International visitor arrivals data for the year ending November 2015 released yesterday by the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that China continues to be our fastest growing major source market, with growth of 21.6 per cent for the same period.
The latest figures were welcomed by the Federal Minister for Tourism and International Education, Senator the Hon. Richard Colbeck, who said recently implemented Government measures, such as opening a new Australian Visa Application Centre in Chengdu, China and streamlining visa application processes, were making it easier for Chinese tourists to come to Australia and will support continued growth into the future.
Tourism Australia Managing Director, John O’Sullivan, added that key to building a market now worth $7.7 billion annually to the Australian economy had been moving away from traditional group tours and aggressively targeting China’s rapidly emerging middle class.
“Our marketing, distribution and partnership strategies are all now geared towards targeting this new breed of young, independent traveller with the desire and the financial means to explore our country. That’s where we are focusing our resources and I’m delighted to say that is what is driving these impressive results,” he said.
Tourism Australia has undertaken several recent initiatives to boost Chinese tourism such as building an elite network of travel agents in China who are specially trained to sell tour packages to high-yielding clients. In recent years, Tourism Australia has also signed major strategic marketing agreements with China's largest carriers, including China Southern, China Eastern and Air China.
Mr O’Sullivan said those Australian tourism businesses which understood and were willing to adapt to the needs of Chinese visitors would derive the biggest benefits.
“We’ve gone to significant lengths to research and improve our understanding of our target consumer – their travel preferences and behaviour and the type of tourism experiences they are most looking for. The good news is that the industry is really starting to embrace this incredible opportunity by developing experiences which better meet the needs of the many Chinese visitors now flocking to our country,” Mr O’Sullivan said.
Fast facts
Chinese visitor arrivals to Australia:
Chinese visitor arrivals have increased from 100,000 in the year 2000 to one million in January 2016, with an average annual growth rate of 18 per cent since 2010.
Chinese arrivals grew two-to-three times faster in most months in 2015 than total overall arrivals to Australia.
Arrivals breakdown – holiday (53 per cent), visiting friends and relatives (20 per cent) and education (13 per cent).
Chinese visitor spend:
China is Australia’s most valuable market, with Chinese visitors spending more than $7.7 billion annually. Spend has increased by more than 400 per cent in the past 10 years, from $1.5 billion in 2005 to $7.7 billion in 2015.
Year-on-year spending grew 43 per cent in 2015 – double the previous 12 month’s growth rate.
Under Australia’s long-term tourism strategy, the value of the China market was originally estimated to be between $7.4 billion and $9 billion a year by 2020. Annual spending has already exceeded the lower end of that original range, and more recent forecasts indicate the market could be worth up to $13 billion.
Find out more about the latest visitor arrivals figures for the year ending November 2015.
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