Whenever I scroll through social media, I can’t escape it – photos of friends all on exotic overseas holidays.
Turns out, it’s not just my Facebook feed as over 11 million Aussies packed their bags and jetted off overseas last year, a staggering 32 per cent jump from the year before.
On the flip side, Australia welcomed only 7.5 million international visitors last year.
While the Sunshine Coast is proudly leading the way towards becoming the first destination in Queensland to recover its international visitor numbers since the pandemic, the rest of the country is still 14 per cent short of reaching this milestone.
So, what’s going on, because our weak Aussie dollar makes us a bargain for other countries to visit?
A big part of the equation is that China used to be Australia’s biggest market, and they just aren’t travelling here in the numbers they used to. Also, other destinations, like Japan, have skyrocketed in popularity. In fact, close to a million Aussies travelled to Japan last year, a massive 50 per cent increase in just one year!
Visit Sunshine Coast is working to turn the tide, and there is no better opportunity to do this than at the Australian Tourism Expo. This event is like our Olympics, it’s by far the biggest travel event on the calendar bringing 700 VIP international travel buyers from 37 countries to Brisbane next month. It’s a chaotic time, with more than 150 15-minute appointments with the buyers over four days.
Think speed dating, but instead of finding true love, it’s about locking in deals that can transform our region’s tourism industry.
Proudly 26 out of the 621 exhibitors attending are from the Sunshine Coast, and they will work alongside Visit Sunshine Coast to showcase our slice of paradise to the world. This includes the folks at Tourism Noosa, as well as first time exhibitors such as Joel’s Journeys that operate out of Noosa and recently completed our trade-ready training.
If all goes well, we can then expect to hear a few more international accents on the Sunshine Coast. After all, it’s time to put the Sunshine Coast back on the global travel map!
