WTM Global Hub

Sydney City Travel Briefing

INTRODUCTION

Key Findings

Sydney for fun

Home of world-famous landmarks, attractions, natural parks and experiences to suit all tastes and budgets, Sydney is a major leisure destination.

Strong prospects for MICE

Although leisure accounts for the bulk of arrivals to Sydney, current investment in high-end exhibition and convention centres will attract more events to the city and raise its profile as a MICE destination.

Eyes on the Chinese

China continues to outrank all other source markets, making up 14% of total inbound arrivals to Sydney. This is set to increase as the city gains exposure through greater promotional activity and enhanced air links.

Domestic tourism back on track

With the Australian dollar depreciating and Generation Y settling down after globe-trotting years to have a family, Australians’ holiday-making desires are shifting closer to home. This is positively impacting domestic tourism flows, which recorded a 7% increase in 2013.

Sydney Airport

The newly approved Master Plan 2033 will bring Sydney Airport to new heights, improving passenger experience, increasing airport efficiency, enhancing safety and maximising capacity.

Focus on experiences

Destination NSW is increasingly promoting experiences, instead of touristic sites. Current priorities are high yield sectors, such as Youth, Food and Wine, and Cruises.

Bright outlook

Travel and tourism in Sydney is expected to continue to thrive, prompted by the city’s unquestioned popularity as a leisure destination and growing business prospects in Australia and abroad.

TOURISM FLOWS

Tourism overview: Key trends

  • Overnight visitor arrivals in Sydney reached 10.5 million in 2012, up by 1% over 2011.
  • International overnight tourist arrivals totalled 2.7 million in 2012, recording 4% growth from the previous year. Domestic overnight tourist arrivals grew by less than 1% to a total of 7.7 million over the same period.
  • In 2013, domestic overnight tourist arrivals performed better, with a 7% increase, leading to 8.3 million arrivals. The depreciation of the Australian dollar has helped this trend, as domestic tourists postponed plans to travel abroad as such trips became more costly and domestic holidays came back into vogue.
  • 2013 data for international arrivals are not available yet as a result of a delay in the release of the International Visitor Survey (IVS) results for December 2013 to 30 April 2014. Tourism Research Australia is changing the Overseas Arrivals and Departures (OAD) data.

Business versus leisure

Chinese Tourism Law threatens booming arrivals from China

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