Australia’s COVID-era border restrictions have been slowly repealed since November of last year and, as of this week, international tourists are now finally able to enter the country, almost without restriction.
After being grounded for almost two years, many of us are itching to get back on a plane (okay, maybe not the plane part) and reconnect with friends, family, and the places that we love across the world.
New data, released this week by Airbnb, has revealed exactly where we’re looking to jet off to. Since November, international destinations have become increasingly popular search terms on the site for Australians, with the UK being the number one spot that we’re checking out.
The feeling is, apparently, mutual, as Brits are also the keenest travellers from any nation looking to book, with more search results for Aussie destinations originating in the UK than any other nation.
It makes sense, with 31.6% of us reporting our heritage as ‘British’ in the 2016 census, meaning we’ve got strong familial and historical ties to the nation.
The next most popular would-be arrivals into Australia come from the United States, Singapore, New Zealand, and Canada. Singapore makes up the highest searches from a single city looking at Australian destinations, while the next most popular cities are London, Auckland, Hong Kong and Bangkok.
In the 48 hours immediately following the government’s announcement that travel would reopen to international citizens on 21 February, Sydney was the number one inbound destination searched by international visitors, followed by Melbourne, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, and Perth.
Where Australians Want to Travel in 2022
It shouldn’t come as much surprise that Aussies are looking to get back to old habits, with searches for Bali, New York, Paris, and Los Angeles in our top overseas searches on Airbnb since November. However, London remains the number one most searched for place that we want to check out as soon as we can get away.
Our current travel top ten looks like this:
- London
- Bali
- New York
- Paris
- Los Angeles
- Oahu
- Queenstown
- Dubai
- Fiji
- Rome
The most popular country overall as a travel destination is the US as a whole. New York, LA, and Oahu in Hawaii are the top cities we’re looking to explore soon. Airbnb has said however that there has been a lot of search for northern hemisphere summer coastal holiday destinations across Europe as well as more local trips around South East Asia.
Our top ten countries, plus the top three destinations in each country, looks like this:
United States
United Kingdom
- London
- Edinburgh
- Cornwall
Italy
- Rome
- Amalfi Coast
- Florence
France
New Zealand
- Queenstown
- Auckland
- Northland
Canada
- Vancouver
- Whistler
- Toronto
Spain
- Barcelona
- Madrid
- Mallorca
Indonesia
Thailand
Greece
Susan Wheeldon, Airbnb Country Manager for Australia and New Zealand has said that now is the time when Aussies are finally ready to book that long-overdue holiday.
“This is the moment we’ve all been patiently waiting for after two years of disconnection with friends and loved ones, and our Hosts cannot wait to welcome back guests to our shores”.
She also noted that the shift towards remote work and hybrid work forms, prompting many Aussies to decide to work from rural or remote locations rather than their city, is evidently here to stay.
“The travel revolution is creating new opportunities to host anytime and anywhere. The pandemic, and the rise of remote and hybrid work, have untethered many from offices, and for the first time, millions of people can now live anywhere,” she said.
“For every Host looking to welcome guests who want to stay longer, there is a digital nomad eager to live like a local”.
“Over the last two years, we have seen the average trip length increase by approximately 15%, with stays of more than 7 days now representing nearly half of all nights booked. Meanwhile, long-term stays of 28 nights are our fastest-growing category by trip length and accounted for 22% of nights booked in the last three months globally”.
So, if hybrid work is here to stay, and you’re in a company with a team that is supportive of this radical new shift, now could be a great time to explore your options and branch out to living and working elsewhere.
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