Visitor expenditure in Victoria has hit a record high of $35 billion annually, according to the latest data released by Tourism Research Australia on June 28.
The data showed visitor expenditure in Victoria, including in Sunbury and Macedon Ranges, for the year ending March 2023 surpassed the 2019 pre-COVID peak of $32.5 billion.
Victoria attracted 22.1 per cent of the country’s total visitor expenditure over the 12-month period, which Tourism, Sport and Major Events Minister Steve Dimopoulos said shows resilience and innovation.
“Tourism is critical to the state’s economy and we back the industry because it creates jobs and supports so many Victorian businesses,” Mr Dimopoulos said.
“These are outstanding results for the Victorian tourism industry which has shown incredible resilience and innovation in recent years.”
“There’s no question that Victoria is back and top of the list for travellers from across the globe.”
The research also revealed that Melbourne is the top interstate overnight leisure destination in Australia, with 3.6 million visitors staying 14.6 million nights and spending $5.1 billion.
Regional Victoria is also delivering results with all tourism regions hitting all-time highs, including; visitor spending in Phillip Island increasing by 75 per cent, High Country up by 73 per cent, and the Grampians rising by 66 per cent since 2019.
Overall intrastate overnight visitation numbers to regional Victoria were up six per cent since 2019, with total nights increasing by eight per cent and expenditure up 58 per cent.
Visit Victoria acting chief executive Kelly Dickson said she is thrilled to see these results for regional Victoria.
“We’re thrilled to see tourism in regional Victoria humming, as well as Melbourne keeping the top spot as the country’s number one interstate overnight leisure destination,” Ms Dickson said.
