International visitors are flocking to the Gold Coast in growing numbers alongside a surge in domestic day trips driving the city’s visitor economy.
The new data from Tourism Research Australia1 points to the continued resurgence of Gold Coast’s international performance in the year ending June 2026, with expenditure and visitation both up on the previous year. The Gold Coast welcomed major growth in visitor numbers from key markets including China (+45.6%), Korea (+31.5%), Japan (+16%) and the UK (+4.4%).
New Zealand held steady as the Gold Coast’s top international market, with 219,000 Kiwi’s visiting in the year ending June 2026.
Australians are prioritising shorter Gold Coast escapes, with domestic day trips reaching new heights. The destination welcomed 8.9 million domestic day trip visitors and 5.1 million domestic overnight visitors in the year ending June 2026.
The Gold Coast’s domestic overnight visitor economy injected over $5.4 billion into the region in the year ending June 2026, cementing the Gold Coast as the country’s fifth largest overnight economy behind Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate said the results showed the city’s global appeal was continuing to strengthen.
“The Gold Coast has well and truly earned its place on the world stage, and international visitors are voting with their feet,” Mayor Tom Tate said.
“We’re continuing to invest in the things that make the Gold Coast such a great place to visit. That confidence is translating into more hotels, more experiences, more aviation routes, and even more reasons for visitors to choose the Gold Coast.”
The Gold Coast visitor economy continues to deliver significant value for the city, with 14.7 million visitors contributing $8.5 billion to the local economy in the year ending June 2026.
INTERNATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
- • 656,000 international visitors, up 3.1% on year ending June 2025
- • $1.5 billion international visitor expenditure, up +11% on year ending June 2025
- • 9.7 million international visitor nights, up 4.8% on year ending June 2025
- • 219,000 NZ visitors, consistent with year ending June 2025
- • 79,000 Chinese visitors, up 45.6% on year ending June 2025
- • 63,000 US visitors, up 3.1% on year ending June 2025
- • 30,000 Japanese visitors, up 16% on year ending June 2025
- • 26,000 Korean visitors, up 31.5% on year ending June 2025
DOMESTIC HIGHLIGHTS
- • 14 million total domestic visitors
- • 8.9 million domestic day trip visitors
- • Australia’s fifth largest domestic overnight visitor economy
- • 3 million domestic overnight visitors from QLD
- • 2.2 million domestic overnight visitors from interstate
1 Tourism Research Australia adopted a new domestic tourism data methodology in January 2025. As a result, 2026 domestic visitation and expenditure figures are not directly comparable with previous years.
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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.