The number of people heading across the Bass Strait to camp in Tasmania is growing quickly … but it seems that grey nomads have got serious company in the van parks and campsites.
According to new data, nearly 30,000 international visitors have headed over to the Apple Isle with campers or tents in the year to September 2016 … a rise of 57%. Visitors from the United States showed the largest growth — up 49% on the previous year — followed by the UK (up 13%) and Germany (up 10%).
Targeted campaigns in Asian markets were also reportedly paying off, with the Caravan Industry Association of Australia research revealing that more visitors from China and Singapore were electing to camp or sleep in campervans.
Caravan Industry Association of Australia CEO Stuart Lamont told the Daily Mercury newspaper that the industry was working to connect with visitors from markets not traditionally linked with independent self-drive travel.
International visitors aged 20 to 29 years continue to represent the largest segment, accounting for 42% of visitors.
“This demographic represents an important market for tourism generally as they tend to stay for longer periods of time, spend more while they are here and travel wider into regional areas,” Mr Lamont said. “And when they like what they experience, they become excellent ambassadors for tourism in Australia with social sharing and peer-to-peer influence.”
Figures from TT-Line in May this year showed the number of caravan and motorhomes coming across Bass Strait on our passenger ferries was driving growth. The twin ferries carried 377,000 passengers in the year to the end of April, up by almost 10 per cent on the previous year.
In total, Australia welcomed 346,861 caravan and camping overnight visitors from 23 international markets in the year — up 14% from the previous year.
· Comment below
