australia tourism demographics

Overseas Travel Statistics, Provisional

Provisional statistics on international travel based on initial border crossings, arriving in and departing from Australia, including tourism trips

• Overseas Travel Statistics, Provisional Reference Period May 2021
• Overseas Travel Statistics, Provisional Reference Period April 2021
• Overseas Travel Statistics, Provisional Reference Period March 2021
• View all releases

Key statistics

Provisional estimates of overseas trips in June 2021 show:

• A total of 103,500 arrivals
• 40,500 Australian citizens arrivals (39%), 9,100 permanent visa holders (9%), 43,800 New Zealand citizens (42%) and 10,900 temporary visa holders (11%)
• A total of 99,500 departures

Notice: Ceasing future releases

This temporary product was introduced in response to COVID-19 and the heightened interest in traveller data. In line with the ABS work program changes announced on 20 April 2021, this is the final release of this product.

For further information, see " Changes to the ABS statistical work program ". Provisional travel data for total overseas arrivals and total overseas departures will be added to the monthly  Overseas Arrivals and Departures  publication from the June issue scheduled for release on the 17 August 2021. 

Travel restrictions

These statistics are compiled using information from the Department of Home Affairs.

With the introduction of the New Zealand quarantine free travel bubble on 18 April 2021, there have been some recent increases in arrivals and departures. Travel numbers remain historically low compared with pre-COVID levels.

For information on travel restrictions see the Department of Home Affairs website.

Migration Statistics

This release presents statistics on, provisional monthly estimates of overseas travel, which is not the same as migration statistics.

If you are looking for migration statistics, please refer to:

• Migration, Australia
• National, state and territory population
• Information Paper: Improvements to the Estimation of Net Overseas Migration . 

Provisional statistics on international travel movements of persons arriving in Australia. It is the number of international border crossings rather than the number of people.

Key findings

All overseas arrivals to Australia in June 2021 (provisional estimates):

• 103,500 estimated arrivals, a decrease of 12,200 compared with the previous month
• June 2021 arrivals decreased 93.4 per cent when compared to pre-COVID levels in June 2019
• 40,500 Australian citizens arrivals (39%), 9,100 permanent visa holders (9%), 43,800 New Zealand citizens (42%) and 10,900 temporary visa holders (11%).
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All arrivals - by citizenship

The five largest countries of citizenship (excluding Australian) for all arrivals to Australia in June 2021 were:

• New Zealand (43,800)
• China (1,900)
• India (1,800)
• USA (1,300).

(a) To confidentialise, estimates have been rounded to the nearest 10. (b) Includes the United Kingdom, Channel Islands and Isle of Man. (c) Excludes SARs & Taiwan.  

All arrivals - by visa group

The three largest visa groups arriving in Australia in June 2021 were:

• Temporary other visas (5,400) 
• Permanent skilled visas (3,600) 
• Temporary visitor visas (3,400).

(a) To confidentialise, estimates have been rounded to the nearest 10.  

All arrivals - by state or territory of clearance

All international travellers must be processed and cleared by Australia's Border Force via specific seaports or airports around the country. This information provides the state or territory of clearance for each traveller.

For June 2021, the states receiving the largest number of arrivals were:

• NSW (40,600)
• Qld (38,700)
• Vic. (10,800).

(a) To confidentialise, estimates have been rounded to the nearest 10. n.a The percentage change could not be calculated because the denominator is zero  

Provisional statistics on international travel movements of persons departing Australia. It is the number of international border crossings rather than the number of people.

All overseas departures from Australia in June 2021 (provisional estimates):

• 99,500 estimated departures, a decrease of 8,800 compared with the previous month
• June 2021 departures decreased 94.5 per cent when compared with pre-COVID levels in June 2019
• 40,100 Australian citizens departures (40%), 5,900 permanent visa holders (6%), 39,700 New Zealand citizens (40%) and 15,300 temporary visa holders (15%).

All departures - by citizenship

The five largest countries of citizenship (excluding Australian) for all departures from Australia in June 2021 were:

• New Zealand (39,700)
• China (4,200)
• USA (1,700)
• India (960).

(a) To confidentialise, estimates have been rounded to the nearest 10. (b) Excludes SARs & Taiwan. (c) Includes the United Kingdom, Channel Islands and Isle of Man.  

All departures - by visa group

The three largest visa groups departing from Australia in June 2021 were:

• Temporary other visas (7,300) 
• Temporary student visas (3,100) 
• Temporary visitor visas (2,800).

All departures - by state and territory of clearance

For June 2021, the states receiving the largest number of departures were:

• NSW (41,100)
• Qld (34,000)
• Vic. (14,800).

Data downloads

1. total movement, arrivals and departures - country of citizenship, 2. total movement, arrivals and departures - visa group, 3. total movement, arrivals and departures - state of clearance, all data cubes.

This is a temporary monthly publication in response to COVID-19 and the heightened interest in traveller data. It provides information 4 weeks earlier than the regular monthly  Overseas Arrivals and Departures  (OAD)(cat. no. 3401.0) publication.

