With the summer season starting Sunday, new data today released by the Tourism & Transport Forum has found that last-minute bookings may be rife this season, with 62% of the nation saying they would book a holiday less than a month in advance.
The new survey revealed Aussie’s travel plans, and lack thereof, heading into the busy, festive season.
Despite the rising cost of living still plaguing Australian’s wallets, a large portion of the nation has indicated that they intend to continue to prioritise travel, with 75% expressing their intent to go on holiday this summer period.
TTF CEO Margy Osmond noted that despite the age-old advice to book in early, Australians have indicated their openness for a last-minute travel plan.
“Whether it’s due to the busy end-of-year schedule, or looking out for a final-hour deal, most Australians have said that they’d book a holiday less than a month in advance. Almost a third would even wait until a few days out from departure to get organised!
“With 12% of Aussies responding that a good travel deal is the reason they’re planning to travel over the summer period, Australians are likely keeping an eye out for more deals as the school term comes to a close.”
The nationally representative survey of 2,011 Australians, conducted by Pure Profile, surveyed Australians about their travel plans from 1 December 2024 – 28 February 2025, finding:
- 75% of Australians say they plan to travel this December, January or February, this number has remained steady with this time last year but has grown from 71% in September. This includes 36% of Australians travelling within their own state, and 25% interstate. 14% of Australians plan to head overseas.
- Aussies are increasing the length of their trip, compared to last year. 32% of Australians plan to travel for 8-14 days, 2% more than this time last year, while 13% have indicated they plan to voyage for more than 14 days, also up 2% than the year prior.
- NSW (27%) and QLD (25%) are the most popular destinations for those travelling domestically, while Aussies headed overseas are most likely be visiting New Zealand (16%), Japan (13%) or Europe (9%).
- NSW and QLD are more likely to visit New Zealand this summer at 20% and 25% respectively, while 20% of WA’s overseas travellers indicate they plan to head to Bali or elsewhere in Indonesia.
- The busiest travel weeks will be between the 17 – 24 December 2024, with 17% of travellers heading off in this timeframe, a number only exceeded by 1 – 15 January 2025, with 19% of Aussies planning to head off on holiday in this week.
- Last minute travel is rife, with 62% of Australians saying that they would book a holiday less than a month in advance. 30% would book a few weeks before, 24% a few days before, 6% the night before and 2% would book the day of.
- 25-34s are the most likely to book last minute, with 15% of the age group saying they’d book the night before or day of. 13% of 18-25s shared this sentiment, however other Australian age groups were less inclined to agree, with 9% of 35-44s, 7% of 45-54s, 4% of 55-64s and 3% of over 65s inclined to book this last minute,
- 78% of Australians plan to spend less than $5,000 on their upcoming summer vacation. 18-24s and 25-34s are the biggest spenders this summer season, with 22% and 26% of respective travellers planning to spend more than $5,000.
- The top reasons for Australian journey-makers to travel over Christmas is; because they have time off work (39%), the weather is optimal this time of year (14%), and because they found a good travel deal (12%).
- 23% of Australian pet owners plan to travel with their pet this summer, however 63% plan to leave their furry family member with a loved one or pet-sitter, with another 14% planning to book their pet into specialty accommodation.
“Flight length is likely playing a role in preferred destinations this summer, as Aussies try to maximise their time away. We see the states on the east coast are most likely to pop over to New Zealand, while our West Coast Aussies are more likely to favour Bali,” said Tourism & Transport Forum CEO Margy Osmond.
“Last minute bookings may also feed into the travel landscape we see this season, with almost two thirds of Aussies saying they’d book a holiday less than a month in advance.
“Journey makers will be in higher numbers on either side of the big-ticket week this December. We’ll see increased numbers on the road and at the airport the week before Christmas and the week after New Years’ Day.
“We can see that Aussies are increasing the length of their journey from last year. With travel restrictions a distant memory, Australians are eager to explore what travel offerings there are on offer, both domestically and internationally.
“We can see that older generation Australians are looking to be more frugal with holiday spending than their younger counterparts. Almost half (47%) of travellers over the age of 65 intend to spend less than $2,000 on their entire vacation,”Osmond said.
