Indian travellers find Australian destinations attractive

Bangalore, Feb 20 (UNI) The Kangaroo land has become the hot spot for Indian travellers, with over 83,700 visiting Australia last year.

According to international visitor arrivals data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, there was a 23 per cent increase as compared to the figures of 2005. While the number of Indian arrivals to Australia was relatively small, strong growth in arrivals was experienced in 2004 and 2005. There were 5.5 million visitor arrivals to Australia during 2006.

Tourism Australia's Regional Manager for South, South East Asia and Gulf Countries, Maggie White said in a release here today that the increasing numbers indicated the significance of the Indian market and India's potential for Australia's sustainable tourism.

''The visitor arrival results for 2006 are encouraging and confirm that India is a strong and rapidly emerging market for Australian tourism. With the opening of a dedicated office in India this year, Tourism Australia expects continued growth in Indian visitor arrivals this year,'' she said.

Tourism Forecasting Council had indicated that 91,000 travellers from India would visit Australia during 2007.

UNI