This publication contains provisional arrivals and departures information for the reference month based on initial border crossings into and out of Australia using the Department of Home Affairs Travel and Immigration Processing System (TRIPS). It contains early information on arrivals and departures, country of citizenship, major visa groups, and state or territory of clearance. Like Overseas Arrivals and Departures, it is the number of international border crossings rather than the number of people. Individuals who travel multiple times in a year are counted each time they cross Australia's borders.

More detailed information including important variables such as state of residence, duration of stay, country of residence and main reason for journey (which can only be sourced later from the passenger card) will be available in the subsequent release of Overseas Arrivals and Departures scheduled for release 6 weeks after the reference month.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) commenced daily situation reports of the COVID-19 outbreak on 21 January 2020 and identified it as an international health emergency on 30 January. This was less than a month after suspected cases were reported in Wuhan, China. The Australian Government placed travel restrictions on those travelling to Australia initially from mainland China commencing 1 February. Other restrictions from other countries soon followed as the crisis worsened around the globe. Currently, all overseas travel is banned, with few exceptions. For more information, see the Smartraveller page from the  Australian government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade  website or the News and Media page at the  Australian government Department of Home Affairs  website.

This temporary product was introduced to provide more timely travel data in response to COVID-19. In line with ABS work program changes announced on 20 April 2021, this is the final release of this product.

For further information see " Changes to the ABS statistical work program ".

Provisional travel data for total overseas arrivals and total overseas departures will be added to the monthly  Overseas Arrivals and Departures  publication from the June issue scheduled for release on the 17 August 2021. 

Previous catalogue number

This release previously used catalogue number 3401.0.55.004.

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Explore the wide range of reports published by Tourism Australia, which cover key findings from Tourism Australia's commissioned research from a broad range of sources.

Additional global research undertaken in 2022 identifies the granular tourism experiences in demand post-pandemic across 20 markets.

While research has predominately focused on understanding international consumer demand, Tourism Australia has also included the domestic market in this research since 2016, whilst collaborating with State and Territory partners. Based on information gathered by the Consumer Demand Project Tourism Australia produces traveller profiles which are released annually to provide insights into the travel preferences and behaviours of consumers. Market specific traveller profiles are available on the market regions pages .

Undertaken in 2022 as the world opened back up to travel, Tourism Australia’s large-scale Future of Demand research was designed to support Australia’s tourism industry, to make decisions about where demand exists and ways to maximise the opportunities across 20 markets including Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, South Korea, Japan, India, USA, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France and Italy, as well as the emerging markets of Taiwan, Thailand, Philippines and Vietnam.

Tourism Australia launched the Travel Sentiment Tracker in April 2020 as a new piece of research to help us understand shifting consumer behaviour and travel sentiment around COVID-19 and travel restrictions, across 16 markets including Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, South Korea, Japan, India, USA, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France and Italy. Given the reopening of borders and commencement of travel, this additional research stopped in June 2022.

Insights from Tourism Australia’s research have been used extensively to inform and support development of Tourism Australia’s strategic direction and campaign development, as well as to inform the tourism industry of potential opportunities to build the value of Australian tourism.

Our target audiences

Our target audience is High Yield Travellers (HYT). They are willing to travel out of their region and spend more during their trip.

Future of Demand

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Australia Tourism Statistics

International tourism: expenditures, view australia's international tourism: expenditures from 1995 to 2020 in the chart:.

International Tourism: Expenditures: % of Total Imports

View australia's international tourism: expenditures: % of total imports from 1995 to 2020 in the chart:.

International Tourism: Expenditures: for Passenger Transport Items

View australia's international tourism: expenditures: for passenger transport items from 1995 to 2020 in the chart:.

International Tourism: Expenditures: for Travel Items

View australia's international tourism: expenditures: for travel items from 1995 to 2020 in the chart:.

International Tourism: Number of Departures

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International Tourism: Receipts

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International Tourism: Receipts: % of Total Exports

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International Tourism: Receipts: for Passenger Transport Items

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International Tourism: Receipts: for Travel Items

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Australian Travel Statistics

Australian tourism statistics.

Page last updated: 16 October 2023

Table of Contents

How many tourists visit Australia each year?

• 2019 still holds the record for the highest number of visitors, with over 9.5 million travelling to Australia during that period (year ending June 2019)
• Despite seeing steady growth, visitor numbers are still 42% lower than those during the all-time peak
• Data for the 2021 period has not been seasonally adjusted

Who visited Australia in 2023?

• The top five visitor markets in 2023 were New Zealand, the UK, the USA, India, and Singapore
• China, previously one of the top visitor markets for Australia, has seen a decline in visitors during the post-pandemic period with only 235,000 visits over the 12 months ending in June 2023

How much did international visitors spend in 2023?

• International visitors spent over $34 billion during trips to Australia in 2023 (year ending June 2023)
• Spending was up 391% when compared to the over $7 billion spent during 2022
• Spending is down 22.8% when compared with the over $44.6 billion spent during pre-pandemic 2019
• Complete data is not available for 2021 due to low reporting numbers

Who spent the most in Australia in 2023?

• Chinese were the top spenders at over $4.1 billion (year ending June 2023)
• The top five spenders were China, the USA, the UK, New Zealand, and India

How many tourists visited Australia in 2022?

