Australians Know There’s Nothing Like Australia

Published on : Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Australians are travelling more frequently at home and spending more, analysis of the latest National Visitor Survey by national industry body Tourism & Transport Forum (TTF) shows.
Tourism Research Australia has released the National Visitor Survey (NVS) for the year ending September, which shows continuing growth in domestic travel, with overnight trips up 4.1 per cent, nights up 2.8 per cent and overnight spending up 4.6 per cent.
TTF Chief Executive Ken Morrison said the results are an indication of the industry’s potential.
“The National Visitor Survey shows that more Australians are exploring their own backyard, which means the industry is getting it right in terms of the products and experiences it is offering consumers,” Mr Morrison said.
“Australians took 76.0 million overnight trips in the year ending September, spending 283.5 million nights away from home, of which 47 per cent were for holiday travel.
“Overnight visitors spent $51.7 billion in the 12 months to the end of September – up $6.2 billion since 2009 – with 51 per cent of that spending occurring in regional areas, supporting jobs and businesses around the country, while interstate visitor numbers are up 6.7 per cent for the year.
“It’s vital that governments around the country provide appropriate funding for tourism agencies to ensure this growth is maintained and to give them the certainty to enter into long-term partnerships to promote their destinations at home and abroad.
“Additionally, investing in cultural and sporting events, facilities in national parks, and demand-driving infrastructure like convention centres encourages visitation, generating expenditure throughout the visitor economy.
“More than 531,000 Australians are directly employed in tourism with at least 2400 direct tourism jobs in every single federal electorate, meaning tourism makes a significant economic contribution right across Australia.
“But it’s important to remember that we’re competing with other countries for Australians’ tourism spending: every country has a tourism industry, making it one of the most competitive sectors on Earth, and the fact that Australians are choosing to travel domestically is an endorsement of the quality and value on offer.
“Continuing to improve our products and experiences will help keep more of that money in Australia at the same time as enticing more international visitors to our shores.”