Sydney to Welcome 15 Million Visitors This Summer

As summer in Australia begins, so does the peak for travel to Sydney, with 15 million visitors expected to holiday in the city.

NSW Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events, Stuart Ayres said, “Sydney truly dazzles during Summer – hotels are busy, restaurant bookings are strong, attractions typically experience peak visitation and the calendar is full of fantastic major events including Sydney Festival, Australia Day celebrations, the HSBC Rugby Sevens, among many others.”

According to Destination NSW, the NSW Government’s tourism and major events agency, summer visitors will make the most of the city’s most famous assets and attractions.

Sydney’s dining scene, shopping precincts and beaches top the most popular warm weather activities for holidaymakers. 4.3 million visitors will dine out, another 2.1 million will shop in Sydney’s boutiques and shopping precincts, and 1.6 million will take a dip at one of Sydney’s beaches. More than 1.8 million visitors undertake self-drive holidays during the period, and day trips increase by 11%.

International overnight visitors are likely to enjoy Sydney’s waterfront locations with 82% visiting the Sydney Opera House, 75% taking in the Sydney Harbour Bridge and 72% stopping by Darling Harbour.

Australian visitors to Sydney will put a trip to Darling Harbour at the top of their itinerary with 38% of visitors planning a trip to see the waterfront precinct. A further 25% will visit The Rocks and 22% will head to Bondi.

Getting back to nature is also a priority for holidaymakers with 424,000 heading into the bush to go bushwalking. The most popular national parks for visitors include the Blue Mountains, Kuring-gai Chase, Lane Cove and, of course, Sydney Harbour.