• In March 2020, Australia closed its international borders to all non-residents
• From August 2020 – September 2021, visitors to Australia were at an all-time low, with only 155,579 international travellers visiting during that time
• Australia began to reopen its borders in November 2021, with a complete lifting of travel restrictions taking place in July 2022
• Numbers are still significantly low when compared with the pre-covid period. For the year ending September 2019, Australia received a total of over 8.6 million international visitors

Who visited Australia in 2022?

• The top five international markets for Australia in 2022 were: New Zealand, India, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and the USA
• China, previously one of the top sources of international visitors to Australia, fell out of the top five in 2022, with only just over 62 thousand making the trip
• While seeing a significant increase when compared with 2021, numbers are still much lower when compared with the pre-covid period

How much did international tourists spend in Australia in 2022?

• Visitors from China were the top spenders, spending over $1.5 billion during trips to Australia in 2022
• Spending was down 71% when compared with the over $45 billion spent during the pre covid period (year ending September 2019)

How many tourists visited Australia in 2019?

9.3 million tourists visited Australia between July 2018 and June 2019, the highest number ever recorded. 1

How many tourists visited Australia in 2021?

Complete data during the covid period is not available. For the most accurate available 12 month reporting period – over 60,200 people visited Australia between April 2020 and March 2021. Visitors were down 99.3% when compared to the over 8 million visitors of the previous year.

How much did visitors spend in Australia in 2021?

Visitors to Australia spent more than $794 million between April 2020 and March 2021. Spending was down 98.1% when compared to the over $41 billion spent during the previous year.

Visitors from the US spent the most, spending just over $115 million during visits to Australia in 2021.

Who visited Australia in 2021?

Complete data during the covid period is not available. For the most accurate available 12 month reporting period – April 2020 and March 2021 – the highest number of visitors came from New Zealand with over 13,000 making trips during this period.

The top 5 countries from which visitors came to Australia in this period were New Zealand, USA, UK, India and China.

How many people travelled in Australia in 2021?

In the first quarter of 2021 (January-March), Australians made over 24.6 million domestic overnight trips.

• Domestic travel was up 1.1% when compared with the over 24.3 million domestic overnight trips for the first quarter of 2020.

How much did Australians spend travelling in 2021?

• Spending was up 0.4% when compared with the $17.81 billion spent during the first quarter of 2020.

Australian Tourism Statistics 2020

How many tourists visited australia in 2020.

9.3 million tourists visited Australia in 2019 (year ending June 2019). In 2020  the number of international visitors to Australia dropped to 6.7 million due to COVID-19 travel restrictions (year ending June 2020). 1   A further decrease in annual tourism was seen in 2021 (complete data for 2021 is not available due to low reporting numbers).

• In 2020 the number of international visitors to Australia went down by 27% compared to the previous year. This marked a year-on-year decrease of over 2.6 million visits.
• 2019 holds the record for the highest number of travellers visiting Australia in any year up to date.
• The dramatic drop in annual visits in 2020 was caused primarily by the coronavirus pandemic and related travel restrictions introduced in March 2020.
• Australian international tourism spend amounted to $44.6 billion in 2019 and saw a decrease of 25.2% in 2020 to $33.3 billion, significantly impacting the Australian tourism industry.

Who visited Australia in 2020?

• The most visitors to Australia in 2019/2020 came from New Zealand, at just over 1 million.
• For the previous two years, China had been the main source of visitors to Australia.
• The travel ban placed on Chinese visitors in early 2020 as well as the following coronavirus restrictions resulted in a larger relative drop in Chinese visitors than New Zealand visitors in the 2019/2020 year.
• The top 5 markets in 2020 were New Zealand, China, the USA, the UK and Japan
• All five of the top markets saw a large decrease in visitors due to the coronavirus restrictions

Impact of the Coronavirus on International Tourism Expenditure

• Spending was down 25% when compared to the $44.6 billion of the previous year

January 2020 - Bushfire Impact

• In January 2020 approximately 739,600 international visitors travelled to Australia. 4
• International visitor numbers were down 5.1% when compared with the 779,500 of January 2019.
• The drop can be partly attributed to the Australia bushfires crisis of 2019/2020 , impacting  Australian tourism businesses and hospitality sector  even before the COVID-19 crisis .

February 2020 and the Impact of Coronavirus

• February saw a significant decrease in international tourism due to the effects of the coronavirus crisis.
• In February 2020 approximately 647,000 international visitors travelled to Australia.
• International visitors were down 18% when compared with the 796,100 visitors of February 2019.

March 2020 and the Impact of Travel Restrictions

International arrivals in March saw a dramatic decrease, significantly impacting Australia’s tourism industry:

• In March 2020 approximately 307,900 international visitors travelled to Australia which was a 59.9% drop when compared with the 768,200 visitors of March 2019.
• On March 20th, Australia restricted entry to only citizens, residents and their immediate family.
• On March 25th Australian citizens and residents were also banned from travelling overseas.

