Over the years, the continent of Australia has seen a significant rise in tourist arrivals from India. Currently, India is the 8th largest inbound market for Australia with total arrivals for the year ended (YE) September 2019 at 386,400, an increase of 12 per cent relative to the same period of the previous year. For year ended June 2019, Indian visitors spent A$ 1.8 billion (approx. INR 8,800 crore) on their Australian trips, an increase of 17 per cent over the previous year. In December 2017, Australia achieved its Tourism 2020 strategic goal of over 300,000 arrivals from India, three years ahead of target. Besides, India is the 6th largest source market in terms of expenditure for Australia, and currently is the fastest growing inbound market with five consecutive years of double-digit growth.
While Australia is gearing up to serve as a host for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2020, the country is all set to welcome the influx of cricket fans and tourists across the world. Cashing on the mega cricket event and to further promote Australia as a world-class destination, Tourism Australia has recently announced the launch of its bi-yearly travel sale – Virtual Travel Fair’. Given the immense cricket fan following in India, the sale will provide Indian travellers an opportunity to grab attractive deals on holidays to Australia. The sale, which is now in its sixth edition, earlier offered attractive deals on air packages, will now be taking leading tourism attractions and experiences across Australia into its ambit. In addition to unbeatable airfares, the travellers will also receive competitive prices on holiday packages. The announcement comes in the wake of Tourism Australia’s latest campaign ‘Experience the game and beyond’, targeting passionate Indian cricket fans and giving them an opportunity to be a part of the ICC T20 World Cup along with an unparalleled holiday experience in Australia.
As part of the sale, Tourism Australia has partnered with seven major airlines including Air India, Cathay Pacific, China Southern Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Singapore Airlines, SriLankan Airlines, and Thai Airways to offer fares starting from just INR 40,000. The sale is valid from 14 November to 13 December 2019 with a travel validity of up to December 2020. Additionally, tourism products ranging from hotels and car rental agencies to adventure and leisure experiences have come on board to extend unmatched discounts, which can be accessed through Tourism Australia’s Aussie Specialist Agents, Key Distribution Partners and leading online travel agents like Goibibo, Yatra, MakeMyTrip, and Cleartrip.
