MAJOR events continue to drive tourism, with visitors spending an estimated 1.72 million nights on the Border last year.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The 2015 Albury-Wodonga Visitor Economy Trends revealed domestic visitor nights reached 1.465 million, a 13 per cent increase from 2014 (1.299 million).
Day trippers from within Australia totalled 898,000 who each spent an average of $158 a day.
International visitors accounted for 257,868 nights and their standard length of stay increased by 11 nights, mostly for employment reasons.
One-off activities such as the Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience (15,000 attendees), the AFL NAB Challenge (8400) and NRL matches (6400) and the Ulysses annual general meeting (3200) helped boost numbers.
Albury-Wodonga Motel Social Club president Damien Robinson, an owner of Stagecoach Motel, said this year so far had proven quieter in comparison to 2015.
“It was just an extraordinary year where we had extra on, so we've come back from that,” he said.
Atura Albury general manager Jodi Brown said city-wide activities remained important to accommodation providers.
“When there's local events around town and big conferences, then that’s when our occupancy is higher,” she said.
Wodonga mayor Anna Speedie said attractions such as Junction Place precinct and Murray Art Museum Albury as well as the range of accommodation and food offerings contributed to the figures.
“Tourism continues to be a significant sector for Albury-Wodonga, injecting more than $613 million into the local economy in 2015,” she said.
Albury acting mayor David Thurley said the visitor economy trends figures offered comprehensive information as the twin cities decided future tourism priorities.
“The value of tourism can often be overlooked given its impact on many industry sectors, emphasising the strength of this report in providing a consolidated profile of the sector,” he said.