China-Australia Tourism: Slow Recovery & Bleak 2024 Outlook

The number of Chinese tourists visiting Australia is still significantly lower than pre-epidemic levels, and an Australian tourism expert warned that the market outlook in 2026 remains uncertain.

The latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows that in the 12 months to November last year, China was Australia’s second largest source market, with more than 1 million tourist arrivals, a 16% increase from 2024.

At the same time, official data shows that in the 12 months to March 2025, Chinese tourists spent 9.2 billion Australian dollars in Australia, making China Australia’s most valuable inbound tourism market in terms of consumption.

However, these numbers are still well below pre-pandemic levels.

In 2019, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Australia reached a peak of more than 1.4 million, and tourist spending reached 12.4 billion Australian dollars.

Huang Songshan, a leading expert on China tourism at Edith Cowan University, said domestic economic pressure in China is suppressing demand for outbound travel.

“I don’t feel too optimistic. I think the overall situation this year will ultimately depend on the overall economic development,” Professor Huang Songshan said.

“Because the world is in chaos… and it also depends on the continued momentum of China’s economy.”

“If ordinary people feel that their money has shrunk and their wealth has decreased a lot, they may[取消]The budget for outbound travel may also be[降低]Budget. “

He pointed out that even if they choose to travel abroad, many Chinese tourists prefer short-haul destinations rather than necessarily long-haul leisure markets like Australia, mainly due to longer flight times and higher travel costs.

Data released by China’s National Bureau of Statistics on January 19 showed that last year’s economic growth rate reached 5%, but the growth rate slowed down in the second half of the year, with GDP growth rates in the third quarter and fourth quarter being 4.8% and 4.5% respectively.

In November last year, China was only Australia’s third largest source of inbound tourists, with 74,500 arrivals, behind New Zealand (127,820) and the United Kingdom (80,090).

In contrast, many important Australian inbound markets have rebounded significantly. For example, the number of tourists from South Korea has almost doubled from 26,010 in November 2019 to 44,760 in November 2025, while Chinese tourists are still in the slow recovery stage.

Tourism Australia expresses optimism

Tourism Australia is more optimistic about the Chinese market.

“China remains a very important market for Australian tourism,” Tourism Australia chief executive Robin Mack said.

“Currently, China is our second largest tourist source market and the market with the highest total tourist spending.”

Tourism Research Australia predicts that China will become one of Australia’s fastest growing inbound tourism markets from 2025 to 2030, with an average annual growth rate of 7.3%.

However, many believe that even if many other Australian tourism markets have rebounded significantly, it will still take many years for the number of Chinese tourists to return to pre-pandemic levels.

Australian Open and Spring Festival drive short-term recovery

Data show that in January and February last year, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Australia exceeded 100,000, ranking first among all major source markets, surpassing New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States.

January is the Australian Open season that attracts global attention, and February is usually the Chinese New Year holiday. Many middle-class families will choose to vacation overseas.

Although the popular Chinese women’s singles star Zheng Qinwen withdrew from the Australian Open due to injury, which disappointed many fans, the emergence of another cross-border star brought new focus to fans – the king of Chinese music and Taiwanese singer Jay Chou.

On January 14, Jay Chou participated in the “One Goal to Win Grand Slam” match as a tennis enthusiast and lost to Australian tennis player Peter Jović.

Since then, he has attended the Australian Open many times, and his masterpiece “Nunchuck” was played in the stadium, triggering cheers from the audience.

The Australian Open stated that Jay Chou’s appearance attracted great attention on the Internet.

“Jay Chou is a tennis enthusiast and has many friends in the tennis world, including many players,” an Australian Open spokesman said.

“When we learned that Jay Chou was coming to the Australian Open… we asked him if he would like to participate in the ‘One Goal to Win Grand Slam’ event.

“It’s nice to see[他在社媒上发布的]The content is widely shared and enjoyed. “

His fans also include Chinese tennis player Bai Zhuoxuan, who reached the second round. She once said that Jay Chou is her personal idol.

“Brother Jie is more like a fan friend in my life. His music accompanies me during my travels, training, before playing, and during vacations,” she wrote on social media.

Why has the rebound been weaker than expected?

Professor Huang Songshan said that China’s domestic economy is affecting outbound travel, especially travel to Australia.

“China’s current economy is in decline, especially people’s expected income may decline due to the sluggish real estate market. In this case, the general residents’ demand for outbound travel will be greatly reduced,” he said.

“I think if it was a middle-class family, he would consider reducing[不必要的开支]it is very likely that long-term outbound travel will be cancelled.[转而选择]Travel around the country or within the country. “

He also pointed out that the second reason may be related to the economic orientation of the Chinese government.

“As far as the Chinese government is concerned, it encourages Chinese residents more to travel within the country and less to encourage outbound travel.”

“From a government perspective, if people can travel domestically[带动]Domestic tourism economy must be considered based on the trend of the national economy…it will be more cost-effective. “

He pointed out that Beijing believes that if the money is kept at home to stimulate the economy, it can help boost domestic demand, which is crucial to economic development. He said that this is one of the reasons why China has implemented a unilateral visa-free policy for many countries, including Australia, in recent years.

“The same goes for inbound tourism.[吸引海外游客]When it comes to consumption in China, I think the overall idea is the same. “

He also pointed out that cultural and tourism departments across China are currently launching various new tourism products in the hope of stimulating tourism consumption. However, some popular scenic spots are overcrowded, which has adversely affected the tourist experience.

He believes that it is still necessary for Tourism Australia to continue to carry out promotional activities in China.

In July last year, Tourism Australia launched the promotional campaign “Come and Say Hello” in China.

Robin Mack said that China remains an important market for Australia’s tourism industry.

“We have been conducting systematic industry and consumer marketing campaigns throughout the year to encourage Chinese tourists to visit Australia,” he said.

“So far, the market response is encouraging.”