One in seven Aussies heading to Qld for Easter break

The state’s battered tourism industry has been given some good news, with an extraordinary number of Aussies set to holiday in the Sunshine State this Easter.

An extraordinary one in seven Australians is expected to flock to Queensland over Easter for a $1 billion bonanza for the state economy.

The remarkable projection, taken from research conducted by Tourism and Events Queensland, would see more than 3.5 million Aussies travel throughout the Sunshine State over the Easter holidays next month.

It is also backed by data from the Expedia Group, which shows Queensland as the most popular state in the country for Easter holidays, accounting for almost half of all searches on the travel platform.

The TEQ figures, taken from their annual Easter holiday travel intentions survey, also includes Queenslanders planning to travel within their own state, but it still represents an enormous boost from the key interstate markets of NSW and Victoria and comes with Gold Coast-Melbourne emerging as the busiest air route in the country, according to the latest findings from the Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics (BITRE).

It all adds up to a welcome goldmine for Queensland’s battered tourism industry, which faces further pain as the JobKeeper wage subsidy draws to a close today.

The surge in holiday bookings is expected to equate to a $1 billion spending spree over the Easter holidays, while the tropical north and the outback are also gearing up for bumper peak seasons as Australians increasingly turn to domestic holidays with the lack of international travel options.

The Gold Coast is one of the most popular tourist destinations these Easter holidays.

April traditionally heralds the start of the outback tourist season, while May is the start of the north’s main season when temperatures cool, the dry season starts and marine stingers disappear.

TEQ CEO Leanne Coddington said the survey insights held promise for Queensland’s tourism operators.

“We’re already hearing reports of strong bookings around the state and knowing that people may be leaving it as late as this week to make their booking means we hope to see a really strong Easter holiday period for our industry,” she said.

She also said the results showcased the success of the state’s Good to Go tourism campaign, which has trumpeted Queensland’s natural attractions and the state’s relative freedom of the lockdowns gripping other regions affected by the coronavirus.

Research from Expedia Group also showed Queensland was leading the way for Aussie holiday-makers this Easter, accounting for almost half of the website’s searches and a 15 per cent increase on last year.

While last year’s Easter period was decimated by the start of the coronavirus pandemic, the comparison is still impressive, because in the lead-up to Easter last year, the virus had barely caused a ripple Down Under.

The Gold Coast was the No. 1 destination for all holiday searches, with the Sunshine Coast, Cairns, Whitsundays and Brisbane rounding out an all-Queensland top five.