better and get some sponsors to contribute better prizes!

Some people think about reindeers and snow as a traditional Christmas, but for us “Down Under’, it’s about sand, surf, bronzed bodies and a cold beer or two!!!

With Planet Inn, not only can you savour the delights of our spectacular coast, but you can also come back home afterwards and party in our beer garden while your Aussie BBQ is cooked in front of you.

Of course we will add our Aussie flavour to the day. George will be providing a free surfing lesson at the beach and our meal will include turkey steaks and Christmas Pud once the temperature cools a little.

So if you haven’t made any plans yet, come and join us. It will be a day to remember.

Merry Christmas to all of our past, present and future customers!

We at Planet Inn recognise that a lot of people out there are finding things tough at the moment!

As a result of the ‘Global Financial Crisis’, tourism has been hit hard and people who may have intended to travel have held off because of cut-backs and job losses in other countries.

Those who have still come to Australia seem to not have as much cash available to spend and are seeking work sooner than in previous years.

So how are we at Planet Inn Backpackers responding to this ‘global crisis’ to help our customers?

We have held off the price increases that we normally apply at this time of year, which is usually our peak season.

Instead we are offering prospective and current guests “Recession Buster” Prices – Dorm Rates that would normally be around $27 to $28 per night are available for just $20 per night, with a week-in-advance rate of a crazy $130 ($18.57 per night).

In addition to this we have been making steady improvements and refurbishements to our premises to make things more comfortable and more convenient for our customers.

From Monday 23rd November, we will be offering a ‘Complimentary Breakfast’ between 7am and 9am.

In response to customer requests, we can now offer our guests free WIFI (wireless internet connection) for your laptops.

Our bar prices include customer-friendly “Happy Hours” in accordance with the local regulations.

We offer a free pick up service from Airports, Bus and Train Stations (min 2 ‘guest nights’ stay – ie one person for two nights or two people for one night).

We have found that a lot of travellers on Working Holiday Visas are asking us for work as soon as they arrive in Perth.

So we have responded by reactivating the Planet Inn Job Club. Anyone who stays with us can register at no cost for assistance in finding work.

Of course we cannot guarantee you a job, but we have helped thousands of backpackers to successfully find work.

The recent trend has been that more and more employers are starting to call us looking for staff and on some occasions we have had more jobs than people available to work.

We have set aside a couple of dorms as ‘Workers Dorms’, so that those people who are up early for work can have a bit of space from those of you who are just on holiday and in ‘party mode’.

Our ‘Promotional Planner’ offers discounted food, drinks and nightclub deals to keep more money in your pocket.

If you really want to save money, we recommend that you look at a Club Red Membership, which will give you discounts on all kinds of products and services from meals and entertainment to transport and tours.

Tony Inman, Managing Director

“Throughout the whole recessionary period, we have always maintained a commitment to providing friendly, heplful service and creating a fantastic atmosphere.

It really is like being in a ‘home away from home’ – a place where you will make friends for life and feel like you are part of an international family.”

Try us out – make a booking – we look forward to welcoming you.

Left to right: Alysha Wearne, Ciara Brady, Madeleine Dunlop and Aoife Mac Sharon.

We still need a few more entrants to fill the calendar, so come on girls, don’t be shy! 

Fiona the Birthday Girl

One of the things we love at Planet Inn Backpackers is to help our guests feel like it is their ‘home away from home’.

This was certainly the case for Fiona O’Sullivan from Kenmare in Ireland, who thought that she would be spending her 21st birthday quietly with just her boyfriend, Ger, and possibly regretting being in Australia away from her friends and family.

Thanks to the determined efforts of our other Irish lasses, Dee, Aiofe and Ciara, we resolved to dedicate our party night to helping Fiona to celebrate her birthday in style with many of her backpacking friends, who have effectively become her surrogate family.

Fiona was kept in the dark about the surprise party and her movements were carefully engineered so as to ensure maximum impact!

While Fiona was out, a whole team of helpers put in their efforts to decorate the bar lounge with balloons, streamers and disco fever accessories. Every member of staff was involved in some way and Tony invited other friends along to swell the party revellers.

Fiona returned home to find it looking completely different and to be greeted with a large crowd, shouting “Surprise!”

Fiona and her support crew

Sam did a great job as DJ and Wayne found a new role as a ‘chocolate crackle maker’.

The craic was mighty, as the Irish like to say, and the karaoke certainly provided some extremes in entertainment standards!

Fiona also enjoyed the traditional 21 kiss salute from all the boys!

One of Tony’s dive buddies, Britney, dropped in with some friends and brought in some of the American sailors from their visiting ship – the USS George Washington, making Fiona’s 21st birthday a truly international event, which we hope she will remember fondly for many years to come.

The full image gallery for the evening appears on this Planet Inn website on the Photos 2009 page.

Although we had a slightly delayed start to the quiz, the multi-cultural teams got into the spirit of things and it was very keenly contested!

Well that is, until Maddy came home from work…

After a spell of intense brain straining, the teams dispersed for a ‘half-time’ break, while Tony set up the guitar and PA system ready for a post quiz music session.

That was all it took…

The Generation Y (short concentration span) people quickly lost interest in the quiz and wanted to grab the microphone.

Kiwis doing a dance routine called 'the haka'

Before we knew it, the Kiwi boys started doing the ‘Haka’, which is a dance routine performed by New Zealanders prior to rugby matches (Ok, before they hunt me down – it’s actually a Maori War Dance designed to intimidate opposing warriors, but it’s obviously nowhere near as stirring as ‘Waltzing Matilda’).

