International tourists loving regional Australia

International tourists are staying longer and spending more when they visit Australia. And they are venturing out of the capital cities with record growth in regional Australia.

During the last year tourists from across the globe spent a record $39.8 billion during the 262 million nights they stayed in Australia. Both increases of five per cent from the year ending March 2017.

Regional Australia is enjoying a boom with a 29 per cent increase in both international tourists and spending over the last three years. The Turnbull Government's investment in regional Australia is seeing international visitors grow six times faster and spending grow five times faster than it did under Labor.

The Coalition will continue to drive this growth in regional Australia through the Regional Tourism Infrastructure Investment Attraction Strategy.

This record growth is reported in the latest International Visitor Survey (IVS), released today.

The IVS shows Asian markets recorded the fastest growth in spend for the year, with six key markets showing double-digit growth – Japan (up 18 per cent to $1.7 billion); Korea (up 10 per cent to $1.6 billion); India (up 18 per cent to $1.3 billion); Taiwan (up 21 per cent to $960 million); Indonesia (up 10 per cent to $715 million); and Thailand (up 23 per cent to $442 million).

The United States is also helping drive this record growth, with a strong resurgence in Americans heading down under. US visitors spent $3.6 billion in Australian during last year - a 64 per cent increase since 2012.

These results build on the successful appointment of Chris Hemsworth as Australia's global tourism ambassador. Through this work with Tourism Australia, the home grown hero has generated more than 4,500 media articles globally, with an Estimated Advertising Value of more than $144 million.

The record growth in spending by international tourists is creating jobs across the country.

The Turnbull Government knows tourism creates jobs and sustains the country's small businesses, which is why Tourism Australia continues to receive record funding.

The International Visitor Survey is available on the Tourism Research Australia website.