A
major international tourism research project into how Indian
consumers view Australia and what most motivates them to visit has
been unveiled by Tourism Australia.
Conducted
across 11 of Australia’s key tourism markets, the research surveyed
1,200 Indian customers, who were selected on the basis of their
previous long-haul travel behavior and/ or their intention to travel
long haul in the next few years participated in an online survey.
According
to the research, the majority of
Indian travellers ranked safety, world class natural beauty, value
for money,
romantic experiences and a destination that offers a wide range of
activities for all age groups, as the biggest triggers for choosing a
holiday destination.
Indians
ranked the Australian beaches, its Wildlife, Island experiences,
Rainforests and the Great Barrier Reef, as the top attractions that
appealed to travellers.
Other
findings of the research were as below:
•
Australia
ranked No. 1 on safety, world-class natural beauty, friendly and open
citizens, the highest rank amongst all competitor countries.
•
Australia
ranked # 1 on Food
& Wine amongst
those Indians who have previously travelled to Australia.
•
Sydney,
Gold Coast, Cairns, Melbourne and Kangaroo Island were the most
appealing regions for Indians intending to visit Australia.
•
68
per cent of Indians said that they use general internet search as a
preferred source when planning a trip to Australia; whilst 43 per
cent would use a
travel agent to
book their Australia holiday.
•
Indian
visitors ranked amongst those with high satisfaction and expectations
from their previous visit to Australia.
•
Indians
also showed the highest intention to visit Australia for a holiday,
amongst Australia’s 11 key tourism markets.
•
Most
Indian travellers preferred the months of November and December as
the most likely time of the year to take a holiday to Australia
In
releasing the findings, Tourism Australia as a part of its India 2020
Strategy Plan intends to further evolve its future marketing
activities in India, and identify opportunities to make the country’s
tourism offering more attractive to Indian visitors.
Nishant
Kashikar, Country Manager – India, Tourism Australia said, ‘The
study provides an understanding of what motivates long haul
travellers and provides directional guidance to
our promotion efforts.
It is encouraging to see Indian visitors have the highest levels of
intention to visit Australia and this is also reflected in the
consistent growth in visitor arrivals to Australia. In the 10 months
to October 2012, there has been a 14 per cent increase in leisure
arrivals to Australia from India, with spends from Indian leisure
travellers increasing by 17 per cent. Using the India 2020 strategy,
we will work towards amplifying the strengths that consumers identify
with Australia and prioritise our future marketing activities and
spending accordingly.’
More
details of
the research findings are available
at http://www.tourism.australia.com/Tourism-2020-Research-Project-2012.pdf
