Australia unveils staycation plans as it keeps tight border controls

Tourism Australia has launched the latest phase of its multi-million dollar campaign to encourage domestic tourism. Called Holiday Here This Year, the first iteration of the campaign was launched in January with the aim of getting Australians to travel safely across the country to provide a much-needed boost to tourism and business operators. With summer now on the horizon, the new phase of the campaign aims to inspire wanderlust and get people booking a new holiday.

With the borders currently closed to international tourism, the Australian government has set its eyes on domestic tourism in order to keep the economy going. Last week, Australia’s tourism minister Simon Birmingham announced that Tourism Australia will receive AUS$231.6 million between now and next year in an effort to ramp up domestic marketing activities to encourage people to get out and about.

“It is crucial that we continue to remind people of all the incredible destinations and tourism experiences that are right on their doorstep waiting to be explored. Our goal is to try and get Australians travelling differently by using the Holiday Here This Year campaign platform to urge them to start ticking off their holiday bucket list or heading interstate for a trip of a lifetime,” Tourism Australia's managing director Phillipa Harrison said.

According to the managing director, this will be the first of a series of initiatives implemented over the coming months to continue to drive as much domestic demand as possible. The campaign follows the launch of a video starring Hamish and Zoe-Foster Blake across Tourism Australia’s social and digital channels, which takes viewers on a journey across some of the country’s most breath-taking landscapes.

“With our international borders expected to remain closed for the foreseeable future and the summer holidays only a couple of months away, this is a shout out to all Australians who are in a position to do so, to try something new and consider booking a holiday to a destination within Australia they have never been to before. Whether it be a surf lesson in Byron Bay, a wine-tasting experience in the Adelaide Hills, a boat trip out to the Great Barrier Reef or a guided walking tour in the Top End, Australia has so many unique and wonderful tourism experiences,” tourism minister Simon Birmingham said.

More information on the campaign is available at the official website.

The country has also launched a COVID-19 travel portal with information and useful tips for planning trips.

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