Australia continues their aggressive reopening to the world, in this new era of travel, we can expect it to look a little different. While some things have remained the same since Australia travel slowed, both local and international, there is an eagerness to get back to the norm prior to the pandemic.
There are still the gloriously wide-open spaces and a very eager tourism industry eager to welcome guests. With that in mind, we wanted to include some insights from Tourism Australia’s Consumer Demand Project (CDP), which aims to understand how travellers choose a holiday destination, and what motivates them to travel.
READ MORE: We put together a simple Australia travel guide to help your planning
The latest findings have the usual focus on safety as the most important factor when planning a holiday, but also highlights some interesting finds about what the future of travel in the country could look like. When it comes to Australia travel, nearly 80 % of all travellers consider the country as a safe destination to visit, while 62 % see it as less impacted by the pandemic than most other countries – meaning a potential quick rebound for overseas travel to Australia.
Here are 3 trends that we thought were really interesting.
Australia travel trends 1: Travellers will focus on getting away from it all
Both local and overseas travellers to Australia may look to unplug and get away from the hustle and bustle of life. In today’s modern world, switching off is an ultimate indulgence and as a result more remote retreats and tiny houses have opened in regional areas across the country complementing Australia’s already incredible camping options.
Some of the options available are:
Tiny-home stays
While hundreds of petite abodes are now on offer across the country, some of the latest include South Australia’s Eco Eyre, two architect-designed eco-pods fitted with everything you need for a blissful beachside stay on the Eyre Peninsula.
There are also other options like Unyoked, which offers a natural remedy to modern life, with the latest of its tiny homes sitting among fragrant gums near Byron Bay on the New South Wales North Coast. Over in Western Australia, Windows Estate’s Petite Eco Cabin nestles among the vines of the Margaret River region.
Remote retreats
Only a layer of canvas separates you from some of Australia’s richest flora and fauna at lauded Bamurru Plains, set on the edge of Kakadu National Park in the Northern Territory. Come to be humbled by nature, with a good dose of luxury and fine dining.
Look at Western Australia, which is your gateway to swimming with whale sharks and humpbacks on Ningaloo Reef. You can also book luxury coastal retreats on newly opened Ettrick Rocks on Tasmania’s King Island promise wild and windswept vistas, and easy access to some of the country’s best cheese and seafood.
READ MORE: Here are some unique Australia tourist attractions for all travellers
Australia travel trends 2: Sustainability and regenerative travel
Today’s travellers are more aware than ever of the impacts of their adventures. In recent years, there has been a renewed focus on regenerative travel across Australia, which has seen more and more operators increase their focus on providing a sustainable and respectful experience for guests.
Whether you go slowly, tread lightly or give back, regenerative travel not only makes your trips more memorable, but also ensures that the destinations you travel to can be enjoyed by future generations of locals and visitors.
Help rewild Australia with your hotel stay
The team at Arkaba Conservancy are on a mission to protect wildlife through safaris of another kind in South Australia’s immense outback. Guests can hike to spot emus and wedge-tailed eagles, quolls and kangaroos. A percentage of Arkaba’s profits fund conservation projects, and you can accompany ecologists in the field, monitoring wildlife and surveying the land.
Similarly, all proceeds from your stay at Mornington Wilderness Camp are funnelled into protecting wildlife in the Kimberley region the tented retreat calls home. Enlist in research and land-management tours to spot Gouldian finches and red goshawks, or even join the lodge’s citizen science program.
Explore the wildlife conservation project
In Queensland, Mon Repos near Bundaberg is home to the largest concentration of nesting marine turtles on the eastern Australian mainland. Visit the Mon Repos Turtle Centre year-round to learn about its conservation, research and education projects.
Further south in New South Wales, informative hands-off visits to the Koala Hospital Port Macquarie support the rescue, rehabilitation and release of the adorable marsupials in its care.
In Tasmania, the fees to visit Devils@Cradle fund protection of the island state’s endangered Tasmanian devils, which roam the reserve’s vast natural habitat on the edge of UNESCO World Heritage-listed Cradle Mountain–Lake St Clair National Park.
