Australia is renowned for being one of the most beautiful natural landscapes in the world. However, recent research conducted by Avis Australia reveals Aussies are most likely to stay close to home instead of exploring far and wide, with a massive 11 million (58%) travelling within their own state in the past year.
The new research unveils the travel habits of the nation, looking into what they are doing, where they have been and what influences their travel decisions. With road trips at the heart of Australian domestic travel, it was no surprise that a third (32%) of Aussies love a road trip and have been on at least one in the last year. On the other hand, Avis Australia discovered that one in five Aussies are yet to embrace the travel bug with more than of 3 million (18%) not travelling or hiring a car in the past year.
By state, data shows that South Australians are the nation’s most adventurous with over a third (34%) hitting the road in the last year and over half (56%) exploring beyond their borders and travelling interstate. Victorians are the guiltiest culprits for staying within their state, with 64% choosing to stay close to home and just over a third (37%) who have taken a road trip within Australia. Surprisingly, only 28% of respondents from Australia’s second biggest state by land area, Queensland, are reported to have taken a road trip within Australia in the last year despite their vast variety of destinations and drives.
The research also delved into what factors are important to Aussies when selecting their next holiday destination. The top reason cited by travellers was whether the destination offers them an escape from their everyday lives (56%), followed by the safety of the destination (53%), weather (50%) and it being cheap (43%).
| Aussies’ most important factors when choosing a holiday destination |
| Whether it will help them to escape their everyday lives |
56% |
| Safety of destination |
53% |
| Weather |
50% |
| Cheap |
43% |
| Different/hidden gem |
39% |
| How adventurous it is |
34% |
| Eco-friendliness |
15% |
| Local festivals/events |
13% |
“There’s so much of our expansive, beautiful country that goes unexplored,” says Tom Mooney, Managing Director – Pacific, Avis Budget Group. “At Avis Australia, we’re excited to help Aussies get out and explore the best our diverse country has to offer.”
All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1,038 adults. Fieldwork commenced on Thursday, 2 May and was completed on Sunday, 5 May 2019. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all AU adults (aged 18+).
