UK Tourism in Australia - Statistics [2020]

Updated: 08 October 2020

How many British tourists visit Australia each year?

An estimated 562,750 visitors from the UK travelled to Australia for the year ending June 2020
  • Visitors from the UK decreased by 21.6% when compared with the 718,600 of the previous year
  • The UK was the 4th highest source of visitors to Australia in 2019/20
  • The effects of the coronavirus travel restrictions are the main cause of this dramatic decrease
Data source: ABS. Image credit: Camper Champ

Impact of the Coronavirus on Brisith Tourist Expenditure

Visitors from the UK spent an estimated $2.6 billion during visits to Australia in the year ending June 2020
  • Spending was down 23.5% when compared with the $3.4 billion of the previous year
Data source: TRA. Image credit: Camper Champ

How many British tourists visited Australia in 2019?

718,600 British tourists visited Australia between July 2018 and June 2019, down 3.2% from 742,700 during 2017/18 1

British tourism through the years

  • British tourism peaked in 2006/07 with 745,500 visitors.
    • This could be attributed to both the Ashes cricket series and Commonwealth Bank cricket series being held in Australia that year.
  • After 2006/07, British tourism saw a decline and only started to improve in 2011/12.
  • Despite nearly reaching the peak again in 2017/18, British tourism fell again this year.
British visitors to Australia between 1990 and 2019.
Data source: ABS. Image credit: Camper Champ, UK

The UK's share in the Australian tourism industry

  • The UK accounted for 7.9% of all visitors to Australia in 2018/19.2
  • The UK currently ranks 4th for the top visitors to Australia.

Top countries that sent visitors to Australia in 2019

Data source: ABS. Image credit: Camper Champ

Reasons British tourists visit Australia

  • Visiting friends/relatives is cited as the most common reason British tourists visit Australia.
  • Holidays are also a popular reason for British tourists to visit.
Data Source: TRA. Image credit: Camper Champ, UK

The UK's contribution to tourism expenditure in Australia

  • At an estimated $3.4B in 2018/19, the UK accounted for 7.6% of all expenditure from international tourists, ranking 3rd for Australia.
  • Ahead of the UK were China and the USA.
Australian tourism top spenders in 2019 by country.
Data source: TRA. Image credit: Camper Champ

Top British Travel Trends in 2019

What do British tourists spend on in Australia?

  • British tourists spent $94 per day in 2018/19, ranking 5th on the list of top spenders.
  • Food, drink and accommodation were the most popular items at $49 per day.
  • Spending on shopping and education were comparatively low.
Australian visitor spends per day in 2019 (by country)
Data source: TRA. Image credit: Camper Champ

The UK's travel patterns and Australia's share

  • An estimated 76% of UK citizens hold a passport.3
  • The UK’s top travel destinations in 2018 were Spain, France and Italy.4
  • All of the top 10 destinations were European countries, suggesting British tourists prefer locations closer to home.
  • Despite attracting 718,600 visitors, Australia is still low on the list, not yet making it into the UK’s top 10.

Travel Statistics Resources

References

  1. ABS: Overseas Arrivals and Departures, Australia, August 2019 ↩
  2. TRA: International Visitor Survey, 2019 ↩
  3. ONS: Country of Birth and Nationality, 2011 Census ↩
  4. Finder: UK Outbound Travel Statistics, October 2019 ↩