Future of Distribution
In 2024, Tourism Australia undertook a research project to unpack the post-pandemic complexities of tourism distribution.
Insights
Performance
A top-level view on how Australia is performing on the world stage in terms of visitation to our country, and how much travellers are spending when they are here.
Australia visitation (OAD, ABS & DHA)
The Department of Home Affairs provides Short-Term International Arrivals (visitation for less than 12 months) to Australia. The data is refreshed monthly and is two months delayed from the most current visitation month. The dashboard showcases arrivals for the selected year-ending, based on purpose of visit.
An example of how to read the report:
For the year ending September 2024 -
- Arrivals - Left graph: 1,370,088 short-term arrivals came from New Zealand to Australia. In the same period, 568,069 came from New Zealand, for the purpose of a holiday.
- Arrivals - Right graph: 3,503,603 came to Australia for a holiday, across all markets.
- Arrivals Trend - Graph: 2,754,768 came to Australia for the purpose of visiting friends and relatives (VFR), across all markets.
Expenditure (TRA IVS)
The Expenditure, Traveller Insights (TRA IVS) report shows statistics on international visitor arrivals from a total trip expenditure level perspective. Expenditure is in $AUD, and encompasses total trip spend, including flights to and from Australia.
An example of how to read the report:
For the year ending September 2024 -
- Expenditure - Left graph: $9.6bn was spent by the Chinese (total trip spend). In the same period, they spent $6.2bn on Education.
- Expenditure - Right graph: Across all markets, $17.5bn was spent for the purpose of a holiday (total trip spend).
- Tour Type - Graph: Across all markets, 7,012,752 arrived on non-group tours.
- Travel Behaviour - Top left graph: Across all markets, 64% were returning visitors.
- Travel Behaviour - Right graph: Across all markets, 3.70M visitors included a night in NSW.
- Travel Behaviour - Bottom left chart: Across all markets, 19% of nights were spent in regions other than Australian capital cities or the Gold Coast.
Combined arrivals and trip spend (OAD, ABS & DHA; TRA IVS)
The below report showcases TRA IVS Total Trip Expenditure ($AUD) data in comparison to the Department of Home Affairs' Short-term Arrivals. Both sets of data are showcased as year-ending and can be filtered by purpose of visit.
An example of how to read the report:
For the year ending September 2024 -
- Left graph: $6.2bn was spent on education by the Chinese.
- Middle graph: 193,085 Chinese visitors came for the purpose of education.
- Right graph: Chinese visitors had an average spend (total trip) of $11,994.
Consumer
Deep diving into the world’s travellers - who they are, what motivates them, and how they perceive Australia and our competitors.
Consumer Demand Project (CDP) Monthly Dashboard
Tourism Australia has brought together a range of lead and lagging indicators that give a global picture of the tourism landscape and a view of Australia’s performance within it.
The CDP has been recognised as the key data source for international consumer understanding since 2012. However, it has recently undergone a refresh and now utilises a more modernised approach.
It is designed to empower Tourism Australia and the sector with a rigorous, scientific and statistically-sound tracking program which informs strategy, marketing and communications that make Australia the most desirable and memorable destination on earth.
Brand codes
While people here in Australia are good at recognising our own country, would-be visitors still struggle. The fact is that our competitors also have lots of similar experiences, like white sandy beaches, majestic forests, delicious food and wine etc. It is important that we give international travellers the visual cues that make our communications instantly recognisable to them.
Aviation
Tracking how travellers get to our island nation, including route maps and seat capacity.
Australian aviation route map & seat capacity (Cirium)
The first interactive report features average weekly flight schedules for future months and past data back to 2019 from all countries to Australian airports (data updated weekly via SRS Cirium). In addition, the second interactive report shows the total seat capacity for flights to Australia from Tourism Australia’s 15 markets.
An example of how to read the report:
- For January 2023, flights from Canada to Australia consisted of 19 flights per week. All came from Vancouver International Airport, 16 from Air Canada and 3 from Qantas Airways.
Aviation Arrivals (ABS)
The interactive report below is sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Short Term Arrivals dataset. It showcases arrivals based on airline into Australia from both a monthly and 12 month rolling perspective. You will also be able to see the Port of Arrival (destination airport upon arrival) into Australia.
An example of how to read the report:
- For the month of September 2024, Qantas Airways had 80,587 arrivals
- For the year ending September 2024, Qantas Airways had 1,099,269 arrivals.
Intelligence
A repository of additional information from Tourism Australia and beyond, including distribution guidance, market updates, and downloads like Tourism Australia’s Future of Demand research.
Market updates
Tourism Australia is active in 15 core markets around the world. Find detailed insights on these regions here.
