The Australian tourism sector has insisted it will pick up the slack following the slowdown of the mining boom.
Speaking to The Australian, Tourism & Transport Forum chief executive Ken Morrison said that tourism could fill the hole in the economy left by the decline in the mining sector and the fall in manufacturing.
Indeed, while other nations have seen a surge in tourism in the last decade, Australia’s tourism figures have remained largely flat, suggesting more could be done.
Mr Morrison said that tourism is the nation’s largest service export, employing 514,000 people.
"There are 283,000 tourism businesses nationwide. With the growth of Asia's (tourism industry) there is enormous capacity to do so much more,” he told the source.
Queensland and Tasmania are key focuses for an improvement in tourism figures, with Tourism Tasmania chief executive officer John Fitzgerald previously saying that the island state is among the most popular destinations for Asian tourists.
Posted by Steve Douglas
