Gold Coast bucks national trend as domestic holiday haven
In the twelve months to March, the Gold Coast generated $7.4 billion in total visitor expenditure and welcomed 11.6 million total visitors
Latest National and International Visitor Survey results released by Tourism Research Australia for the year ending March 2024 reveal the Gold Coast’s sustained post-pandemic return.
Experience Gold Coast CEO John Warn said the new figures show that the city’s visitor economy continued to rebound in a changing market.
“In the twelve months to March, the Gold Coast generated $7.4 billion in total visitor expenditure and welcomed 11.6 million total visitors, up 28 per cent and down 17.8 per cent respectively on 2019 levels,” Mr Warn said.
“These visitors stayed a total 22.8 million nights, just 13.3 per cent shy of 2019 levels with an average stay of 8.15 nights for domestic overnight and international visitors combined.
“The Gold Coast led the state and the country in holiday visitor growth over the past twelve months, with 2.5 million domestic overnight holiday visitors, up 0.5 percent year-on-year.
“With cost-of-living increases affecting many Australians, we appreciate that so many holidaymakers continue to value and visit the Gold Coast.
“As economic recovery continues, the Gold Coast will keep delivering great experiences and value for money.
“International visitation continues to recover, with 651,000 international visitors from top markets including New Zealand, South Korea, the UK, China and USA.
“New Zealand remains the Gold Coast’s largest international market, now fully returned to 2019 levels with 211,000 Kiwi visitors while South Korea has shown strong growth, reaching a record 55,000 visitors.
“We continue to focus on the opportunities ahead as a multi-faceted destination – expanding our event offerings, promoting mid-week travel, enhancing our cultural credentials and attracting high-yielding markets for future growth.”
It comes as tourism businesses welcome visitors for the winter school holidays, contributing up to $330 million locally. Accommodation bookings are reasonably strong, up 9 percent from the same period last year.
Mr Warn said the Gold Coast offers a breadth of experiences this winter, including Italian Renaissance Alive and a curated dining experience at HOTA Gallery, superb whale watching cruises, and BIG CITY LIGHTS* illuminating the city’s skyscrapers.
“The next 6 months are going to be huge when it comes to events on the Gold Coast, giving interstate visitors more reasons to travel here.
“We’re on the cusp of announcing two major sporting events for the coming months and Pacific Airshow Gold Coast is about to drop its second wave of extraordinary performers that will boost already strong ticket sales.”
Total Visitors (for the 12 months to March 2024)
| Total Visitors | Total Spend | Total Nights |
329.5m -12.2% vs 2019 | $173.4B +25.2% vs 2019 | 667.9m | |
71.5m -12.3% vs 2019 | $41.0B +30.8% vs 2019 | 148.1m | |
Gold Coast | 11.6m -17.8% vs 2019 | $7.4B +28.0% vs 2019 | 22.8m -13.3% vs 2019 |
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