SATC: South Australia's great call of China

Chinese visitors are the fastest growing, highest spending inbound market for South Australia - with visitor numbers rising 56 per cent to 56,000 visits between June 2016 and June 2017.

China is now SA's second largest visitor market behind the UK, having overtaken the USA.

In great news for hotels, retailers and tourism operators, the International Visitor Survey figures show the State's tourism windfall continues as international visitors spend $1.1 billion - an expenditure increase of 12 per cent.

Today's figures reflect only seven months of China Southern Airline activity - indicating the State is getting closer to its 2020 target of $450 million in expenditure.

Background
The Australian International Visitor Survey results from June 2016 to June 2017 show:

• International expenditure in South Australia grew 12 percent - above the national average of 10 percent.
• Nights for South Australia have reached a record high 10.9 million, up 14 per cent.
• China overtook the United States of America as the second largest market for inbound travel - up 56 per cent to 56,000 visits, while the United Kingdom remained the largest market with 66,000 visits.
• The US has also grown its share by 13 per cent to 54,000 visits.
• Chinese expenditure increased by 74 percent, injecting $352million into the State's visitor economy.
• 90 per cent of the visitors spent time in Adelaide, followed by the Limestone Coast with 45,000 visitors, then Kangaroo Island and the Flinders Ranges and Outback.

Quotes attributable to Minister for Tourism Leon Bignell
South Australia is really starting to embrace the incredible opportunity that is China - our tourism outlook is bright as we near our 2020 target of 57,000 Chinese visits.

It is great to see our international markets continuing to grow, boosting regional economies and supporting local jobs.

Our Government is working hard with the industry to make sure businesses are China ready and incorporating Chinese language and customs into their offerings.

Last week's trip to China for the Australian Tourism Ministers' Meeting was extremely positive and with the right focus, marketing and public and private investments, visitations from China will continue to grow.

Aviation capacity from China into Adelaide is set to increase with additional flights scheduled from December, ensuring we are well placed to further capture our share of this growing market.

Our $70 million investment and additional $14.5 million for our Major Events and Conferences Bid Funds is set to continue to ramp up or State's offering and maintain a competitive advantage over our interstate counterparts in attracting more international and domestic visitors.

The State Government remains committed to transforming South Australia, increasing aviation access and building the reputation of Adelaide and our regions as must visit destinations.