Tourists shunning Queensland this Christmas

Tourists are shunning Queensland this Christmas with research showing wet weather and bargain hunting are having an impact.

While the industry claims some regions are experiencing a 30 per cent increase in Christmas bookings, Roy Morgan Research shows more Australians will visit Victoria this year than Queensland.

“Intention to visit Queensland has declined to 16 per cent, down from 19 per cent in 2010,” Roy Morgan’s Jane Ianniello said.

“Intention to go overseas during the Christmas holiday period has increased to 14 per cent, from 13 per cent in 2010,” she said.

The industry has also been hit by tourists’ growing habit of holding off on accommodation bookings until the last minute.

Industry sources said weather was a key factor in the change but many tourists were holding off travelling anywhere until the bargains hit mid-January.

Although long-term weather forecasts are not as bleak as last year, higher than average rain has been predicted for Queensland as the moist La Nina weather pattern continues.

Gold Coast Tourism chief executive Martin Winter said accommodation operators were anticipating a “solid” peak holiday season, but weather was critical.

“Current bookings are on par with previous years and there’s an increased expectation of last-minute bookings throughout December and January to provide an all-important boost to the numbers,” he said.

“The trend to late booking continues in the leisure segment, with most accommodation providers indicating that booking periods are shorter this year than ever.

“This makes the weather even more important as it can stimulate a lot of last-minute bookings.”

Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief executive Daniel Gschwind said some people were also holding off booking until they see bargains, particularly after January 15.

“People are really getting accustomed to when the bargains are around,” Mr Gschwind said.

“That shows how important airline discounting is to this market.”

Tourism Queensland chief executive Anthony Hayes said forward bookings were indicating strength had returned to the local market.

Tourism Tropical North Queensland chief executive Rob Giason said the region expected to attract mostly international visitors over Christmas.