A Sydney Morning Herald report says that a strong Australian dollar is driving away tourists from the Lucky Country and even Sydney’s traditional marketing imagery of tanned lifesavers and sandy beaches was “getting a little tired”, a tourism council has said.
An ominous sign for the Australian tourism industry is the growing might of the Australian dollar, which has pushed foreign travellers towards cheaper destinations, while more Australians are likely to take their relative wealth overseas.
The Australian dollar hovered around US92 cents this week and its even healthier value against the yen is causing equal concern.
The Australian Tourism Export Council said local operators must start marketing what was unique about Australia if they were to overcome potential damage caused by the strong dollar.
Sydney, a prime destination for most overseas visitors, was “getting a little tired”, the council said, while the traditional marketing imagery of tanned lifesavers and sandy beaches may have to be modified to attract richer visitors.
The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show relatively flat growth in the number of tourists coming to Australia, but an 11.9 per cent jump in the number of Australians taking holidays overseas.
The Australian Federal Government launched an A$8 million (NZ$9m) campaign last month promoting world heritage areas to the lagging Japanese market.
“There’s massive investment in infrastructure in our region, and we are missing out in particular in [the hosting of] meetings and events in Australia,” said the Tourism Export Council’s managing director, Matthew Hingerty.
“There are a range of issues for Sydney, in that our product really is getting a little tired, we need a significant injection of marketing dollars, and we also lack innovation,” Mr Hingerty said.
“We find that if people are not coming to Sydney then they also tend not to come to Australia.”
The Australian Tourism Forecasting Committee attributed sluggish growth last year to the strengthening dollar.
Industry nervousness could be attacked by more innovation, Mr Hingerty said. The health tourism market, in which people travel to undertake treatment or consultations, could be better exploited.
The international health tourism market is estimated to be worth A$100 billion (NZ$120b).
A Report by The Mole