Impact of the Travel Ban on Chinese Tourists

• In February 2020 visitors arriving from China decreased by 83% compared to the previous year (19,500 arrivals in February 2020 vs 116,900 visitors in February 2019).
• The significant drop was the result of the coronavirus-related travel ban implemented by the Australian government on 1 February for non-citizens travelling from or through China.
• February in the past has historically been the peak period for Chinese visitors to Australia.

Read more: Chinese visitors to Australia statistics

Impact of coronavirus on international visitors to Australia in the second half of 2020

• During that same period the previous year (July – December, 2019) Australia received over 4.9 million international visitors
• For the second half of 2020, international visitors were down 99.3% when compared with 2019

How did the coronavirus affect domestic travel?

• For the same period the previous year (July – December 2019) Australians made over 57 million domestic trips.
• Domestic trips saw a decrease of 33.8% during this time period.
• Despite lower travel volumes during the first part of 2020, domestic trips began to see an increase during the final quarter of the year.

Australia Inbound Travel Statistics for 2019 – International & Domestic Tourism

Who visited australia in 2019.

• The highest number of visitors came from China, at over 1.4 million.

• Up until 2016, New Zealand was the top source of tourist arrivals for Australia, but that spot was then held by China for 2 years.

What were the most popular tourist destinations in Australia in 2019?

• The most popular destination for both international tourism and domestic visitors was Sydney, with over 16 million visitors. 2

How much did international tourists spend in Australia in 2019?

• International tourists spent a total of $44.6 billion in Australia between July 2018 and June 2019. 3
• Chinese were the top spenders at $11.9 billion, nearly triple the amount of the next-highest spenders (Americans at $4 billion).

• International visitors spent an average of $5,183 per trip, an average expenditure of $163 per night.
• Holidaymakers contributed the most overall with $16.9 billion spent.

Which Australian destinations had the highest visitor spend?

• Sydney had the highest visitor spend receiving a combined $19.5 billion from both international and domestic visitors between July 2018 and June 2019.
• Melbourne also ranked high at a combined $17.0 billion.

How long do international tourists spend in Australia?

• Tourists spent 273 million visitor nights in Australia between July 2018 and June 2019.
• The overall average length of stay was 32 nights.

Australia camping & campervan statistics

• The number of camping trips throughout Australia has grown by 27.5% over the 10-year period from 2008 to 2018. 5
• In 2018 over 6.9 million overnight camping trips were made in Australia.
• Camping trips – including caravan, campervan, commercial and non-commercial camping – made up 13.7% of visitor nights for domestic travellers in Australia in 2019 (year ending September)

Other Resources

• Australia campervan hire comparison

Australian Outbound Tourism Statistics for 2019

Where did australian tourists visit in 2019.

• Australian tourists and travellers made over 9.5 million overseas trips in the year ending in June 2019. 4
• The most popular destination was New Zealand, with over 1.2 million trips alone.
• Indonesia (Bali), the US (Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Francisco) and the UK (London, Scotland), were also popular destinations.

Travel Statistics Resources

International tourism - visitor statistics.

• Visitors from China
• Visitors from Hong Kong
• Visitors from India
• Visitors from Japan
• Visitors from Malaysia
• Visitors from New Zealand
• Visitors from Singapore
• Visitors from South Korea
• Visitors from the UK
• Visitors from the USA

Statistics by Location

• Adelaide Statistics
• Brisbane Statistics
• Cairns Statistics
• Darwin Statistics
• Gold Coast Statistics
• Melbourne Statistics
• New South Wales Statistics
• Northern Territory Statistics
• Perth Statistics
• Queensland Statistics  (incl.  Great Barrier Reef )
• South Australia Statistics
• Sydney Statistics
• Tasmania Statistics
• Victoria Statistics  (incl. Great Ocean Road and Twelve Apostles )
• Western Australia Statistics

Global Statistics

• New Zealand Tourism Statistics
• ABS : Overseas Arrivals and Departures, Australia, June 2020  ↩
• TRA : International Visitor Survey, National Visitor Survey, 2020  ↩
• TRA : International Visitor Survey, Trends 2019, National Visitor Survey, Trends 2020  ↩
• ABS : Arrivals and departures: Visitor arrivals, short term trips (seasonally adjusted) March 2020 ↩
• TTF : Estimated impact of Coronavirus on the Australia visitor economy ↩
• TRA : International Visitor Survey, September 2022 ↩

International tourist figures still millions below pre-COVID levels as slow recovery continues

For two years, Marcela Ribeiro worked three jobs to save for her dream holiday to Australia.

Like millions of people across the globe, the 35-year-old from Brazil had long wanted to explore the country's world-famous destinations, specifically the Great Barrier Reef, World Heritage-listed rainforest and sandy beaches. 

"I worked really, really hard, many jobs, to get here," Ms Ribeiro said.  

"The flights were very expensive, so I have to watch everything I spend. I can't afford to eat out in the restaurants every day." 

It's been a similar story for William Grbava from Canada and Amelia Mondido from the Philippines, who last week arrived in Australia for a holiday. 

"It's expensive here, much more than we were expecting. We have only been able to factor in a short stop in Sydney," Mr Grbava said. 

"We just had a beer and a pizza in Circular Quay for $50.

