Australia cemented its appeal to international holidaymakers in 2024–25 while Australians continued to favour nearby destinations, according to new Overseas Arrivals and Departures data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Holiday travel was the main purpose for 43 per cent of international visitors to Australia, the ABS reported. New Zealand remained the largest source of short‑term visitors, accounting for 17 per cent of arrivals.
Trips from India more than doubled compared with 2014–15, rising 102 per cent. Visitors from India also stayed longer than a decade ago, with the median duration of stay doubling to 61 days. At the other end of the spectrum, visitors from Japan recorded a median stay of six days, half the overall median stay of 12 days.
For Australians heading abroad, holidays dominated: around three in five outbound travellers were on vacation. Indonesia was the top destination, attracting 14 per cent of all Australian trips. Japan has surged in popularity, with the number of Australian trips tripling since 2014–15 and making it the third most popular destination, overtaking the United States.
The US slipped to fourth after being third in 2023–24, with travel volumes 25 per cent below 2014–15 levels — the only country in the top 10 yet to recover to a decade ago. China moved into fifth place among destinations for Australians, rounding out a top five of Indonesia, New Zealand, Japan, the USA and China.
The ABS cautioned that OAD figures, which include both short‑term and some longer‑term movements, should not be used as a measure of overseas migration, noting that they do not align with the official migration definition. For migration insights, the bureau directs users to its overseas migration statistics and population releases.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.
