Initiatives to improve more timely access to data and consumer insights were explored this week at the NSW Visitor Economy Forum 2025.
Featuring the theme 'NSW Visitor Economy Strategy 2035 – Vision to Action', the event highlighted how Destination NSW is building a data-driven, insight-led visitor economy that enables agile decision-making, delivers enhanced experiences and fosters growth.
Pillar five of the Strategy - 'Leverage data and insights' - was explored by Roy Morgan Head of Travel and Tourism Adele Labine-Romain and CommBank iQ CEO Makenna Ralston.
Ms Labine-Romain discussed how the new Domestic Tourism Statistics collection (DoTS) solution is providing richer insights into domestic travel.
From January 2025 Tourism Research Australia introduced a new data solution combines the richness and breadth of survey data - collected via face-to-face and online interviews - with the large sample sizes available in mobility data.
By combining survey data with mobility data, the new solution aims modernise and future-proof production of Australian tourism statistics, provide a range of outputs delivered at different regional levels and improve the quality and timeliness of data delivery.
“DoTS has introduced a world leading approach – achieving best practice with a combination of robust data collection and mobility data,” Ms Labine-Romain said.
The data has identified key tourism trends such as a six per cent increase in day trip visitors in NSW, with expenditure rising to $12.8 billion, up three per cent compared to the year ending June 2024.
Roy Morgan’s Holiday Tracking Survey also showed strong intentions for travel to NSW in the next 12 months, with 2.7 million Australians planning a holiday in regional NSW and 1.2 million Australians planning a holiday in Sydney.
“Australians are a nation of travellers. There is noise in terms of our consumer confidence and the economy and concerns about interest rates. And yet we’re still planning to travel,” Ms Labine-Romain said.
Destination NSW also recently partnered with CommBank iQ to harness de-identified transactional data from millions of consumer purchases across the state to unlock even more granular data.
CommBank iQ CEO Makenna Ralston said: “We see the spending decisions of 17 million people every day and their decisions are building the future of the visitor economy.
“Tourism is not recovering, it’s reinventing itself - the way visitors experience destinations, the way they connect with them. Putting real-time data into the hands of decision makers will help them make faster and more confident decisions.”
Ms Ralston highlighted the importance of connection in determining travel destinations. Commbank iQ data identified regions such as Kempsey, the Mid Coast, Shoalhaven and Eurobodalla as attracting 28-30 per cent repeat visitation.
Among the top demographics for repeat visitors are older, affluent families from Sydney’s Inner West, Hills District and Sutherland, who spend 44 per cent more than the average visitor.
“Repeat visitation is driven by people visiting regional NSW destinations and falling in love,” Ms Ralston said.
“It’s incredibly powerful when visitors stop being tourists and become part of the story.”
View the latest visitor economy data and insights here.