Number of international visitors to Australia FY 2024, by country of residence

Over 1.2 million visitors to Australia were residents of New Zealand in the year ended June 2024. Visitors from China were the second most prevalent visitor group at just below 800 thousand. These numbers represented an increase from the previous year, indicating a recovery from the slump caused by coronavirus pandemic travel restrictions worldwide in 2020 and 2021. 

Why do people visit Australia?

From the beautiful beaches on the Gold Coast to the city streets of Sydney, Australia is a popular destination among international and domestic tourists alike. In the 2024 financial year, the majority of visitors to Australia came for a vacation or to see their family or friends living in the country. Around three million visited for a holiday, and a little over 770 thousand traveled to the country for business purposes. 

How much do international visitors spend when in Australia?

Total trip expenditure of international visitors contributed about 47 billion Australian dollars to the country’s economy in 2024. This marked a rise in spending from the previous year, and exceeded pre-pandemic levels, in which international visitor spending came in at around 44.6 billion Australian dollars in 2019.

In financial year 2024, those who visited the country for holiday purposes accounted for the highest trip expenditure of international visitor arrivals to Australia by purpose, at approximately 16.7 billion Australian dollars. The second-highest spenders were visitors who went to Australia for education; they spent over 12.6 billion Australian dollars that year.