Australia Struggling to Balance Inbound Visitor Void With More Local Tourists

The number of Australians leaving for international trips has been more than 80 percent above the number of incoming visitors to the country.

Reporting on Friday, The Australian (paywalled) said:

Australian Bureau of Statistics data showed in May 420,110 people traveled abroad for a short-term trip, 81 percent more than the 231,480 short-term arrivals. The gap was more than double that of May 2019, when the number of outbound travelers was 39 percent greater than visitors.

The Australian quoting tourism data from the ABS.

The pattern creates a problem for domestic tourism destinations, who are not only losing foreign visitors but also domestic travelers going abroad instead.

The problem is of a manageable size and hopefully short-term. When viewed in context. Inbound travelers were now at 34 percent of pre-pandemic levels, while outbound travelers were at 45 percent of pre-pandemic levels.

But the international visitor gap is still a real problem for businesses struggling to hold on for the rebound now beset with rising costs for labor, supplies, and energy.

See the Australian Bureau of Statistics tourism data here.