New South Wales enjoys domestic tourism boost

Domestic visitors to the Australian state of New South Wales have contributed a record $16.4 billion year for the local visitor economy.

The state has enjoyed significant growth in the domestic tourism market, with interstate visitors, holidaymakers and business travellers underpinning the record figure.

Stuart Ayres, Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events, said new data from the Tourism Research Australia’s National Visitor Survey shows the NSW Government is progressing strongly in its strategy to grow overnight visitation.

“In the year ending March 2016, NSW received 28.6 million domestic visitors who stayed 92.1 million nights and spent $16.4 billion. Holiday expenditure in NSW exceeded $7 billion for the first time ($7.2 billion) and business expenditure was up 11.2 per cent to $2.8 billion,” he said.

“Domestic visitors to NSW have spent more than $16 billion, delivering a massive injection to restaurants, hotels and tourism attractions. These results highlight the outstanding work by Destination NSW to deliver a competitive advantage to our tourism industry.”

While Sydney has continued its national lead as the number-one place to do business, Regional NSW has also performed well. Business was the primary driver of growth in visitor numbers to New England North West (+45.8 per cent business growth), the Hunter (+8.1 per cent) and Murray (+22.8 per cent) regions.”

There was significant growth in interstate travel to NSW, primarily from Queensland, reaching 9.8 million visitors (+12.6 per cent), and holidaymakers bolstered strong visitor growth in the North Coast (+21.6 per cent holiday growth), Blue Mountains (+19.5 per cent) and Snowy Mountains (+12.2 per cent) regions.

“Not only is NSW attracting more interstate visitors but more people are also choosing to visit our regions. Regional NSW welcomed a record 20.2 million overnight visitors, who contributed a record $9.6 billion in overnight expenditure,” added Ayres.

“Regional NSW is one of this Government’s leading priorities and tourism plays a vital role in our regional economy highlighted by some of Australia’s most successful homegrown events including the Tamworth Country Music Festival, the Deni Ute Muster and the Parkes Elvis Festival.”