Coronavirus drives $11.7 billion fall in domestic tourism spending

Domestic tourism spending plunged by $11.7 billion during the first few months of the Coronavirus pandemic, with 9.6 million fewer domestic overnight trips taken in April 2020 compared with the previous year.

The newly released figures from Tourism Research Australia (TRA) show the tourism industry’s current predicament which, with international tourism halted, is aiming for a recovery based on a revival of domestic travel.

The TRA figures show that revenue dropped by about 90% in the three biggest states, with NSW down $3.5 billion, Queensland recording a drop of $2.75 billion and Victoria slumping by $2.6 billion in April and May.

South Australia’s tourism industry suffered a $780 million fall while Tasmania recorded a $567 million drop.

May showed some signs of recovery as Coronavirus restrictions eased, with overnight trips down by 67% to 3.1 million compared with May 2019.

However, domestic tourism spend was still down 82% to $1.1 billion for the month, a $4.8 billion drop from the previous year.

Image: Wolgan Valley in the NSW Blue Mountains. Domestic tourism spending has fallen by $3.5 billion in NSW. Courtesy of Destination NSW.