 "What I really wanted to do was drive up the coast to Brisbane, through Byron Bay and those beautiful towns. That's what I did when I was younger. But with the cost of fuel and car rental, it wasn't possible." 

Industry yet to recover to pre-COVID levels 

It's been more than four years since Australia's borders suddenly closed to the rest of the world and became one of the most isolated destinations on the globe. 

COVID-19 wreaked havoc across the country's economy, but nowhere was the pain as instant or more devastating as in the tourism industry. 

In 2019, 8.7 million tourists visited Australia from overseas in an industry that was worth $166 billion. 

New figures from Tourism Research Australia show there were only 6.6 million international visitors last year, a deficit of more than 2 million compared to 2019 levels.  

Victoria experienced the largest loss in international visits at 33 per cent, followed by Queensland at 24 per cent and New South Wales at 22 per cent. 

Nationally, Chinese visitor numbers — which made up the bulk of visitors to Australia pre-pandemic — slumped to 507,000 last year, down from 1.3 million in 2019. 

Figures for the month of February show more than 850,000 people visited Australia, an increase of 257,000 for the same time in 2023, but 7.5 per cent less than pre-COVID levels. 

Gui Lohmann from Griffith University's Institute for Tourism said there were a number of reasons for the slow return of international visitors. 

"The airfares are significantly high and we are under an inflationary situation with labour and food costs," Professor Lohmann said. 

"It could be challenging for Australia to reach above 8 million international visitors in the scenario we are in at the moment." 

Professor Lohmann said cost-of-living pressures were also at play in the return of international tourists, as was a "reset" in European thinking.  

"Many Europeans believe a long-haul trip is quite damaging to the environment and they're also flying less generally," he said. 

"Their domestic airline routes no longer exist [and] have been replaced by train trips." 

He said China's ongoing economic problems, the war in Ukraine and United States' election were also having an impact.  

"It's a much more complicated world we are facing after the pandemic," he said. 

A long road to recovery 

Oxford Economics has forecast it could take until 2025-26 before Australian tourism returned to pre-pandemic levels. 

Tourism Australia, a government agency that promotes holidays, said the strongest markets since borders reopened had been New Zealand, the United States and the United Kingdom. 

"We always knew that the recovery of international travel to Australia would take time, and we have continued to see the steady return of international visitors to our shores," a spokeswoman said. 

Maneka Jayasinghe, a tourism expert at Charles Darwin University, said affordability was a key factor in attracting visitors Down Under.  

She said the state and federal governments should consider subsidising travel to Australia. 

"Measures to reduce costs, such as discounted hotel prices, tourism package deals and food vouchers could be of importance to encourage visitors to Australia," Dr Jayasinghe said. 

"Tourism operators were badly hit during COVID so may not be in a financially viable position to provide further perks to visitors, especially the small-scale operators in smaller states and territories and those operating in remote areas." 

She said re-establishing links with traditional tourism markets, including Japan, was also a potential solution. 

"Countries with a rapidly growing middle class, such as India, could have high potential to grow. Some of the south-east Asian countries, such as Vietnam and Indonesia, could also be attractive due to their proximity to Australia." 

Dutch tourists Tim Erentsen and Laleh Maleki estimated it would cost them around $16,000 for their three-week holiday in Australia, where they are visiting Sydney, the Whitsundays and Cairns. 

"It has been expensive, especially the flights," Mr Erentsen said. 

Ms Maleki said the couple had travelled extensively throughout Europe and the US and the cost of hotels and food in Australia was comparable. 

"We thought if we were coming all this way and spending the money to get here, we should stay a bit longer, which is adding to the cost," Ms Maleki said. 

But despite that extra cost, she said the trip had been worth it. 

"We love the nature, it feels very safe here. The food is so good and the people are very friendly." 

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Eight charts on how Australia’s population is growing – and changing

Demographer, POLIS Centre for Social Policy Research, Australian National University

Disclosure statement

Liz Allen does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Australian National University provides funding as a member of The Conversation AU.

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People form the foundation of society, determining all manner of things from housing needs to economic wellbeing. And population characteristics can tell us much about how the inhabitants of a place have changed over time and where the population might be headed in the future.

Australia’s population now numbers around 27 million . On its own, however, this figure says little about our demography. Unpacking Australia’s population composition reveals the challenges and opportunities that lay ahead.

Living longer and with fewer children

Australians can expect to live into their eighties . Our increased longevity, alongside below-replacement fertility , means Australia’s population is structurally ageing. The challenges of an ageing population include greater aged care needs, amid a relative shrinking workforce .

In other words, populations like Australia need to work out how to fund more with fewer financial resources or risk declining living standards .

The chart below is a unique way to visualise population projections. It shows the size of Australia’s population for males and females, broken down by age. Over time, some ages balloon out, like the 50–80 year olds. Some ages barely move, like the 0–10 year olds. Hover your mouse over each line to see the full population pyramid and additional information.

With Australia on track to become a nation of predominantly middle-aged people (and older) by 2065 , a healthy and robust workforce is crucial to economic sustainability.

The shape of population age distribution matters more than ever, especially with evidence indicating children in Australia will be outnumbered by people aged 65 and over in the coming ten years .

Increasing women’s participation in paid work has been one response to Australia’s ageing workforce. But focusing on women’s economic participation fails to consider the gender bias in unpaid caring, placing enormous pressure on women to do it all .

And growing intergenerational inequality threatens the future prospects of young people . Job insecurity, housing affordability, gender inequality and climate change are all placing enormous strain on younger people, contributing to their deep uncertainty about the future. Young people just aren’t getting a go.

High short-term growth, potential for population decline

Australia’s population has grown at a historically high rate since the reopening of international borders during COVID-19. Most of Australia’s population growth is from overseas migration, as has been the case since 2005 (except during COVID border closures ).

While net overseas migration has increased in the short term, this is projected to decline in the coming years. However, immigration will still contribute the most to population increase.

Natural population increase – the number of births versus deaths – also contributes to Australia’s rising population. However, this rate is also on the decline. By 2054, official projections anticipate deaths will outnumber births, meaning in the absence of overseas immigration the nation’s population would start declining.

Migration helps offset the adverse consequences of an ageing population. Without immigration, Australia’s population would start shrinking decades earlier than expected. The national budget would be adversely impacted and the societal contributions that migrants make would be lost.

More diverse than ever

Half the world has below-replacement fertility, and the average number of births per woman is set to decline even further . Australia is competing with the likes of Germany, Canada, the United States, New Zealand and the United Kingdom to attract suitable people to migrate.

Australia can no longer rely on migration from countries like the UK to sustain its workforce. From a Blak country to a European colonial settlement, Australia now relies heavily on people migrating from India and China.

Not all populations in Australia have the same demography. First Nations people, for example , have a much younger age profile and higher growth rate than the non-Indigenous people. They also have a lower life expectancy and higher infant mortality, reflecting the enduring discrimination First Nations people face in Australian society.

City living

Australia’s population is also highly urbanised , with a high concentration of people living along the southeastern coastline from southeast Queensland to Victoria.

Cities in Australia continue to reign supreme, growing faster than regional areas overall. Vital infrastructure – transportation, housing, education, health care and employment – are a major draw card. Despite numerous attempts throughout Australia’s history, population decentralisation is unlikely .

Cities offer the largest opportunities for education and employment, attracting the bulk of international movers. Sydney and Melbourne draw in more than half the nation’s overseas migration intake.

By 2036, Melbourne is projected to be Australia’s largest capital city , not surprising give Sydney has a considerable surplus of people moving to live in other places in Australia. And, no, Melbourne hasn’t already overtaken Sydney – this is just some fancy accounting using unconventional definitions .

Households are changing , too. More people are living alone, and the number of people in each household on average is declining. A close examination of Australia’s demography helps contextualise the country’s housing mismatch.

Australia’s demography shows a country with great opportunity, so long as the challenges are addressed. Population data enables policymakers to take an evidence-based approach to help shape our country’s future.

Correction: the Indigenous and Non-Indigenous population by age chart used the average male and female numbers instead of the overall population, which led to an incorrect proportion figure. We have now used the overall population numbers.

• Health care
• aging population
• Demographics

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Leading destinations visited by international arrivals to Australia 2023

Sydney was the leading destination in Australia visited by international arrivals into the country in the year ended December 2023, with over 3.1 million visitors recorded in the capital of New South Wales. Melbourne came in second, followed by Brisbane, Perth, and Queensland's Gold Coast. 

Leading destinations visited by international visitor arrivals to Australia in 2023 (in 1,000s)

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year ended December

Release date is date of access.

May not add to the total as overnight visitors may have visited a number of regions during their trip.

Only the top 20 destinations are represented.

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Leisure Travel

• Best-rated countries in the Gay Travel Index 2023
• Number of inbound tourists in Malta 2001-2023
• Travel and tourism's total contribution to GDP in Malta 2019-2022

Accommodation

• Number of hotel rooms in Malta 2013-2022

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Statistics on " Travel and tourism in Malta "

• Distribution of travel and tourism expenditure in Malta 2019-2022, by type
• Distribution of travel and tourism expenditure in Malta 2019-2022, by tourist type
• Travel and tourism revenue in Malta 2019-2028, by segment
• Travel and tourism's total contribution to employment in Malta 2019-2022
• Leading countries in the Travel & Tourism Development Index 2021
• Key data on travel agencies in Malta 2024
• Number of inbound tourists in Malta 2010-2023, by travel mode
• Number of inbound tourists in Malta 2019-2023, by age group
• Leading inbound travel markets in Malta 2019-2023, by number of nights
• Inbound tourist expenditure in Malta 2010-2023
• Leading inbound travel markets in Malta 2019-2023, by tourist expenditure
• Contribution of inbound visitor spending to Maltese exports 2010-2021
• Leading inbound travel markets in Malta 2023, by Google travel demand growth
• Number of outbound tourists from Malta 2010-2023
• Number of nights spent by outbound tourists from Malta 2019-2023, by country
• Spending of outbound tourists from Malta 2010-2023
• Expenditure of outbound tourists from Malta 2019-2023, by destination
• Leading outbound travel markets in Malta 2023, by Google travel demand growth
• Number of domestic tourists in Malta 2016-2022
• Number of domestic tourists in Malta 2022, by age
• Number of domestic tourists in Malta 2015-2022, by destination
• Domestic tourism spending in Malta 2016-2022
• Cruise passenger movements in Mediterranean ports 2019-2022, by country
• Number of cruise passengers arriving in Malta 2011-2023
• Number of cruise passengers arriving in Malta 2019-2023, by age
• Cruise calls at Mediterranean ports 2019-2022, by country
• Number of cruise liner calls in Malta 2008-2023
• Number of tourist accommodation establishments in Malta 2022, by type
• Key data on the hotel industry in Malta 2022
• Number of hotels and similar accommodation in Malta 2013-2022
• Hotel bedroom occupancy rate in Malta 2013-2022

