Cost-conscious Australian travellers may ditch expensive Europe getaways for more affordable South-East Asia holidays as the close-to-home region is set to welcome four million Aussie tourists in 2025.
Travel to Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia will rise by 42 per cent in 2025 as Europe falls out of favour among budget-conscious travellers looking for value in South-East Asia holidays over expensive long-haul trips, according to new TravelInsurance.com.au projections.
Other recent studies predict that Asia will lead the global tourism recovery in 2025 after years of restricted travel due to the pandemic.
South-East Asia holidays offers Aussies a travel experience at a fraction of the price and travel time, making the region an attractive option for savvy spenders.
For destinations, Japan (34%), Hong Kong (28%) and China (27%) top Aussie travel wish lists with the highest passenger growth while Europe’s recovery lags behind in 2025.
The number of Australians visiting France is projected to rebound from a six per cent decline in 2024 to 14 per cent growth this year, possibly powered by post-Olympics interest, while year-on-year travel to the UK is forecast to grow from three to 12 per cent, despite new ETA rules.
Data projections show Aussies will take 12.6 million overseas trips in 2025, however, if pre-COVID travel trends had continued, that number would surpass 14 million.
TravelInsurance.com.au CEO Shaun McGowan said: “Australians are still in ‘revenge travel‘ mode, making up for lost time post-pandemic, but they’re being smarter about it.”
“With the rising cost of living, they’re choosing destinations closer to home to save on both flight costs and travel time.”
