Tourism Australia offers tourists the chance to take a 'supersized selfie'. Courtesy Tourism Australia.
Social media power ... Instagram snap from the Kimberley by photographer Garry Norris. Picture: Instagram/Garry_Norris.
GREAT photo opportunities are now one of the driving forces behind Australians’ choice of holiday destination.
The annual “State of the Nation” report by travel search site Expedia.com.au, found 85 per cent of the 5450 people surveyed considered social media potential before booking a vacation.
Enhanced photo capabilities of smartphones are helping to drive the trend, and 56 per cent of those surveyed said a digital camera was now a travel essential.
Pic op ... Beautiful images are a driving force for travel. Picture: Instagram/photography_byron_baySource:Instagram
The results came as no surprise to Tourism Australia’s Global Manager Social and Content Jesse Desjardins.
He said they knew from their own research, great imagery played a huge role in inspiring travel and in destination choice.
“Travellers have been sharing their holiday photos since the Box Brownie camera introduced the concept of the snapshot back in 1900,” said Mr Desjardins.
“All that’s changed since then is the technology which has made it much easier and more convenient to capture great quality photos and video and share these images instantaneously with large numbers of people.”
Popular ... Tourism Australia's Instagram image of a sunset dinner cruising along the Katherine River received more than 26,000 likes. Picture: SuppliedSource:Supplied
Every day, 1400 photos are sent to Tourism Australia using Facebook, Instagram and email, in the hope of being used by the national marketing body which boasts more than 8.5 million followers on social media.
“We’re top in the world now because of the great contributions we get from fans and industry,” Mr Desjardins said.
For 27-year-old Sydney worker Jaden Dowd, Instagram potential was a key motivator for travel.
She said a friend’s pic of a “swing” into the ocean off Gili Trawangan in Indonesia had recently inspired her to go back.
“It wasn’t there when I last visited, so now I want to go back and get the same pic,” Ms Dowd said.
The report also highlighted Australians’ love of travel, with the average globetrotter now sporting at least eight different stamps in their passport.
Another one in 10 people had visited more than 20 countries, but 97 per cent of Aussies still have a bucket list of places they want to see in the next five years.
Star power ... Even visiting celebrities can’t resist Instragramming pics of Australia. Pic: Juliana Paes/InstagramSource:Instagram
According to the report, the most desirable destination was the United States followed by England, Canada and New Zealand.
Italy was number five, and then France, Japan and Germany.
Greece and Hong Kong rounded out the top ten.
“Travel is a key part of the Australian way of life and it’s not surprising Australians are inspired to keep a bucket list when they’re surrounded by inspiring travel stories on social media, TV and in magazines,” said Expedia Managing Director Australia and NZ, Georg Ruebensal.
“Aussies love getting out there and exploring this amazing world we live in and this is evident as international and domestic travel increases.”
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