Australia smashed its record in 2022 to become the UK’s third most valuable international source market, with inbound visits and spending growing significantly throughout the year and exceeding pre-pandemic levels by 13 per cent (and even French visitors) in the third quarter of 2022.
For Australian visitors to the UK, the latest recovery statistics are impressive, with a spend on average of more than £1,000 (AU$1,776) per visit, compared to the average of £696 (AU$1,236) across all other international markets.
Aussies also stay almost twice as long in the UK, spending an average of 13 nights versus the all-market average of seven.
Flight bookings from Australia to the UK continue to show strong growth, with recent inbound flight bookings in early January surpassing 2019 levels by 17 per cent. The latest research suggests forward bookings for the rest of 2023 and beyond are not slowing.
Speaking at a VisitBritain breakfast at the British Consulate General Sydney last week to celebrate Sydney WorldPride and Mardi Gras, VisitBritain’s Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand, Maria Sykes, said, “Normally, I would be standing here proudly telling you that Australia is the fifth most valuable in the world to the British visitor economy. And that’s pretty good for a nation of 25 million. But today, you are the third most valuable market to Britain. It is an incredible and extraordinary moment.”
The remarkable numbers also highlight the adventurous appetites of Australian visitors who, as true regional explorers, stay outside London for more than two-thirds of their trips and are confident and curious travellers who’s spend over-indexes most UK regions.
The enduring emotional and cultural ties between Australia and Britain are also becoming increasingly evident, with 46 per cent of Australian visitors to the UK travelling to visit friends and relatives. This figure is well above the all-market average of 30 per cent.
Commenting as to why travel to the UK continues to appeal to Australians, Ms Sykes said, “Tourism to the British visitor economy is worth 127 billion pounds sterling. That’s a lot of money. It is almost 10% of Britain’s GDP. It employs 10% of the British population. It is characterised by 200,000 small to medium enterprises and Mum and Dad businesses. It keeps people busy. It puts food on the table. It feeds and employs a lot of Brits. They love Australians, and Australians love them. We have two nations bound. I suggest in an unparalleled way that I invite two other nations to step forward to beat us in this relationship bound by history, culture, sporting rivalries, siblings, and a lot of blood and love.”
The Travel Junction is one key trade partner that has recently seen increased demand for outbound travel to the UK from Australia.
Speaking about its relationship with VisitBritain, The Travel Junction’s Director of Sales, Kevin Looney, said, “While there’s significant demand for high-end leisure travellers to visit the UK, the challenge over the last couple of years has been to work with a partner that can help with depth and breadth of products, whether that be accommodation, transfers, experiences, attractions, and also accessibility to wholesale air.
“We believe the Travel Junction is now well equipped to deliver those products in a specialist environment for the UK, and we’ve partnered with VisitBritain to be able to ensure that we’re delivering the best of content creative and compelling itineraries to make it easy for agents to find a match for their clients,” he said.
GREAT Love
Feeling the love at the Sydney Mardi Gras Parade at the weekend, the ‘British Family’ in Australia, including the High Commission in Canberra, British Consulate Generals in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, British Council and VisitBritain proudly entered its own UK float.
The float featured 60 staff, family and friends from Australia performing a choreographed dance up Oxford Street led by an illuminated London black cab.
The UK is also currently celebrating its LGBTQIA+ community through its GREAT Love campaign, which promotes the values of inclusivity, diversity and freedom. The campaign is being relaunched at Sydney WorldPride 2023 and showcases the warm welcome of a modern UK through LGBTQIA+ storytellers.
Since its inception as Love is Great in 2014, the campaign has been present at numerous Pride events as well as supporting the LGBTQIA+ business, cultural, sports and tourism events and conferences around the world.
Commenting on LGBTQIA+ travel in Great Britain, Paul Gauger, VisitBritain Executive Vice President for the Americas and Australia & New Zealand, said, “If there’s something we’re immensely proud of in Britain’s DNA, it’s that we include people. Our arms are open as a nation, and we are welcoming and inclusive to all people. We don’t filter. We don’t judge. We want everybody to come to Britain and feel warmly welcomed, engaged and stimulated no matter what their interests.”
For more, head to www.visitbritain.com/en
*Record-breaking spending was recorded across the third quarter from Australia, with spending increasing over five times vs Q1 2022 to £469 million in Q3 2022. Source: ONS International Passenger Survey July – September 2022 survey results.
