Tourism to Aus will boom over the next decade
Leading industry demographer and visionary, Bernard Salt says that falling oil prices, better air services and a weaker Aussie dollar are all expected to bring an influx of overseas tourists into the country in the next decade.
He says that the Tourism Forecasting Committee (TFC) of which he is Chairman has estimated that inbound tourism will increase at an average growth rate of 5.2% a year from $A18.5 billion in 2005 to $A31.6 billion in 2015.
He added that high oil prices had slowed the international tourism market this year, but said growth opportunities should pick up pace in the coming months and that inbound arrivals in 2007 were forecast to increase by more than 4% to reach 5.7 million.
Bernard said “The broad outlook for Australian tourism is positive over the next decade and the new forecasts provide a good indication of the growth opportunities that exist within the industry,” adding, “Longer term international visitor arrivals are expected to grow by 4.3% annually to around 8.4 million visitors in 2015, with much of the growth expected to come from Asian markets.”
While lower oil prices were predicted to bring more visitors into the country, he said this same factor could dampen interest in domestic tourism as international airfares became more affordable for many Australians, adding, “Domestic tourism continues to face significant competition from outbound destinations, with the number of nights domestic visitors will spend in Australia expected to rise only marginally over the medium term, reaching 291 million nights in 2015, representing an average growth of only 0.5%.
TFC forecasts the economic contribution of domestic tourism will increase by 0.7% per annum reaching $49 billion in 2015. Bernard said that, “At the same time outbound departures are forecast to rise by 4.4% to five million in 2006, and to grow at an average annual rate of 3.9% to reach seven million over the 10 years to 2015.”
This is not good news for STO’s who have been experiencing very flat domestic tourism over recent years, but it is good news for inbound operators and Tourism Australia’s overseas marketers.
Report by The Mole
John Alwyn-Jones
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
In Italy, the Meloni government congratulates itself for its tourism achievements
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive