Unparalleled growth in Chinese visitors

The first international visitor figures released since the visit of Chinese President Xi Xinping show an unparalleled increase in visitors from China.

The number of international travellers touring Tasmania has hit a record high, driven largely by a 73 per cent increase in visitors from China.

In the year to December 2014, 177,100 international visitors travelled to Tasmania, an 11 per cent increase compared to the previous year according to the latest International Visitors Survey.

Of all visitors 136,500 were holiday-makers, representing a 20 per increase, and the number of nights they stayed increased to 1.66 million, up by 15 per cent.

In total, international visitors injected more than $265 million into our economy, an increase of nine per cent.

Importantly, China continues to hold firm as our number one international tourist market. More than 24,000 Chinese visited Tasmania in the year to December, a massive 73 per cent increase.

This follows unprecedented exposure of Tasmania in China following the President and Madame Peng Liyuan’s visit last year.

The visit was followed by millions of people online and watched by hundreds of millions through news broadcasts, generating unparalleled exposure.

I am confident the record visitor figures will continue to grow even further as our friendship with China strengthens following our China trade mission in March and the second to come in August.

We are committed to working hard to increase the number of visitors to our state to 1.5 million a year by 2020, which the industry says will create 8,000 new jobs.

The Tourism Research Australia figures show that we are heading in the right direction towards achieving this target.
Will Hodgman, Premier Minister for Tourism, Hospitality and Events