The Minister for Tourism, Martin Ferguson AM MP said the latest international visitor survey from Tourism Research Australia shows increased visitation from newer tourist markets, while cautioning that the decline in visitor numbers from several of Australia's traditional tourist markets must be addressed.
The data shows spending by international tourists in the year to June 2008 grew by 9 per cent to $16 billion, due to increased tourism from destinations such as China, Malaysia and India, while overall international visitation remained steady relative to the previous year.
Minister Ferguson said: "The good news is that the China market grew by 10 per cent (34,000 additional visitors) and India grew by 22 per cent (18,000 additional visitors) - markets we have worked hard to grow. We are enthusiastic supporters of the Approved Destination Status Scheme, the backbone of Chinese travel to Australia. And in India, Tourism Australia will soon open an office in Mumbai to further grow this already impressive market for Australia. But the news is not all positive.
"Japan (down 14 per cent or 81,000 fewer travellers), the UK (down six per cent or 42,000 fewer travellers) and Korea (down 12 per cent or 30,000 fewer travellers) all suffered declines.
"This highlights the tough international conditions facing the Australian tourism industry, and also the need for the industry to improve the quality of the product it offers to remain internationally competitive.
"During a recent visit to Japan I met with representatives of the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) which recently chose Australia as one of the destinations for JATA's Visit the World Campaign. Tourism Australia will work closely with JATA, airlines in Australia and Japan, and state tourism organisations to make the most of this great initiative.
"On the supply side, all markets - but especially our traditional markets - will benefit from initiatives such as the National Tourism Accreditation Scheme, which will improve the quality of tourism across all sectors of the industry. The National Landscapes Initiative will also broaden Australia's appeal for the growing 'experience seeker' market.
"Another initiative is the National Long-Term Tourism Strategy which will focus on supply-side issues such as skills shortages and infrastructure constraints that have constrained the sector's capacity for too long.
"The secret to maintaining growth in our new markets and reversing the trend in declining markets is making the most of the Australian experience and refreshing and improving the quality of our products and services - I am working to make this a reality," Minister Ferguson said.