Victoria's World Class Tourism Appeal Drives Strong Growth

Melbourne

Tourism and Major Events minister John Eren today welcomed the latest International Visitor Survey results released by Tourism Research Australia, which show Victoria's global appeal as a tourist destination and its strong events calendar are helping attract increasing numbers of visitors and spending from overseas.

In 2014, Victoria welcomed 2.1 million international visitors, an increase of 8.9% over the previous year, well ahead of the national average and the growth rates of key competitors New South Wales (6.7%) and Queensland (5.5%).

The figures build on long term trends which confirm that Victoria is leading New South Wales and Queensland in growth rates for international visitors, overnight expenditure and visitor nights for the period 2008-2014.

Asia is powering this latest expansion of Victoria's tourism success, with visitation from this continent growing by 15.2% for the year ending December 2014.

At the same time, Western markets (UK, continental Europe, USA and New Zealand) are recovering with a growth rate of 2.3%. This segment is particularly important, due to European tourists being more likely to travel to regional destinations.

Last year, international overnight expenditure in Victoria increase by 5% to $5 billion. In particular, expenditure from Chinese visitors increased significantly, growing by 19.7% year-on-year to reach $1.37 billion for 2014. This growth is in line with the 21.2% increase in Chinese visitors over the same period.

Quotes attributable to the Minister for Tourism and Major Events John Eren

• “In a highly competitive landscape, Victoria is cutting through as a major international destination, reflecting its outstanding variety of tourism experiences and world leading calendar of events, and backed by significant marketing efforts to promote the state.”
• “These latest figures demonstrate the healthy momentum of Victoria's growing appeal to international visitors and the considerable expenditure generated by these important overseas markets.”