Australia's long-term national visitor economy strategy, THRIVE 2030, was released in March 2022. Industry-led and government-enabled, THRIVE 2030 aims to help the visitor economy rebuild and return to long-term sustainable growth. It sets a target to return to pre-pandemic visitor expenditure of AUD 166 billion by 2024 and to grow it to AUD 230 billion by 2030. Regional destinations comprise approximately 40% of this goal. The strategy's action plan is focused on the initial recovery phase to 2024. It has seven priority areas with 66 actions for governments and the tourism sector. There are 21 federal government agencies involved in the delivery of THRIVE 2030.
In May 2022, the Federal Government committed AUD 48 million to tourism-related measures. This package will provide support for quality tourism products, infrastructure upgrades, training and upskilling of workers and assistance for businesses in attracting international visitors.
Australia's immediate focus during the COVID‑19 pandemic was to provide support to heavily impacted areas of tourism. Since March 2020, the Australian Government has provided more than AUD 20 billion in assistance to the tourism and hospitality sector through targeted and non-targeted support, including wage subsidies (e.g. JobKeeper) and sectoral assistance programmes. This included partnering with states and territories to deliver business support programmes.
As part of this assistance, short-term measures funded by the AUD 1 billion COVID‑19 Relief and Recovery Fund included: Regional Airlines Funding Assistance (AUD 100 million), Regional Air Network Assistance (AUD 198 million), the COVID‑19 Consumer Travel Support (AUD 258 million), Regional Recovery Partnerships (AUD 100 million), the Business Events Grant programme (AUD 56 million) and the Supporting Australia's Zoos and Aquariums programme (AUD 139.6 million) (see box below).
Medium-term measures to support a return to growth for the sector include an AUD 1.2 billion tourism and aviation package as part of the National Economic Recovery Plan, the Tourism Aviation Network Support programme (AUD 204 million), the Recovery for Regional Tourism programme (AUD 50 million), and the expansion of the SME Loan Guarantee Scheme. Associated funding was also provided through AUD 233 million for tourism and other infrastructure in Commonwealth National Parks and additional support to strengthen Australia's cultural and creative sector (approximately AUD 800 million).
While Australia's international borders were closed, recovery was driven by Australians holidaying at home. Tourism Australia implemented a domestic recovery campaign, “Holiday Here This Year,” urging Australians to support the tourism sector by taking a domestic holiday. Elements included the “Epic Journeys” and “the gift of travel” campaigns. In addition, Tourism Australia launched its National Experience Content Initiative, an AUD 12 million programme which subsidises new marketing materials and assets that tourism experience operators can use to better market and promote themselves.
Tourism Australia continued to focus on keeping Australia top of mind in international markets, generating long-term demand for travel and priming audiences to book travel to Australia as soon as it was practical to do so. As international borders reopened, Tourism Australia launched a global consumer campaign to drive conversion in key markets that offer the best potential to build Australia's tourism recovery.
To promote long-term recovery and prepare for future shocks, in April 2021 Austrade announced the appointment of the Reimagining the Visitor Economy Expert Panel to advise the government on how to chart a course for sustainable long-term growth over the next ten years. The report developed by this Expert Panel, Reimagining the Visitor Economy, informed the development of THRIVE 2030.
