New tourism records as Aussies holiday at home
On the eve of the Christmas and New Year break, new data shows Australians are holidaying at home in record numbers.
The National Visitor Survey (NVS), released today, reveals overnight trips by Australians grew by seven per cent to a record 96 million and the number of nights they stayed grew by six per cent to a record 347 million during the year ending September 2017.
Spending by Australian tourists also soared, reaching a record $63.7 billion, up seven per cent on the previous year.
This comes after the International Visitor Survey (IVS) revealed a record $41.2 billion was spent by more than eight million international visitors during the record 268 million nights they stayed in Australia during the year ending September 2017.
Combined, 104 million tourists spent almost $105 billion during the 615 million nights they stayed in the past year.
The record number of international visitors and Australians holidaying at home is great news for our tourism industry. It's a $100 billion plus gift to our economy and all the small businesses that rely on a thriving tourism industry.
In more good news the NVS shows Australians are getting outside more for their holidays. Visiting National parks saw a 12 per cent increase to 10.8 million visitors, 11.3 million people went bushwalking, a 9 per cent increase, and 3.4 million people enjoyed water-based activities and sports, a 12 per cent increase.
Given Australia is famous for our sensational summer of sport, I look forward to seeing this strong growth continue with more Aussies enjoying the wide variety on offer. Sporting events are an important aspect of our tourism sector and with Cricket Australia already reporting new venue records for the Ashes matches at the Gabba and the Adelaide Oval, we are sure to see the growth continue.
As we approach the Christmas and New Year break, I encourage all Australians to enjoy our beautiful country and holiday home - that's what I'll be doing.
The Coalition Government returned responsibility for domestic tourism marketing to the states and territories in 2013, in order to refocus Tourism Australia on our offshore marketing capacity.
The NVS and IVS, produced by Tourism Research Australia, are available at www.tra.gov.au
| Visitors ('000) | 3 year change (%) | Spending ($m) | 3 year change (%) | Visitor nights ('000) | 3 year change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *Three year change is September 2014 – September 2017 | ||||||
| Queensland | 24738 | 16% | 20937 | 16% | 139578 | 14% |
| New South Wales | 35125 | 20% | 28495 | 30% | 194529 | 21% |
| Victoria | 26565 | 23% | 20916 | 32% | 135267 | 26% |
| ACT | 2935 | 20% | 2122 | 30% | 12217 | 17% |
| Tasmania | 2996 | 30% | 2846 | 42% | 16094 | 28% |
| South Australia | 6547 | 11% | 4892 | 14% | 32959 | 12% |
| Northern Territory | 1841 | 12% | 2309 | 6% | 13473 | 11% |
| Western Australia | 10576 | 11% | 9522 | 4% | 70171 | 3% |