Sign up for a citizen science tour
A number of citizen-science projects and tours empower visitors to collect and analyse data from nature on behalf of environmental researchers. From Victoria to the Northern Territory, Echidna Walkabout’s conservation tours let you monitor wildlife and restore habitats.
The newest tour, Island Birds & Whale Sharks, is an eight-day expedition off the coast of Exmouth in Western Australia’s Ningaloo region.
Travellers can track dolphin movements between pods on a private multi-day tour with Exceptional Kangaroo Island.
The South Australian operator’s Conservation Connection experience unites visitors to Kangaroo Island with top naturalists and researchers, providing unparalleled access to native wildlife.
Queensland’s FNQ Nature Tours’ four-day Nature, Wildlife and Conservation Safari allows visitors to survey threatened spotted-tail quolls through the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area.
Australia travel trends 3: Australia’s extensive indigenous history
In recent years there has been a significant growth in the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander owned and operated travel experiences, and with it, Australia travel is seeing a more diverse range of experiences on offer. From wine and bush tucker tasting in the Margaret River, to Indigenous snorkelling tours of the Great Barrier Reef, Indigenous stargazing and relaxing hot springs experiences, there are unique and unexpected new experiences opening right across the country, all highlighting a whole new side of the world’s oldest living culture.
Before the pandemic, according to the International Visitor Survey, in 2019 alone, approximately 1.35 million international visitors took part in an Indigenous experience on their holiday – a figure that has grown by 5% each year, for the six years before it.
Take a dip in an incredible new hot spring
We all deserve a bit of pampering. There’s no better place to treat yourself than at the new Talaroo Hot Springs in Queensland’s Gulf Savannah region, where extraordinary geological wonders meet Aboriginal hospitality provided by its Ewamian Traditional Owners.
Sign up for new women-led Indigenous experiences
East Arnhem Land is one of the world’s last wilderness frontiers. Remote and beautiful, it nurtures a thriving Aboriginal community that female visitors can glimpse on Gay’Wu – The Dilly Bag Tour for Women. The five-day experience is hosted by Yolngu women who share their philosophies and tales of Aboriginal astrology, as well as inducting you into healing ceremonies while revealing traditional arts and medicinal native plants.
On the New South Wales North Coast, Arakwal Bundjalung Elder Delta Kay has launched walking tours in the Byron Bay region that offer similar insights, discussing the impact of colonisation on her ancestors, while providing lessons in Bundjalung language and sharing traditional tools and artefacts.
Learn the Indigenous stories of Sydney on a new bridge climb
Climbing one of the world’s most recognisable structures is a goosebump-inducing experience. Tackling the steps of the Sydney Harbour Bridge with an Aboriginal guide on BridgeClimb Sydney’s Burrawa Climb takes the occasion to new heights. Enjoy a bird’s-eye view over some of the city’s most significant Aboriginal sites while discovering Dreaming stories and learning the indigenous history of the New South Wales capital.
Taste native ingredients
Take a stroll on the tidal flats of King Sound in Western Australia’s Dampier Peninsula with Bardi man Terry Hunter of Borrgoron Coast to Creek Tours and discover the secret to sampling fresh oysters with the use of fire. On South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula, join a Traditional Custodian from Kool Tours to learn about the bush foods and medicines traditionally used by the Ngarrindjeri/Ramindjeri people.
In New South Wales, the new Firescreek Aboriginal Storytelling and Wine Tasting Experience led by Darkinjung Elder Kevin ‘Gavi’ Duncan takes guests on a sensory adventure blending bush foods, music and Dreaming stories. The experience is paired with a botanical wine tasting.
Get your adrenaline pumping
In New South Wales, join a Traditional Custodian from Wajaana Yaam Gumbaynggirr Adventure Tours for a new stand-up paddleboarding adventure on the culturally significant waterways of the Coffs Coast.
Further south, Wormi guides from Sand Dune Adventures lead exhilarating quad-bike adventures on Aboriginal lands in the Port Stephens area.
Choose your Australia travel plans wisely
2022 has a lot of potential for travel and Australia should definitely be in your travel plans. Whether it is to step away from work for a while or discover the natural and cultural background of the country, it is a smart choice.
