Band 7+: The charts below show the number of tourists to Australia from three countries in 1995 and 2005, and the types of travels between 1995 and 2005.

The bar chart details the numbers of tourists to Australia from the UK, the US, and Japan, while the line graphs shows how many of those tourists chose to stay at resorts and go backpacking. Overall, Japanese people initially formed the largest group, but their numbers saw a dramatic decline in numbers by the end of the period. By contrast, despite lower visitation in the beginning, the number of visitors from the UK and US rose substantially over the period, with their figures becoming comparable. In terms of travel types, resorts were consistently a more common option, although the numbers of resort tourists fell overall. Backpacking, on the other hand, gained significant traction, eventually matching the figure for resorts by 2005.

In 1995, the number of tourists from Japan numbered around 1.5 million, a figure far above 820 thousand from the UK, and thrice as many as the US’s 500 thousand. 2005 came with a notable shift in visitation dynamics. Japan’s figure fell dramatically to 1 million, marking an approximate 33% decline. In contrast, Australia saw an increase in the number of UK visitors, which rose to around 1.5 million by 2005. The growth was even more pronounced — a striking 300% — in the number of tourist from the US. Starting at an all-chart low figure (500 thousand), the number of US tourists soared to 1.5 million over the period. By 2005, the UK and US tourists had outnumbered their Japanese counterparts by a considerable margin.

As for the types of travel tourists opted for, staying at resorts was more popular for much of the timeframe, beginning at just over 1.5 million in 1995, rising notably to nearly 2.5 million in 2000, prior to reverting back to 1995 figure, and further dropping to a low of around 1.1 million in 2005. The trend for backpacking contrasted that of resorts, with an increasing number of tourists choosing backpacking during their travels. Standing at merely 250 thousand in 1995, the number of backpacking grew steadily to 1.1 million over the decade. This meant that, by 2005, the proportions of both groups were identical.