STRONG population growth over the last decade has seen the number of Australians planning overseas trips almost double, according to a new Roy Morgan Research report.
The study says more than 2.3 million Australians – or 11.4% of the population – are currently intending to go abroad over the next 12 months.
The corresponding figure in 2008 was 1.2 million – or 7.2% of the population at the time.
According to Roy Morgan, there is also an increasing proportion of Australians planning to travel to Asia, with 5.1% of the population, or more than one million people, expecting to make Asia trips.
A decade ago just 2.2% of Australians were planning to travel to Asia.
The actual mix of destinations within Asia has also changed significantly, with travellers citing Indonesia (Bali) and Japan as their most likely travel choices.
By contrast, there has been a strong decline in travel intention to China over the same period.
In 2008 almost 10% of Australians planning an overseas trip in the next year were planning to visit China – compared to just 5.3% this year.
However Roy Morgan also noted that in 2008 Beijing hosted the Summer Olympics, which could have contributed to stronger interest a decade ago.
Intention to travel to Hong Kong had also fallen significantly, while other Asian destinations seeing a decline in popularity include Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia, according to the study.
Versus 2008, holiday intention has increased for other countries in Asia including the Philippines, South Korea and India.
Source: traveldaily