South Australia has proved to be a hotspot for tourists, marking yet another record month for tourism, and there will be plenty to encourage visitation throughout Summer with the state’s events calendar heating up.
According to National Visitor Survey data, the state’s tourism sector recorded a staggering $865 million in visitor expenditure for July 2023, which crowns it the best July on record and the twelfth consecutive month of record-high visitor expenditure in the state.
Here’s a snapshot of the July 2023 figures:
- The state saw a 12% uptick in interstate overnight visitors, bringing in $291 million.
- Locals, capitalising on the July school holidays, contributed an impressive $325 million — a whopping 71% surge from July 2019.
- The international segment wasn’t far behind, clocking in $116 million, a noticeable increase from June’s $88 million.
The attraction to local travel during the school holidays played a pivotal role in these record numbers.
The state is all set to roll out a plethora of events. This weekend, the spotlight shines on the XIX Australian Masters Games 2023, one of Australia’s premier multi-sport events. Pair that with the wellness-driven WellFest Adelaide, and you’ve got a vibrant kick-off to the event season.
But it doesn’t stop there- the Adelaide Film Festival is on the horizon, scheduled between 18th to 29th October, with the the culturally rich OzAsia Festival close on its heels from 19th October to 5th November and and the TPS South Australia Webex Players Series, spanning 19th to 22nd October.
Car aficionados can look forward to the iconic Bay to Birdwood on 22nd October, while tech and environmental enthusiasts might have their eyes set on the World Solar Challenge running from 22nd to 29th October.
Rounding out the events are the artistic Tarnanthi festival, the enthralling Harvest Rock II, and the heartwarming National Pharmacies Christmas Pageant in early November.
“Another record month for tourism in South Australia and a full 12 months where we’ve seen visitor expenditure hit monthly all-time highs. With the July visitor spend bolstered by school holiday travel, it is very promising news for the school holiday period currently underway,” Minister for Tourism Zoe Bettison says.
“While we’re hearing of an expected softening in the visitor economy nationally, tourism operators will be buoyed by these results and with the back-to-back calendar of major events ahead. We’re doing everything we can to continue to drive this strong momentum, just last week we launched a new domestic tourism marketing campaign and revealed our state’s visitor economy hit a record-high $9.9 billion.”
“There’s no doubt the string of major events will also entice visitors to stay and to spend, including the Australian Masters Games which comes to town from tomorrow – its seventh time hosted in South Australia.”
“We’re going to see more than 7000 participants, and their friends and family, out and about in Adelaide over the next week, exploring our city, laneway bars and restaurants – all of it adding to our state’s economy and our growing reputation as the place to be.”
To learn more about the National Visitor Survey data statistics, click here.
More News
