Coronavirus brings $45bn downturn for tourism sector

International holiday makers and corporate executives coming to Australia drop by more than 99pc in April.

Parks Australia will allow visitors to return to Kakadu and Uluru Kata Tjuta and National Parks from Friday under a staged re-opening. Picture: Tourism NT/Jason Van Miert

The number of international holiday makers and corporate executives arriving into Australia plummetted more than 99 per cent in April contributing to an unprecedented downturn for the $45bn tourism sector.

“Short-term visitor arrivals ... fell to 2200 trips, a 99.7 per cent decrease from the 700,400 recorded in April, 2019,” Australian Bureau of Statistics director of migration Jenny Dobak said.

Under the COVID-19 restrictions on travel there were just 2200 short-term entries in April, with the largest component New Zealanders who made up some 16 per cent of arrivals, followed by Americans accounting for 8 per cent, and then Germans, British and Indonesians.

“I am not really surprised given the external environment and restrictions,” Ms Dobak said in an interview with The Australian on Monday.

“We saw a big drop in arrivals around March 20 ... we have not seen these patterns before. These are new patterns we have had since the COVID-19 restrictions came in.”

COVID-19 travel restrictions have also significantly curtailed Australian offshore travel patterns with the number of Aussies returning home in April down more than 98 per cent on the same time last year according to the new ABS data.

Around 17,000 Australians returned home after a short trip in April, compared with 916,400 one year earlier.

NSW accounted for the largest numbers of residents returning with 5720 people followed by Victoria with 4680 returnees. Both states recorded a 98.2 per cent drop in resident returns compared with a year ago.

Australian Tourism Export Council managing director Peter Shelley said the ABS figures signalled the beginning of what will be a deep and protracted downturn for Australia’s export tourism industry and there is absolutely no end in sight.

“COVID has simply decimated our $45bn export tourism industry, which now faces a very difficult future with many businesses unlikely to last the distance while there is so much uncertainty surrounding the reopening of international borders,” Mr Shelley said in a statement.

But there was some positivity on Monday with Wyndham Destinations announcing that it is re-opening 14 of its Australian properties at a reduced 50 per cent capacity.

The properties include the Club Wyndham, Kirra Beach, the Wyndham Hotel Melbourne, the Ramada Resort by Wyndham on Philip Island, Ramada Resort by Wyndham Coffs Harbour and the Ramada Resort by Wyndham Dinner Plain.

Parks Australia will allow visitors to return to Kakadu and Uluru Kata Tjuta and National Parks from Friday under a staged re-opening.