Other statistics that may interest you Travel and tourism in Malta

• Basic Statistic Travel and tourism's total contribution to GDP in Malta 2019-2022
• Basic Statistic Distribution of travel and tourism expenditure in Malta 2019-2022, by type
• Basic Statistic Distribution of travel and tourism expenditure in Malta 2019-2022, by tourist type
• Premium Statistic Travel and tourism revenue in Malta 2019-2028, by segment
• Basic Statistic Travel and tourism's total contribution to employment in Malta 2019-2022
• Premium Statistic Leading countries in the Travel & Tourism Development Index 2021
• Basic Statistic Best-rated countries in the Gay Travel Index 2023
• Premium Statistic Key data on travel agencies in Malta 2024

Inbound tourism

• Premium Statistic Number of inbound tourists in Malta 2001-2023
• Premium Statistic Number of inbound tourists in Malta 2010-2023, by travel mode
• Premium Statistic Number of inbound tourists in Malta 2019-2023, by age group
• Premium Statistic Leading inbound travel markets in Malta 2019-2023, by number of nights
• Premium Statistic Inbound tourist expenditure in Malta 2010-2023
• Premium Statistic Leading inbound travel markets in Malta 2019-2023, by tourist expenditure
• Premium Statistic Contribution of inbound visitor spending to Maltese exports 2010-2021
• Premium Statistic Leading inbound travel markets in Malta 2023, by Google travel demand growth

Outbound tourism

• Premium Statistic Number of outbound tourists from Malta 2010-2023
• Premium Statistic Number of nights spent by outbound tourists from Malta 2019-2023, by country
• Premium Statistic Spending of outbound tourists from Malta 2010-2023
• Basic Statistic Expenditure of outbound tourists from Malta 2019-2023, by destination
• Premium Statistic Leading outbound travel markets in Malta 2023, by Google travel demand growth

Domestic tourism

• Premium Statistic Number of domestic tourists in Malta 2016-2022
• Premium Statistic Number of domestic tourists in Malta 2022, by age
• Premium Statistic Number of domestic tourists in Malta 2015-2022, by destination
• Premium Statistic Domestic tourism spending in Malta 2016-2022

Cruise tourism

• Premium Statistic Cruise passenger movements in Mediterranean ports 2019-2022, by country
• Premium Statistic Number of cruise passengers arriving in Malta 2011-2023
• Premium Statistic Number of cruise passengers arriving in Malta 2019-2023, by age
• Premium Statistic Cruise calls at Mediterranean ports 2019-2022, by country
• Premium Statistic Number of cruise liner calls in Malta 2008-2023
• Basic Statistic Number of tourist accommodation establishments in Malta 2022, by type
• Premium Statistic Key data on the hotel industry in Malta 2022
• Premium Statistic Number of hotels and similar accommodation in Malta 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Number of hotel rooms in Malta 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Hotel bedroom occupancy rate in Malta 2013-2022

Further Content: You might find this interesting as well

International Visitor Survey monthly snapshot

Tourism Research Australia’s monthly snapshots estimate tourism activity.

Main content

From the January 2024 reference month, TRA will return to publishing International Visitor Survey data on a quarterly basis only, with the data for December 2023 being the final monthly release. 

Increased appreciation of the value of tourism data is generating significant additional demand for TRA services. At the same time, there are ongoing challenges with maintaining high quality high frequency data based primarily on survey collections. Ensuring statistical reporting remains robust and fit for purpose into the future is a priority and requires investment in the assessment and development of potential new data sources for use in tourism statistics. Statistical outputs are therefore being reprioritised to balance the timeliness of publications and the quality of releases.  

International tourism December 2023

Tourism Research Australia's (TRA's) monthly snapshots estimate tourism activity in the related month. We also produce quarterly and annual international tourism results .

attach_money Spend in Australia

$2.5 billion | 95% of pre-COVID levels

person Number of trips

783,000 | 81% of pre-COVID levels

brightness_2 Nights spent in Australia

26.4 million | 98% of pre-COVID levels

Notes on the data

• This report compares the month of December 2023 with the pre-pandemic month of December 2019.
• international connections and stopovers (including airfares)
• other pre-travel or post-travel spend in the source market or elsewhere outside Australia. For example, luggage, visas, duty-free retail and ground transport.
• Unless stated otherwise, spend is reported as spend in Australia. This standard is developed using the United Nations Statistics Commission's International Recommendations for Tourism Statistics 2008 . This defines inbound expenditure as only expenditure in the economy of reference.

