SOUTH Australian regional tourism reached a record high in 2022, with billions passing through the state’s economy.
According to the State Government, regional visitor expenditure hit $3.98 billion by the end of 2022.
As part of its South Australian Regional Visitor Strategy 2025, the State Government was aiming to see regional tourism rake in $4 billion a year by 2025.
Minister for Tourism Zoe Bettison said SA’s tourism numbers are well ahead of schedule.
“Regional tourism is a huge contributor to South Australia’s visitor economy – now worth a record-high almost $4 billion to our state,” Ms Bettison said.
“For every tourism dollar spent in South Australia, 48 cents is spent in the regions – up from 44 cents in 2019.
“With six of the 11 regions having already beat their targets set for 2025, and four regions cracking an all-time high – these are fantastic indicators that our plan to recover the industry from the impacts of the pandemic is on track.”
SA Regional Visitor Strategy steering committee chair Helen Edwards said the state has made fantastic inroads for regional tourism.
“Collectively, we’ve nearly achieved the target set for December 2025 and there are four regions which have achieved record visitor expenditure levels,” Ms Edwards said.
“This is an outstanding result, achieved through strong collaboration across the regions involving local, state and federal governments, regional tourism bodies, and importantly, hundreds of operators.
“The results also reflect the support from many South Australians who visited our regions during the pandemic.”
