New tourism statistics show more Australian visitors to Ballarat are deciding to make day trips rather than stay overnight.
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The Australian Government’s National Visitor Survey results released on December 20 show Ballarat ranked number 29 out of the top 50 regions in the country for domestic day trip visitors in the year ending September 2017.
The statistics show a small increase in national day trip visitors to Ballarat from the previous year, up only 10 visitors to 1903.
But Ballarat did not make the list for the top 50 regions in Australia for overnight stays.
Meanwhile, the Great Ocean Road showed growth in national overnight stays, ranked 16 out of the top 50 regions.
Geelong and the Bellarine ranked 26, Gippsland 28 and Bendigo Loddon at 39 for domestic overnight stays.
Visit Ballarat CEO Noel Dempsey said Ballarat was an appealing destination for both day and overnight visitors.
"Our job is to position Ballarat as a destination of choice for both day-trippers and overnight visitors,” Mr Dempsey said.
“As people visit, they spend their tourism dollars at our attractions, cafes, eateries, and retailers - contributing towards a more robust economy, which is exactly what we want."
In contrast to the National Visitor Survey results, the International Visitor Survey findings released earlier in December revealed a drop in international day-trippers to the region, but an increase in international visitor overnight stays.
There was a 7.7 per cent drop in international day visitors to the Goldfields including Ballarat, but a 13.8 per cent growth in overnight stays during the same period.
Mr Dempsey said Ballarat's unique tourism offerings were drawing people in from further afield.
“This is in no small part thanks to our major attractions, our premium festivals and events, and our renowned history and heritage,” he said.
“We know that people travel on their stomachs, and the ongoing strengthening of sectors including food and wine are also contributing to people visiting our city.”
Throughout Australia there was higher intrastate than interstate domestic tourism growth. The interstate visitor spend was up only two per cent and overnight visitation increased one per cent compared to intrastate spend up 10 per cent and overnight visitation up six per cent from 2016 records.
Visit Victoria chief executive Peter Bingeman said regional tourism was driving Victoria’s visitation growth.
“It’s great to see such strong domestic growth for the state driven by regional visitation and spend,” Mr Bingeman said.
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