Our visitors are spending more and staying longer.

Destination Phillip Island (DPI) said results from its visitor surveys for the year ending September 2022 indicate a strong recovery in the visitor economy, with domestic visitors staying longer than before the pandemic.

While overall domestic visitor numbers were still down, the number of nights they spent in the region was above pre-pandemic levels.

DPI said the survey showed 2.1 million domestic visitors came to Phillip Island – a 17 per cent increase on the previous year.

However the number is still 12 per cent below the pre-Covid visitor numbers recorded in 2019.

Daytripper numbers were also up, with 1.1 million recorded for the year, an increase of six per cent. Despite the increase, the numbers were still 15 per cent below the pre-pandemic daytrip visitor numbers (1.3 million).

Domestic visitors were also staying overnight more often, with numbers up by 32 per cent to one million. This is eight per cent lower than the pre-pandemic numbers recorded in the year ending September 2019.

All up, visitors spent 3.2 million nights on Phillip Island, with an average stay of 3.2 nights in the region. This was up 24 per cent from last year, and a 15 per cent increase from pre-pandemic levels.

The visitors were also spending in local business, with tourism expenditure in Phillip Island up, despite lower numbers.

Total expenditure for the region was $445 million, a 40 per cent increase year on year, and a 27 per cent increase from the previous year.

Domestic day tripper’s spending on the island has bounced back, increasing by 76 per cent to $138 million in the year ending September 2022.

DPI said daytrip spend in Phillip Island has fully recovered and surpassed the year ending September 2019 results (+four per cent or +$5 million). This equates to $123 per domestic day trip visitor.

The domestic overnight spend is also increasing each year, equalling $515 spent per overnight visitor, and $161 per visitor night, exceeding the results from 2019.

For the purposes of this research, the Phillip Island region is defined as French Island, Phillip Island and Bass Coast (Wonthaggi to Inverloch). No data was collected for international visitation for the region.