Figures from Tourism Research Australia have shown a worrying fall in the number of backpackers coming to the country, leaving many tour operators in a very difficult position. Since 2010, the number of tourists staying in hostels has dropped by almost seven per cent, while numbers of backpackers coming from the UK â€" the largest source market for Australia â€" have fallen by 20 per cent. A number of factors have been cited for the disappointing figures, including Australia’s strong currency, unpredictable weather and tight regulations, as well as continuing global economic instability and stiff competition from cheaper Asian destinations, while Brendan McKenna of Base Backpackers says that ‘fly-in, fly-out’ miners were taking up hostel space in Perth. “Perth is the gateway to Western Australia,†he explains, “but it is very hard to access as there is nowhere to sleep and it is so expensive it puts off backpackers going there at all. The industry feels overlooked. Backpackers can be viewed badly but they spend a lot of money.†Terry Ramsay of Red Earth Safaris agrees that the industry has been neglected: “The German market has saved me, but the Western Australian government has not spent a cent on German backpackers. They don’t care about the backpacker market.†He is worried that soon there will be no tours, and is sure that more companies will go under before the year is out, but Peter Ovenden, chairman of the Backpacker Youth Tourism Council, thinks that although the industry is facing its stiffest challenges of the last 20 years, innovative new tours and marketing help from state governments could help it to weather the storm. ShareThis Powered By iWebRSS.co.cc
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