Wirraway
12th Dec 2004, 16:59
Mon "Melbourne Age"
Overseas holidays up and away
By Tim Colebatch
Economics Editor
Canberra
December 13, 2004
Times are great for airlines, but not for tourism at ground level. New figures show there was virtually no growth last year in the number of Australians taking domestic holidays - but that there was a 26 per cent jump in the number flying overseas.
Figures released by Tourism Research Australia show that, while Australians are holidaying overseas in numbers never seen before, it has been at the cost of local tourism. Overnight trips within Australia rose by just 0.4 per cent in the year to September, as Australians profited from the higher dollar to head overseas.
But within that stagnant domestic market, new figures released by Tourism Research Australia show the airlines greatly increased their market share, as cheap fares enabled them to win customers away from cars, trains, buses and other transport modes.
For the first time, most Australians travelling interstate for a night or more are now flying there. In the year to September, their numbers grew by 12 per cent, while the numbers travelling by car shrank by 4 per cent.
Overall, Victoria attracted 4 per cent more visitors from interstate, of whom 55 per cent arrived by plane. But this was dwarfed by a staggering 33 per cent growth in the number of overseas tourists who spent most of their time in Victoria.
For the year to September, excluding day trips, Victorians made 12.7 million trips within the state, and attracted 5.3 million visitors from interstate and just under 1 million from overseas.
Federal Tourism Minister Fran Bailey hailed the growth in air travel, saying that in the September quarter alone, overnight interstate travel by air shot up 22 per cent.
"Cheap airline tickets are leading to strong growth in Australians flying interstate for holidays", she said. The total number of overnight trips interstate on all modes grew 2.4 per cent in the year to a record 23.7 million.
But in the same period, the number travelling overseas for their holidays grew 26 per cent, to a record 4.15 million. In three of the five months from May to September, more Australian tourists went overseas than foreign tourists arrived here - something that had not happened in any month for the previous 10 years.
Above all, the figures show Australians are going back to Bali. In the year to September, the number of Australians visiting Indonesia almost doubled, rising from 165,000 tourists to 310,000, despite Government warnings to stay away.
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Overseas holidays up and away
By Tim Colebatch
Economics Editor
Canberra
December 13, 2004
Times are great for airlines, but not for tourism at ground level. New figures show there was virtually no growth last year in the number of Australians taking domestic holidays - but that there was a 26 per cent jump in the number flying overseas.
Figures released by Tourism Research Australia show that, while Australians are holidaying overseas in numbers never seen before, it has been at the cost of local tourism. Overnight trips within Australia rose by just 0.4 per cent in the year to September, as Australians profited from the higher dollar to head overseas.
But within that stagnant domestic market, new figures released by Tourism Research Australia show the airlines greatly increased their market share, as cheap fares enabled them to win customers away from cars, trains, buses and other transport modes.
For the first time, most Australians travelling interstate for a night or more are now flying there. In the year to September, their numbers grew by 12 per cent, while the numbers travelling by car shrank by 4 per cent.
Overall, Victoria attracted 4 per cent more visitors from interstate, of whom 55 per cent arrived by plane. But this was dwarfed by a staggering 33 per cent growth in the number of overseas tourists who spent most of their time in Victoria.
For the year to September, excluding day trips, Victorians made 12.7 million trips within the state, and attracted 5.3 million visitors from interstate and just under 1 million from overseas.
Federal Tourism Minister Fran Bailey hailed the growth in air travel, saying that in the September quarter alone, overnight interstate travel by air shot up 22 per cent.
"Cheap airline tickets are leading to strong growth in Australians flying interstate for holidays", she said. The total number of overnight trips interstate on all modes grew 2.4 per cent in the year to a record 23.7 million.
But in the same period, the number travelling overseas for their holidays grew 26 per cent, to a record 4.15 million. In three of the five months from May to September, more Australian tourists went overseas than foreign tourists arrived here - something that had not happened in any month for the previous 10 years.
Above all, the figures show Australians are going back to Bali. In the year to September, the number of Australians visiting Indonesia almost doubled, rising from 165,000 tourists to 310,000, despite Government warnings to stay away.
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