Airport Tax Blamed for Sudden Visitor Drop
The number of international visitor arrivals has dropped by 1% on the same month last year while international departures by Aussies going abroad is down to under 1% according to latest Overseas Arrivals and Departures figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
And the airport tax is being blamed.
Tourism and Transport Forum CEO John Lee said the big drops showed fears about the impact of the rise in the passenger movement charge were well-founded as arrivals from New Zealand, Australia’s biggest market source, dropped 4% while Thailand was down 20%, Korea 13% and Malaysia 3%.
The passenger movement charge rose from $47 to $55 on 1 July.
“The passenger movement charge is an inequitable charge which unfairly impacts on visitors from short-haul markets and we are concerned that this is just the beginning of exacerbated declines in arrivals from markets Australia is targeting for growth in the future,” said Mr Lee.
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