“Australia is dynamic, and changing rapidly, so if you think you know us, think again – let us show you how we’re evolving,” says Tourism Australia’s managing director Phillipa Harrison. Challenging agents’ perceptions, backed by a jam-packed product pipeline, is central to the tourist board’s goal to grow UK visitors to 900,000 by 2029, up from 649,000 for the year to Feb 2025.
1. It’s not too premature to talk about Brisbane 2032
Harrison views Brisbane’s hosting of the 2032 Olympic Games as a “game changer”, noting Sydney’s hosting of the Olympics “accelerated tourism by about 10 years”. From family favourite Bluey’s World to mixed-use hospitality hubs such as Howard Smith Wharves, The Star, and elegant James Street district – anchored by fashionable bolthole The Calile – the Queensland city’s already riding high.
2. Sell experiences that “do good, feel good”
“Australia has really come of age in the luxury space,” says Harrison who hopes to tap demand for authentic Aussie experiences “that do good, as well as feel good”. High-yield clients are especially prized, lured by dazzling draws such as Mondrian Gold Coast, opening June 2025 near Burleigh Heads.
Meanwhile, air connectivity has edged past 2019 levels, buoyed by Qantas’s Paris-Perth service and Singapore Airlines’ new Heathrow-Singapore-Darwin route.
3. Sleep with crocs... and wake up with whales
A wild experience beckons with the new two-storey luxury Crocodile Cabins at The Crocodile Hunter Lodge, adjacent to conservation beacon Australia Zoo.
Hot new properties in The Whitsundays include The Sundays, a 59-room boutique retreat on Hamilton Island.
To Brisbane’s North, upscale resort Noosa is getting its own luxurious Calile (in 2028), while Noosa Pacific Resort will complete a major refurbishment by the year-end.
Fraser Island Boat Charters now offers an overnight humpback whale charter in Hervey Bay and new offerings on K’gari (Fraser Island) include sound and light show ‘Return to Sky’ while Daintree Sensations Tours have introduced ‘paddock-to-plate’ experiences in the world’s oldest rainforest.
4. A new airport for the Blue Mountains
Sydney’s hotel inventory now includes scintillating five-star Eve Hotel and Accor’s 90-guestroom Hotel Woolstore 1888. Plus, Western Sydney Airport should invigorate Blue Mountains tourism when it opens next year, along with new offerings such as Grand Cliff Top Walk, and the expanding Lot 101, offering accommodation, fine dining, bush walks and nature conservation.
Other exciting NSW launches include Byron Bay’s new 32-room boujie Basq House and Gabarraa Estate, Tenterfield – an intimate off-grid retreat, near Bald Rock National Park.
5. Tasmania, sauna capital of Australia?
Sustainability and wellness loom large in Tasmania, as mastered by hygge-inspired, Nordic sauna escape Still at Freycinet; glamping operation Domescapes; and Kuuma, the First Australian Sauna Boat.
New outdoor experiences include Flinders Island Walking Adventure in Comfort, from Great Walks of Australia. For something a little bit quirky, check out Post House, an intimate, restored riverfront heritage cottage near Carlton Beach.
6. Go off-grid in South Australia
While Adelaide, host of May’s Tasting Australia festival, awaits a new Crystalbrook (in 2027), there are superlative immersive off-grid nature experiences to be had at sumptuous newbie Monarto Safari Resort, recreating an African safari experience in Australia, and the expanding Rumi on Louth, on the Eyre Peninsula. How to sum up Rumi for clients in two words? Barefoot elegance should do it.
7. Uncork Canberra’s wine
Further to its impressive national cultural attractions, Canberra wants agents to push its cool-climate wine country, supporting around 140 vineyards and 40 cellar doors, and offering great hiking alongside the tipples.
Eat Canberra Food Tours was first out of the blocks to help visitors explore the city’s gastro-tourism scene since 2017, lofty Lunetta on Red Hill is among the latest hot tables, and truffle hunting season (June-August) has become a culinary calendar fixture.
8. Help your clients to see the light
Visual artist Bruce Munro’s Trail of Lights in Mildura is one standout – a one-mile long ‘luminous dreamscape’ aside the Murray River, now plied by paddle steamer PS Australian Star, offering all-inclusive luxury cruise experiences, from overnights to multi-days, departing the town of Echuca.
Stellar mid-2025 Melbourne openings include Melbourne Place, and the sustainably savvy waterfront 1 Hotel. Meanwhile, Peninsula Hot Springs, on Mornington Peninsula, launched 10 new eco lodges in November, alongside activities such as a ‘bathing cinema’.
9. Promote green road trips in WA
Steer green road trippers to the WA Electric Vehicle Highway, featuring ample charging points, and offer added eco thrills at Heyscape, Denmark, where there are 15 new off-grid cabins this year, offering easy access to William Bay National Park.
Further hot hotel launches include Hyde Perth, opening year-end in the heart of the Central Business District, and The Garde, in neighbouring Freemantle’s ‘Convict Quarter’.
Encouraging daytrippers to stay overnight, once they’ve had their fill of quokkas, is Rottnest Island’s goal. Accommodation options range from Discovery Resort’s – Rottnest Island’s glamping tents to beachfront Samphire Rottnest Hotel. Laidback Lodge Wadjemup takes its name from the traditional owners of Rottnest Island, and its second phase opens mid-2025.
In the luxury arena, check out Abercrombie & Kent’s plans for a luxury new eco-lodge in Purnululu National Park (2027) and Kingfisher Tours’ new Iconic Kimberley Air Safari, offered through Discover Aboriginal Experiences.
10. Get ready... Kangaroo is coming
Journey Beyond has added new upscale Aurora and Australia cabins on The Ghan, running between Adelaide and Darwin, where Aboriginal-led tours from the likes of SEIT remain a big draw. The opening of Larrakia Cultural Centre (in 2026) and Northern Territory Art Gallery (in 2027), plus the Alice Springs’ National Aboriginal Art Museum set for 2026/7 will offer more ways to engage with Indigenous culture.
Intrepid Travel runs its first seven-day Larapinta Trail circular walking trip out of Alice Springs this May (with 10 departures in 2025). Also now on sale, the 54km Uluru-Kata Tjuta Signature Walk will enable travellers to stay ‘on-country’ in the World Heritage National Park for the first time, from April 2026.
And with NT starring in family-friendly flick Kangaroo, released in October, and a 40-year anniversary remastering of Crocodile Dundee due, 2025 is perfectly primed to coax set jetting clients Down Under.
