ATEC flags Australia’s export tourism recovery as slow but steady

Australian Tourism Export Council has flagged Australia’s export tourism industry as continuing on its slow but steady recovery with the number of international holiday maker arrivals now at 74% of 2019 levels.

While the volume of inbound travellers to Australia continues its steady recovery month-on-month, Australians are heading overseas for their holidays at a remarkable rate surpassing the numbers seen in April 2019.  

ATEC Managing Director Peter Shelley noted “Australia’s export tourism industry is on a slow and steady recovery and while the numbers are not jumping back to previous levels as fast as outbound, we are seeing improvements each month.

“While this is slower than we’d like overall, there is still a growth trend which, if it continues, should see us back to 2019 levels towards the end of this year or early 2025. 

“Despite a slow recovery, our industry remains positive and fully engaged in rebuilding our inbound markets.” 

The latest data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics reveal while Australian’s are once again enjoying travelling the globe in droves, there are changes to the source countries of our inbound markets. 

Shelley added “we are now seeing good growth in inbound visitation from markets including India, Indonesia and South Korea compared to 2019 and, encouragingly, the China market is also showing positive signs of recovery.