Key results

International visitor spend and nights spent in Australia exceeded pre-COVID levels at 95% and 98% respectively. Trips to Australia were 81% of pre-COVID levels. The December 2023 results show international visitors: 

• spent $2.5 billion during their trips
• took 783,000 international trips to Australia
• had 26.4 million nights away.

Top 4 reasons for travel

The top 4 main reasons for travel to Australia in the month of December 2023:

• This was 89% of pre-COVID levels. 
• Spend was $580 million, 100% of pre-COVID levels.
• This was 71% of pre-COVID levels. 
• Spend was $1.0 billion, 96% of pre-COVID levels.
• This was 79% of pre-COVID levels. 
• Spend was $163 million, 103% of pre-COVID levels.
• This was 83% of pre-COVID levels. 
• Spend was $601 million, 88% of pre-COVID levels.

Top 5 international visitor markets 

Australia’s top 5 international markets in the month of December 2023: 

• This was 86% of pre-COVID levels.  
• Spend was $174 million, 121% of pre-COVID levels.  
• This was 83% of pre-COVID levels.  
• Spend was $209 million, 79% of pre-COVID levels. 
• This was 85% of pre-COVID levels.  
• Spend was $216 million, 97% of pre-COVID levels. 
• This was 59% of pre-COVID levels.  
• Spend was $410 million, 73% of pre-COVID levels.  
• This was 101% of pre-COVID levels.  
• Spend was $140 million, 122% of pre-COVID levels. 

Regional and capital city visitors and spend 

In December 2023, international visitors made 729,000 trips to Australia’s capital cities. 

• This was 82% of pre-COVID levels.  
• Spend was $2.1 billion, 94% of pre-COVID levels. 

In December 2023, international visitors made 230,000 trips to Australia’s regional areas. 

• This was 68% of pre-COVID levels.  
• Spend was $425 million, 97% of pre-COVID levels.  

Total spend 

Total spend in December 2023 was $4.4 billion. This was 103% of pre-COVID levels.  

Total spend includes purchases made overseas such as:  

• international connections and stopovers (including airfares)  
• other pre-travel or post-travel spend in the source market or elsewhere outside Australia. For example, luggage, visas, duty-free retail and ground transport. 

Data tables

International Visitor Survey results for December 2023 compared to December 2019

• Explore data from our international and national visitor surveys using TRA Online. Find out more on our  Services  page.
• Read the  International Visitor Survey methodology .
• Find previous reports on our  Data and research  page.

Contact TRA

mail   tourism.research@tra.gov.au

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When is Eid al-Fitr 2024 and how is it celebrated?

The three-day festival celebrates the completion of the fasting month of Ramadan by Muslims across the world.

As a new moon was not sighted on Monday evening after Maghrib prayers, Muslims in Saudi Arabia and neighbouring countries will fast one more day, completing 30 days of Ramadan. The first day of Eid will then be celebrated on Wednesday, April 10.

The first day of Eid al-Fitr is determined by the sighting of the crescent moon marking the start of the month of Shawwal, the 10th month of the Islamic (Hijri) calendar.

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Lunar months last between 29 and 30 days so Muslims usually have to wait until the night before Eid to verify its date.

Other countries follow independent sightings.

When the sighting has been verified, Eid is declared on television, radio stations and at mosques.

How do Muslims celebrate Eid?

Traditionally, Eid is celebrated for three days as an official holiday in Muslim-majority countries. However, the number of holiday days varies by country.

Muslims begin Eid day celebrations by partaking in a prayer service that takes place shortly after dawn, followed by a short sermon.

On their way to the prayer, which is traditionally held in an open area, Muslims recite takbeerat, praising God by saying “Allahu Akbar”, meaning “God is great”.

It is customary to eat something sweet before the prayer, such as date -filled biscuits known as maamoul in the Middle East. This particular festival is known as the “sweet” Eid – and the distribution of sweets is common across the Muslim world.

Muslims usually spend the day visiting relatives and neighbours and accepting sweets as they move around from house to house.

Each country has traditional desserts and sweets that are prepared before Eid or on the morning of the first day.

Children, dressed in new clothes, are offered gifts and money to celebrate the joyous occasion.

Girls and women in many countries decorate their hands with henna. The celebration for Eid begins the night before as women gather in neighbourhoods and large family gatherings for the application of henna.

In some countries, families visit graveyards to offer their respects to departed family members right after the morning prayers.

It is common for Muslim-majority countries to decorate their cities with lights and hold festivities to commemorate the end of the fasting month.

Eid amid the onslaught in Gaza

For some 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza this Eid, this will be the first Muslim religious holiday after more than 33,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks. With little food aid, and very limited water, Gaza’s Eid al-Fitr will be mired in destruction amid the continuing attacks.

What are common Eid greetings?

The most popular greeting is “Eid Mubarak” (Blessed Eid) or “Eid sa’id” (Happy Eid). Eid greetings also vary depending on the country and language.

The video below shows how people say Eid Mubarak in different languages around the world.