iscover
The return of international tourists to Australia appears to be stalling badly, with numbers still 40 per cent down on 2019 despite a global ad campaign in October to entice them to return.
Data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) show there were 648,970 “short-term overseas arrivals” in December 2022, down 39.8% on the same month in 2019. Significantly, that percentage decrease was actually almost 1 per cent worse than in November.
The figures tally with recent comments by Sydney Airport’s CEO, Geoff Culbert, who said Australia’s international recovery is being “frustratingly” held back by a lack of capacity on key overseas routes.
“In January, the number of U.S and U.K. travellers was still only three-quarters of what we saw pre-COVID, while the number of passengers from previously popular European countries like Germany and France was even lower,” said Culbert.
“With the border to China reopening earlier this year, we anticipate the number of Chinese travellers to increase significantly throughout 2023, especially with more capacity returning to key routes.
“Australia also needs a sustained recovery in aviation capacity to support the recovery of key export markets including high-value agriculture, business travel, and international students.”
Australian Aviation previously reported how despite the number of entrants to Australia is increasing, few appear to be traditional tourists.
Across the 2021–22 financial year, for instance, just 18 per cent of those arriving listed their reason for coming to the country as being to holiday, compared to 56 per cent who cited visiting friends or relatives.
The data appears to corroborate the observation made by Adelaide Airport’s MD, Brenton Cox, on the Australian Aviation Podcast in November last year.
“Right now, probably most of the people coming from overseas are doing so to visit friends and relatives, or for essential business,” he said. “The big free, independent travellers haven’t quite made their way here yet.”
Cox said he believed Australia’s COVID-19 response – which saw state borders open and close and a high-profile incident involving Novak Djokovic – deterred casual visitors.
“I just remember looking at the scenes when Djokovic was being booted out of the Australian Open. And at that moment, you went, ‘Wow, it’s a lot of eyeballs on this.’
“And there are a lot of people who – similar to the state border risk – thought, ‘Well, if I come to this country, am I going to be trapped? Or am I going to be stuck in a detention centre?’”
The poor entrance numbers also come despite Australia launching a $125 million ‘Ruby the Roo’ global push to entice international visitors in October, voiced by Bridesmaids’ Rose Byrne and Arrested Development’s Will Arnett.
Tourism Australia said there would be “brand activity” in 15 global markets and spending on media in nine countries.
