Number of Indian Tourists to Australia Rises by 15%

Australia is turning out to be one of the most favored destinations for Indian travelers. The arrival of Indian tourists to the island nation rose by 15 per cent this year till October 2017 as compared to the same period in 2016, according to Tourism Australia.

As many as 24,100 Indians visited the country in October 2017, as compared to the corresponding figure of 20,598 in the same period last year. With 294,000 tourists from the country travelling to Australia this year until October, India is also said to be the ninth largest in-bound market for the island nation. This has brought Australia closer to its 2020 target of achieving 300,000 visitors yearly, much before its specified time of three years.

Until September 2017, the total amount of money spent by Indian tourists visiting Australia was Au$1.45 billion (Rs 7,200 crore). This shows a surge of 26 per cent as compared to last year, making India the eighth largest market in terms of money spent by tourists. The amount of money spent and the double-digit growth for the fourth consecutive year has made India the fastest growing in-pouring market for Australia.

About 741,500 visitor arrivals from different countries took place during October 2017, marking an increase of 6.6 per cent relative to the same period of the previous year. “This brings us to 8.7 million visitor arrivals for year ending October 2017, an increase of 7.1 per cent relative to the previous year,” a statement from Tourism Australia said.

International arrivals growth, the statement said, was driven by leisure arrivals in Australia, with an increase of 7.6 per cent over the 12-month period. New Zealand is the top source market for Australia, followed by China, United States, United Kingdom, Singapore, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea and India.

Online submission of tourist visa applications for Indian citizens was allowed beginning mid-2017 by the Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection.

“We are extremely pleased with the success of the electronic lodgment process, with over 60 per cent of the total tourist visa applications now received online. November 2017 has witnessed the highest-ever tourist visa lodgments,” Tania Gerlach, the Chief Migration Officer, Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP), said.

Round-the-clock access, e-payment of the visa application charge and the provision of checking the visa applications submitted online are some of the benefits offered by e-lodgment.

“It is an extremely proud moment for us to achieve the fastest growing market status in our 50th anniversary year of marketing Australia to the world as a visitor destination,” Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India and Gulf, Tourism Australia, said in a statement. He added that focusing on partnerships with airlines, Australian specialist agents and content integration activities showed great results.

Another factor that has resulted in more number of Indian travelers exploring Australia is that visas will require lesser time for processing in the future because of the immediate availability of application and supporting documentation to the processing office. These developments have made obtaining an Australian visa for Indian travelers easier.