Aussies are packing their bags, but staying local for now

Tripadvisor survey shows that 62% of Australian travellers are planning local trips in the next 2-3 months; and 66% said their next international trip will be more than a year away

AUSTRALIA, 16 March, 2021 - A holiday has felt like an impossible dream for such a long time, but with a steady trend of zero local cases countrywide and the start of the vaccination roll out, freedom is finally on the horizon for Aussies, starting with staycations and road trips.

Australians are already getting their bags packed and itineraries filled, as a Tripadvisor survey reveals that two in five (41%) are planning a trip as early as fall (between now and 31 May), rising to 45% of Millennials and Gen-Z travellers (45%). This is a stark difference from the same time period a year ago, when 70% didn’t travel at all.

Notably, Australian Millennials and Gen Z’s are more confident and eager to return to travel than any other generation:

85% are planning a trip this fall (compared to 42% total).
77% believe day-to-day life will return to normal within three months (compared to 28.5% total).
77% believe they will be better off financially in the next 12 months than they are today (compared to 29% total).
50% are optimistic the economy will rebound within three months and grow just as strong or stronger than before (compared to 19% total)

And while 2020 was THE year of the staycation, it looks like holidaying close to home is a trend that is set to continue, as Tripadvisor site data shows that only 3% of Australians are searching for international destinations for travel between now and the end of May.

But which destinations are on the up for Aussies this fall?

When looking at the Australian destinations which have seen the biggest increase in searches by Aussies year-on-year, Airlie Beach continues to be a hot favourite, followed by Port Douglas and Yulara.

The destinations traditionally popular with Aussies generally are absent from the top 10 fastest growing destinations (those with the biggest increase in searches year-on-year). Traveller favourites Melbourne, Sydney, Burswood, Perth and Canberra make up the top five slowest growing international destinations for Aussies this fall. This comes as one in four (24%) Aussies surveyed say that they are less likely to take a city break than before the pandemic. Australian Gen-Z and Millennial travellers are not quite so put off by the idea of a city break. In fact, one in four (27%), said that they are now more likely to take this type of trip.

10 Fastest Recovering Destinations	10 Slowest Recovering Destinations
Airlie Beach	Melbourne
Port Douglas	Sydney
Yulara	Burswood
Pokolbin	Perth
Nelson Bay	Canberra
Port Macquarie	Margaret River
Caloundra	Adelaide
Coffs Harbour	Lorne
Palm Cove	Launceston
Broome	Brisbane

-ENDS-

NOTES TO EDITOR

The data cited in this release was gathered and analysed from two key sources:

A Tripadvisor Consumer Sentiment Survey, based on data drawn from an online survey of over 2,000 consumers, in partnership with Qualtrics, conducted between February 22, 2021 through March 4, 2021across six countries - U.S., UK, Australia, Italy, Singapore and Japan
Site behavioral data sourced from first party traffic data on the Tripadvisor platform, gathered during the week commencing 15 February,for searches made by AU travellers from 1 January 2021 through 14 February 2021 for travel between 1 March 2021 through 31 May 2021.

For further information, contact apacpr@tripadvisor.com

About Tripadvisor

Tripadvisor, the world's largest travel guidance platform*, helps hundreds of millions of people each month** become better travelers, from planning to booking to taking a trip. Travelers across the globe use the Tripadvisor site and app to discover where to stay, what to do and where to eat based on guidance from those who have been there before. With more than 884 million reviews and opinions of 7.9 million businesses, travelers turn to Tripadvisor to find deals on accommodations, book experiences, reserve tables at delicious restaurants and discover great places nearby. As a travel guidance company available in 49 markets and 28 languages, Tripadvisor makes planning easy no matter the trip type.

The subsidiaries of Tripadvisor, Inc. (NASDAQ:TRIP), own and operate a portfolio of online travel brands and businesses, operating under various websites and apps, including the following websites: www.bokun.io, www.cruisecritic.com, www.flipkey.com, www.thefork.com (including www.lafourchette.com, www.eltenedor.com, www.bookatable.co.uk, and www.delinski.com), www.helloreco.com, www.holidaylettings.co.uk, www.housetrip.com, www.jetsetter.com, www.niumba.com, www.seatguru.com, www.singleplatform.com, www.vacationhomerentals.com, and www.viator.com.

* Source: SimilarWeb, unique users de-duplicated monthly, December 2020

** Source: Tripadvisor internal log file