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While Australians are dusting off their passports and charging headlong into international travel with gusto, the rest of the world, it seems, is yet to return the favour.

The Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) has this week sounded a clarion call, welcoming the 2024 Annual Benchmark Report from Tourism Research Australia (TRA)—but with a few choice caveats that would make any seasoned travel industry veteran pause mid-flat white.

Yes, the headline numbers look cheery on paper. There’s certainly an uptick in international arrivals, and overseas spend is climbing. But don’t pop the prosecco just yet. Dig a little deeper, and you’ll find the froth disguises some rather sobering truths, particularly in the high-value holiday segment, the very heart and soul of Australia’s inbound tourism market.

“The spend is certainly positive,” says ATEC Managing Director Peter Shelley, “but the reality is that international holiday visitation is still about 20% below 2019 levels, and that’s a serious concern.”

And a concern it is. While Australians racked up a record-breaking 11.6 million outbound jaunts in 2024—a veritable tsunami of selfie-sticks swarming Santorini—our inbound holiday numbers remain stubbornly sluggish. It’s a trend that doesn’t just sting the ego, but the economy.

“At a time when Australians are travelling overseas in record numbers, we’re not seeing the same pace of recovery in inbound holiday visitation,” Shelley adds. “More tourism dollars are flowing out than coming in, and that’s a missed economic opportunity.”

Shelley notes the silver lining—visiting friends and relatives (VFR) and international student travel are rebounding more robustly. But the crème de la crème, the big-spending holidaymakers, are still dragging their wheels. And with the Aussie dollar playing hopscotch and regional operators clinging to hope like possums to a powerline, this gap is more than a statistical inconvenience.

China, traditionally Australia’s golden goose in the tourism pond, still leads in spend, but visitor numbers have not yet returned to their pre-pandemic heights. The glimmers of promise? Think South Korea, India and Japan—all nibbling at the edges of recovery like curious tourists at a cheese platter. But according to Shelley, these markets need more than a nibble—they need nurturing.

ATEC’s Prescription: Less Talk, More Tarmac

In response, ATEC has unfurled a 2025 policy platform brimming with practical fixes and firm suggestions—more an itinerary for recovery than a wish list:

Targeted funding for tourism distributors to rebuild global relationships that fizzled during lockdown limbo.
Market Host training programs to help tourism businesses connect with culturally diverse travellers—because let’s face it, a welcome that feels authentic beats a stale brochure any day.
Regional aviation investment, ensuring travellers don’t just land in Sydney and vanish down George Street.
Strategic workforce development, with a firm eye on one glaring gap: qualified tour guides. Turns out, you can’t showcase Australia’s charm with Google Translate and a rental car.

“Regional tourism businesses are still doing it tough,” Shelley says. “Workforce shortages, cost pressures and uneven demand all point to the need for targeted support well beyond the capital cities.”

And therein lies the rub. The THRIVE 2030 strategy, Australia’s bold tourism vision, calls for $230 billion in visitor spend by decade’s end: a lofty target—and a noble one. But you can’t hit a moving kangaroo with a blunt boomerang.

ATEC insists that real money must back that ambition. That means bolstering Tourism Australia’s global presence and investing in premium experiences that can draw discerning travellers from Dubai to Düsseldorf.

“If we want to hit the THRIVE targets,” Shelley says, “we have to back the parts of the sector that are still recovering—and that means product development, experience innovation, and getting serious about our global marketing game.”

No Time for She’ll-Be-Right Thinking

As any well-travelled Aussie knows, you don’t just stumble upon a great destination—it’s sold to you with flair, with promise, and, if we’ve done our job right, with a fair dinkum welcome.

But for now, while the rest of the world’s wanderlust remains on simmer, it’s time for a bit of good old-fashioned graft. Australia’s inbound holiday sector needs more than well-meaning headlines. It needs investment, imagination, and a long overdue seat at the national strategy table.

Because if we let our guard down, we may find the only thing arriving in droves are the excuses.