Australia is open for international visitors, and Canadians are chomping at the bit.
Canadian consumers recognize that Australia did a good job handling COVID-19, and that there’s a “huge demand” for visits amongst Canadian travelleres, Chris Allison, the North America acting general manager for Tourism Australia, said at a Tourism Australia “Australia On Tour” event in downtown Toronto on Tuesday.
A study in December found that Canadian interest in visiting Australia was back to pre-pandemic levels.
Tim Liu, Managing Director, Sales Planning & Effectiveness at Air Canada, said Air Canada recognizes the increased interest and is responding with more flights. The airline will fly from Vancouver to Sydney 10 times a week this summer, and to Brisbane four times a week. Air Canada originally wasn’t going to bring back its Brisbane flights until later this year.
Liu also said AC would love to bring in direct flights from Canada to Melbourne, and he hinted that the airline will be bringing in a promotion to help visitors reach Australia.
Allison said Canadians are quite interested in food and wine travel and in indigenous-led tourism experiences. There are indigenous experiences to be found all around Australia, including in Tasmania, Western Australia, Sydney, and around Uluru in the Northern Territory.
Steven Paganelli, Director, Destinations, Hotels and OTA’s for Tripadvisor, said Canadians are dying to see friends and families they haven’t been with in two years or more. They also want to visit “bucket list” places they’ve been dreaming of, and they don’t want to wait 10 years to do it.
Canadians are still somewhat trepidatious about international travel, but their interest is steadily increasing, he said.
Allison said there are 100 new hotels for Australia lovers to check out, and 12,000 new rooms. Visitors who are interested in sustainability tourism can help plant trees in areas hurt by brush fires a few years ago, or work with wildlife sanctuaries.
Guests at Tuesday’s luncheon were treated to a wonderful lunch from Tasmanian chef Sarah Glover, as well as wines from Western Australia, New South Wales, South Australia and Tasmania.