Tony played a few songs on the guitar, then welcomed Maddy Ralls onto the stage.

What followed could be described as a defining moment in Planet Inn’s history – a star was born!

Maddy delighted the crowd with renditions of songs by artists such as Sheryl Crow and Alanis Morissette, along with some amazing originals with captivating lyrics.

Maddy Ralls live at Planet Inn

A few other guitarists made very enjoyable contributions, such as Tony, Jamie and Martin, but Maddy enthralled the audience with a blues voice that gave you goosebumps.

The quiz was quickly forgotten (postponed), the drinking began in earnest and the singing continued through the night.

We are confident that we will be hearing some more about this young star from Bristol!

Check out the full photo gallery on the Planet Inn Photos 2009 gallery on this website.

L to R : Jane Strand, Claire Boardman, Sarah Arkell, Lynsey Moore.

This guy is our first handsome entrant and is featured in the Mr Backpacker Gallery.

Scott Hillis

The following have agreed to enter the contests and we are just awaiting the right photos to add them to the galleries : Richie Evans, Alysha Wearne, Aoife MacSharry, Jason Le Signe.

Come on people – don’t be shy! Especially the guys!!!

Jane Strand

We are very fortunate to meet so many nice people in our Industry and particularly so many attractive ones.

A lot of you will no doubt remember me waffling on in a drunken stupor at our bar that I have often thought we should shoot a Planet Inn calendar.

Why?

Politically correct answer: Because we all appreciate beauty!

Now of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder and we can all be beautiful on the inside, blah, blah, blah.

So it’s up to you guys – here’s the deal. Over the course of this year, let’s say by August 31^st, I would like you to submit a photo of your entry for the calendar. Yes OK we’ll have blokes as well as girls just to keep everyone happy. A panel of judges will then agree on the best shots.

No – better still… I have an idea! My website guru, Peter Butler, will probably shoot me for the logistics of this, but we shall let you guys, the former guests of Planet Inn, vote on the best ones to be included on the calendar.

I will then organize for the calendar to be printed and it will be available by mail order through the website for a minimal price to cover expenses plus a donation to a worthwhile charity.

The Rules: (There has to be a couple!)

1. Anyone can submit a photo but the person in the photo has to agree to the use of their image, so we will need their email address to verify this.

2. The person in the photo must have stayed at Planet Inn/formerly Club Red or Redbackpackers.

3. The person should be alone in the photo. Otherwise we would need you to obtain permissions from the other people in the picture.

4. Preference would probably be given to an image that depicts an Australian background or something typically Australian, so as to make the calendar more nostalgic, though of course if the photo is good enough, that might not have to apply.

5. Preference would be given to pictures of smiling (or pouting) people in bikinis or beachwear (or even lingerie), though again a classy shot with a nice dress, hiking gear etc might be just as appealing.

6. We will set up a gallery on the website so you can all keep track of the entries.

7. Contestants who feature on the calendar will receive a promotional pack including gift vouchers, souvenir items that can be mailed overseas, free Club Red Membership and of course a free calendar. (Total value will exceed $200). Entrants who don’t quite make it to the calendar will also receive a mystery consolation prize!

8. Images can be emailed or posted to us or posted on our facebook site and may be edited for resizing purposes.

9. Contestants may be from any of the 13 years for which we have now traded but entries for this competition will close at midnight on August 31^st, 2009.

Note that if we are flooded with entries, we may feature multiple photographs or even produce an accompanying booklet.

Let’s have some fun!

To see the latest entrants, go to our Gallery pages : Miss Backpacker of 2009
and Mr Backpacker of 2009.

Tony and his crayfish!

Although I have been scuba diving for over three years now and have qualified to the level of PADI Recue Diver, I have only recently experienced the joy of diving for crayfish.
Some of my friends have been engaging in this ‘cat and mouse’ game for a while now, while I have always preferred to leave marine life undisturbed, and instead take copious amounts of photographs with which I can bore anyone willing to look at them for hours on end!
Recently though, I took the plunge (excuse the pun) at Rottnest Island and in the company of the infamous “Welshie” and my girlfriend Jo, we went hunting for our dinner.
The event was a Dive Club trip organized by Neil Clarke at Perth Dive Locker and he provided the loops. I provided the venue at Planet Inn and our versatile Chef, Mel was primed ready to cook up a feast.
I have to report that it is amazingly difficult! The little rock lobsters just don’t want to be caught and will not co-operate very much.
They hide under ledges and they always have an escape route planned. When you see their antennae poking out, you have to dive down close and poke your head under the ledge. Then you ever so carefully slide a long rod past the cray as he appears to be weighing you up. On the end of your rod is a spring loaded loop which you open up so that it’s larger than him.
If you are lucky, as you bring the loop forwards towards his tail, he will panic and walk backwards into your loop which you quickly close around him. It may sound easy enough but these things are lightning fast and very adept at sidestepping the loop.

Cray Diving at Rottnest

Out of about four that I tried to catch, I succeeded only once – on the first attempt, and what a thrilling moment that was.
Between us we caught five crays that day, though one was deemed to be undersize and was thrown back. By the way, you need a “Rock Lobster Licence” from the Fisheries Department and there are stringent rules so as to protect the species from over-fishing.
I can highly recommend them cooked with garlic and lemon! Ask Mel for the special recipe.
 If you want to have a go at cray diving, just experience a trial dive or actually complete a “Learn to Dive” Course, please contact our staff at Planet Inn who will help you with all the necessary information and book it for you.
Tonaldo the “Inn Man”
23rd March, 2009