The Tourism and Transport Forum (TFF) released its survey about travel plans in the spring, with 67 percent of Australians who are planning to travel between 15 September and 31 October of this year – in the interior or abroad.
That number fell somewhat from the same time last year when 71 percent of people reported to travel.
Of the people who are planning to travel across school holidays, 11 percent go abroad.
“We have seen a bit of a shake-up internationally. New Zealand has jumped in the number one place, catching up in catching Europe, which was the most popular during the winter vacation,” Margy Omond, CEO of TFF, told SBS News.
Osmond said that New -Zeeland is an international destination, because it presents the “perfect balance” for Australians.
“Close, trusted and offering that international holiday feeling for a fraction of the costs of a long-distance trip,” she added.
Holidays to Europe have already proved popular this year. In July, Anz projected that his customers would spend $ 280 million to Europe in the winter based on trends in hotel and aviation bookings – an increase of 10 percent compared to 2024.
For domestic travelers, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane are the best cities for holidaymakers and the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, NSW’s South Coast and Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula are the most popular regional destinations.
“Something like 35 percent of people will stay in their own home, and many of them will have a stay. So they might stay at home with the children and explore their own great home town and have that kind of experiences,” said Omondond.
The biggest barriers
However, costs are still the biggest barrier for Australians who want to travel, with 44 percent of Australians call it their most important obstacle for making planning.
“[Australian travellers] Feel squeezing. … there is no doubt that the costs of living will start to have an impact. And people may go a little shorter and spend not so much, “said Omond.
The vast majority of travelers intended to spend less than $ 5,000 on their vacation, including 41 percent who were planning to spend less than $ 2,000 on their entire journey.
For some, climate problems are also in mind, with people from 25 to 34 years old, who most likely mention extreme temperatures as a care for travel.
Political considerations such as a barrier for travel have also increased since last year, and this year we rose from 2 percent to 6 percent.
“Uncertainty in different parts of the world certainly weighs on many Australians when they think of traveling, and our data suggests that this concern can be pronounced more in the next five years,” Omond said.
“Having said, history shows that Australians are rarely deterred from taking a vacation. Large sporting events, cultural attractions and festivals are generally strong enough to outweigh broader political unrest when it comes to choosing where to go.”
Sarah Dolnicar, professor at the Business School of the University of Queensland, told SBS News earlier this year that a decrease in interest in traveling to the US was at least a part driven because of political instability.
“I don’t know if it is specifically the Trump government or whether it is the observed volatility of decision-making, but there is absolutely no doubt that this has influenced the international trips to the US,” said Dolnicar.
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