Latest National and International Visitor Survey results from Tourism Research Australia for the year ending June 2024 reveal the Gold Coast’s sustained recovery in the post-pandemic landscape.
Experience Gold Coast CEO John Warn said Gold Coast's visitor economy continues to demonstrate its resilience in a shifting market.
“The Gold Coast’s visitor economy remains resilient, generating $7.7 billion in total visitor expenditure in the twelve months to June – 30.5 per cent above pre-pandemic levels,” Mr Warn said.
“At the same time, we welcomed 12.3 million total visitors, down 9.1 per cent respectively on 2019 levels. But encouragingly, we saw total visitation lift by a solid 6 per cent in the last quarter alone.
“The new figures show that we have positively navigated the post-lockdown landscape, maintaining total visitor nights at 22.5 million, which is just 13.9 per cent shy of 2019 levels while Queensland and Australia both saw sharp declines.
“Overall, our visitor economy is stabilising, with international visitation restored to 62 per cent of prepandemic levels as international visitor expenditure recovered by 86 per cent.
“Rebuilding international arrivals continues to be a priority, with top markets including New Zealand, South Korea, the UK, China and USA.”
Mr. Warn emphasised that despite ongoing macroeconomic challenges, the city continues to shine as a premier destination for visitors.
“Total visitation has so far recovered by 91 per cent year-on-year as we look ahead with confidence to close in on pre-pandemic visitor levels and rebuild a more sustainable visitor economy,” he said.
“Experience Gold Coast is squarely focussed on repositioning the Gold Coast to target new market segments in the medium to long term, driving enhanced and dynamic visitor growth for the future.
“Aviation connectivity is key to strengthening visitation and keeping the Gold Coast at the forefront of travellers’ minds, whether they’re seeking leisure, business exchanges or educational experiences.
“In recent months, we proudly announced the launch of two brand-new Jetstar routes from Dunedin and Hamilton to the Gold Coast (from June 2025) as well as Hong Kong Airlines’ seasonal service from Hong Kong to Gold Coast (from mid-January 2025), made possible through the Attracting Aviation Investment Fund.
“These strategic partnerships invigorate our visitor economy as we continue to expand our footprint with innovative events, world-class sporting offerings, and vibrant cultural initiatives, all aimed at attracting high-yield markets and ensuring the Gold Coast remains an irresistible choice for travellers globally.”
| Total Visitors | Total Spend | Total Nights | |
| Australia | 326.3 m -6.6% vs 2019 |
$173.9 B +18.8% vs 2019 |
399.9 m -40.6% vs 2019 |
| Queensland | 70.7m -7.7% vs 2019 |
$41.4 B +37.6% vs 2019 |
98.6 m -36.2 % vs 2019 |
| Gold Coast | 12.3 m -9.1% vs 2019 |
$7.7 B +30.5% vs 2019 |
22.5 m -13.9% vs 2019 |
Key highlights include:
• Domestic Business Visitors: The Gold Coast saw a steady number of domestic business visitors at 575,000, contrasting with decreases in Queensland and Australia compared to 2019.
• Intrastate Growth: Queenslanders continued to flock to the Gold Coast, with 2.1 million visitors, marking a 5 per cent increase compared to June 2019.
• International Markets: New Zealand remains the Gold Coast’s largest international market, reaching a record 214,000 visitors. South Korea has also shown all-time high growth, becoming the city’s second-largest market with 57,000 visitors
ENDS
CONTACT
Jo Wormald | 0412 996 011 | jo.wormald@destinationgoldcoast.com
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY
Experience Gold Coast acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we are situated, the Kombumerri families of the Yugambeh Language Region.
We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging, and recognise their continuing connections to the lands, waters and their extended communities throughout Southeast Queensland.