Tourism

Outlook

The tourism sector reported solid growth in visitation and visitor expenditure in 2025. The sector’s medium-term outlook is positive, though activity in the near term faces several global and domestic risks. The major global risk factor is the Middle East conflict and its economic impact on source markets and security issues, as well as higher fuel prices increasing aviation costs.

Domestically, higher inflation and increasing interest rates that began in early 2026 will exacerbate household cost-of-living pressures and constrain discretionary spending. Higher fuel prices will also impact domestic tourism, including for the Territory’s important drive market, and many tourism destinations will take time to recover from recent natural disasters.

Tourism activity in the Territory is expected to be weaker in the near term, while in the medium-term prospects for the industry remain solid, supported by the gradual recovery of international travel and continued domestic demand for nature-based and experiential tourism. Business travel is also increasing, underpinned by major mining, energy and defence-related projects.

Tourism is a significant contributor to the Territory economy, particularly in regional areas. In 2023-24, tourism accounted for 3.8% of GSP ($1.2 billion) and 5.1% of employment (8,000 jobs). The Territory and Tasmania have the highest proportion of employing tourism businesses nationally (21%), above the Australian average of 18%. The number of employing tourism businesses in the Territory rose from 1,427 to 1,433 in 2024-25.

Visitation to the Territory increased by 17% to 1.2 million visitors in 2025. Domestic visitation increased by 18%, while international visitation increased by 15% and visitor expenditure increased by 35% to $2.3 billion. Growth in international visitation was supported by targeted aviation initiatives.

The Territory Visitor Economy Strategy 2032 provides a long-term framework for tourism development, targeting 1.7 million visitors and $3 billion in visitor expenditure by 2032. Delivering the strategy’s goals will be underpinned by ongoing development of aviation capacity and routes, investment in tourism-related infrastructure and facilities, and stable global and domestic travel conditions.

The near-term outlook for the sector is likely to be disrupted by the Middle East conflict and cost-of-living pressures in key domestic markets will weigh on discretionary demand. Higher global oil prices have increased airline operating costs and airfares, with implications for both aviation capacity and drive tourism in 2026.

Looking forward, the international tourism recovery is likely to be uneven across markets and geopolitical uncertainty will affect travel sentiment and aviation networks. However, recent solid growth in visitation and expenditure in the post-covid period suggests the Territory is an attractive destination, with opportunities to expand this demand.

Chart 14: International and domestic visitation and expenditure in the Territory¹

LHS: left-hand side; RHS: right-hand side
1 Moving annual total.
Source: Tourism Research Australia, International Visitor Survey and Domestic Tourism Statistics, year-ended December 2025

International visitation

There were 255,000 international visitors to the Territory in 2025, an increase of 33,000 from the previous year. Although international visitation has continued to recover following covid, achieving pre-pandemic levels is challenging due to limited flight routes to Australia and the Territory, as well as increased competition from other global destinations.

In 2025, 190,000 international visitors travelled to the Territory for holiday purposes, 32,000 visited friends and relatives, 14,000 visited for business, and 27,000 visited for other reasons. Holiday travel accounted for about 74% of international visitors. It should be noted that the visitation survey allows respondents to report more than one purpose of travel, meaning purpose of visit figures will not sum to total visitor count.

Domestic visitation

In 2025, there were 995,000 domestic visitors to the Territory, up 18% from 2024 with the average domestic visitor spending around $1,734 per trip, up 22% from 2024. Domestic visitor numbers continue to reflect shifts in consumer behaviour and the impact of higher airfares.

Nationally, domestic visitation returned to pre-covid levels in 2024, with the Territory following this trend in 2025. Business travel continues to recover more slowly at the national level, with a full recovery not expected before 2030 due to tighter corporate budgets, sustainability considerations, and efficiency gains from virtual meeting technologies.

By purpose of visit, around 430,000 holiday visitors travelled to the Territory, while there were approximately 297,000 business travellers. By domestic source market, interstate visitation increased by 26% to 617,000 visitors, while intra state visitation grew by 6.1% to 378,000 visitors.

Government initiatives

In 2026-27, the Territory Government is investing $103.2 million in tourism, events and screen production, including the ongoing $8 million increase to the tourism base budget.

The Territory Government is supporting the program of events to be delivered by the new Tourism and Events NT with an additional investment of $2.8 million in 2026-27 and 2027-28, and $3.8 million each year thereafter.

In 2026-27, the Territory Government is also investing in a number of sporting events to support the tourism sector across the Territory. These include:

• $9 million for three years to secure four Australian Football League matches in Darwin and Alice Springs, including one Australian Football League women’s match
• $2 million for 2 years for international cricket matches in the Territory
• continuing to deliver National Rugby League matches in Darwin.

Accommodation

In 2025, the average visitor spent 6.9 nights in the Territory, down one night from 2024. In 2025, hotels experienced a slight increase in bookings, with occupancy rates increasing by 2.3 percentage points to 59%. The hotel sector experienced a marginal decline in supply, down 0.1% to 3.4 million room nights, and an increase in demand by 3.9% to 2 million room nights.

In 2025, the short-term letting sector experienced an increase in bookings, with occupancy rates increasing by 2.1 percentage points to 64%. The short-term letting sector experienced a marginal increase in supply of 0.6%, to 254,000 room nights, and an increase in demand by 4.4% to 166,000 room nights.

Access

Aviation services remain essential to rebuilding the Territory’s economy and restoring the Territory lifestyle. Connecting the Territory through improved interstate and international aviation services remains a priority under the Territory Government’s Rebuilding the Economy: Northern Territory Economic Strategy 2025. Aviation attraction activities are coordinated by the Department of Trade, Business and Asian Relations through the Rebuilding Aviation Connectivity for the Economy program, in partnership with airlines, airports and the Department of Tourism and Hospitality.

Short-term conditions have weakened and access challenges have intensified. Ongoing global oil supply disruptions have increased jet fuel prices, placing upward pressure on airline operating costs. In response, airlines servicing the Territory have begun adjusting schedules, reducing frequencies and reallocating aircraft to higher-yield routes. These pressures are contributing to higher airfares and reduced travel demand, particularly among discretionary leisure travellers.

Reduced international travel may also have flow-on effects for domestic routes that rely on visitor dispersal. The combined impact is expected to suppress visitation over 2025-26 and delay the recovery of some routes.

In the Territory, cruise tourism generated $205.6 million in activity and supported 581 jobs in 2024-25, with Darwin serving as the primary port. There were over 150 cruise visit days in the Territory, with a total passenger visit days of 87,000.

For the latest data on the tourism sector, refer to the Northern Territory Economy website.