Life is good on the open road!
New figures have shown grey nomads and other caravanners are flocking to the Queensland Outback in massive numbers.
Statistics from the Caravan Industry Association of Australia show a 60% growth for the Outback Tourism region in 2015/16, while the Darling Downs was the second most popular region in Queensland for travellers.
The Chinchilla News reports that more than 166,000 domestic caravan and camping trips were made to the Outback – which includes the Maranoa, Murweh and Quilpie shires among others – in the last financial year.
Tourists also spent nearly 580,000 visitor nights in the Outback region in the year ending June 2016.
For its part, the Darling Downs enjoyed a 10% increase in visitor numbers on the previous year, with more than 371,000 visitor trips there, equating to 916,000 nights.
“The declining value of the dollar encourages Australians to holiday at home rather than internationally, and stable fuel prices support travel by road,” said Caravan Industry Association of Australia CEO, Stuart Lamont. “Added to this, modern caravans and recreational vehicles allow people to travel in the style and comfort they enjoy in their own homes.”
And he said the improved ‘state-of-the-art’ facilities at many caravan parks was also encouraging more people to sample life on the open road.
* Have you noticed more travellers in Outback Queensland and elsewhere in recent months? Why do you think traveller numbers are booming? Comment below.
Just spent 6 wks in the outback and thoroughly enjoyed the places and the people – so lucky to be enjoying this lifestyle
I reckon a lot of people are getting a bit sick of all the crowds at all the coastal areas. I love the outback.
I agree ,but I still think that they they don’t want us any where near Townsville or Cairns.So I stay away from all the cost .
Just had 7 weeks up north, drove from Vic up inland to Cairns. Caravan parks were full and free camping areas packed. We are supporting these places big time! We couldn’t believe the number of grey nomads travelling.
We are currently in the outback. I’d love to see a place to park our van with lovely green grass like the picture! LOL!