The State Tourism Satellite Account (STSA) 2020–21 highlights the importance of tourism to each state and territory economy. 

COVID-19 caused severe disruptions to tourism in the last quarter of 2019-20 and through all of 2020-21. This 2020-21 edition of the STSA is the first to:

  • capture the full 12 month impacts of COVID-19 on the visitor economy
  • describe where the largest impacts occurred. 

Key data includes: 

  • Consumption 
  • Gross State Product (GSP) 
  • Employment 

Data sources

Sources for the STSA are:

We extend the work of the ABS by:

  • examining state and territory tourism performance
  • estimating the indirect economic and workforce impacts of tourism.

The detailed statistical tables that accompany this report also include:

  • tourism Gross Value Added (GVA)
  • tourism output
  • data for different industries within the visitor economy.  

Read about the terminology we use and how we apply the data in the Methodology. 

Disruptions to the visitor economy

A successful tourism industry relies on person-to-person interactions and the freedom to travel. As a result, Australia’s visitor economy in 2020-21 was overly affected by: 

  • international and state and territory border closures 
  • local lockdowns and mobility restrictions 
  • social distancing and capacity limits at venues 
  • health and safety concerns 
  • travel planning uncertainties 
  • accommodation, transport and workforce constraints  
  • new COVID-19 variants.

These led to a large downturn in tourism demand in 2020-21. This followed a very challenging 2019-20 (Figure 1). Compared with pre-pandemic demand of 2018-19: 

  • international visitors and spend in 2020-21 were down 98%  
  • domestic overnight visitors were down 23%, with spend falling 21% 
  • domestic day trip visitors were down 24%, with spend falling 22%. 

Tourism consumption

As a result of declining demand, tourism consumption in 2020-21:

  • fell by 33% or $41.3 billion on 2019-20
  • was 45% lower than pre-pandemic consumption in 2018-19.

This was in contrast to average annual growth of 5.7% per year in the 10 years prior to 2019-20.

Table 1 shows falls in consumption across Australia varied:

  • The most severe falls since 2018-19 were for Victoria (Vic) and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). They were, down 62% and 50% on 2018-19 respectively.
  • South Australia (SA) and Tasmania (Tas) were the least impacted states. However, they were still down 29% and 36% respectively.
Table 1: Tourism consumption by state and territory, 2020-21
 2020-21 Consumption ($B)Change from 2019-20 ($B)Change from 2019-20Change from 2018-19 ($B)Change from 2018-19
New South Wales26.4-11.3-30%-20.3-43%
Victoria13.8-15.9-54%-22.5-62%
Queensland21.4-7.0-25%-13.3-38%
South Australia6.4-1.3-17%-2.6-29%
Western Australia9.4-3.7-28%-5.7-38%
Tasmania2.9-0.8-22%-1.6-36%
Northern Territory1.7-0.6-26%-1.5-46%
Australian Capital Territory1.6-0.7-31%-1.5-50%
Total83.4-41.3-33%-69.1-45%

 

Figure 2 compares 2020-21 consumption with 2018-19. It shows: 

  • Lack of international travel was the main cause of consumption decline for most states and territories. 
  • Domestic overnight interstate travel had a larger impact on falling consumption than domestic overnight intrastate travel. This was due to severe interstate border restrictions and consumers taking intrastate trips instead.
  • Interstate border closures and travel substitution contributed to modest increases in:
    • day trip consumption for NT
    • domestic overnight intrastate consumption for SA.

Gross State Product from tourism

Direct tourism GSP for all states and territories was $32.4 billion in 2020-21. This was down:

  • 37% on 2019-20
  • 46% on 2018-19.

In comparison, GDP for the Australian economy in 2020-21 was:

  • 4.3% up on 2019-20
  • 6.2% up on 2018-19. 

As a result, tourism’s direct share of the national economy:

  • fell from 3.1% in 2018-19 to 2.6% in 2019–20
  • fell again to 1.6% in 2020-21.

This was a 1.5 percentage point decline in tourism’s share of national economic activity between 2018-19 and 2020-21. 

Falls in GSP across states and territories

Table 2 shows large falls in direct tourism GSP across each state and territory in 2020-21. The falls in GSP were even more severe compared with 2018-19 pre-pandemic levels.

Falls in GSP were different across jurisdictions. For example, tourism GSP for SA in 2020-21 was 28% lower than in 2018-19. Prolonged lockdowns and border closures contributed to a 63% fall in GSP for Vic over the same period.

The fall in tourism’s share of state GSP from 2018-19 ranged between 1.1 percentage points (for SA and WA) to 2.2 percentage points (for Tas).

Table 2: Direct tourism GSP by state and territory, 2020-21
State/territory2020-21 GSP ($B)Change from 2019-20Change from 2018-19Share of economy in 2020-21Share of economy in 2019-20Share of economy in 2018-19
New South Wales10.3-34%-44%1.6%2.5%3.0%
Victoria5.4-57%-63%1.1%2.6%3.2%
Queensland8.3-28%-39%2.2%3.2%3.8%
South Australia2.6-18%-28%2.2%2.8%3.2%
Western Australia3.5-35%-41%0.9%1.7%2.0%
Tasmania1.1-26%-36%3.1%4.6%5.3%
Northern Territory0.7-24%-43%2.6%3.3%4.4%
Australian Capital Territory0.6-36%-52%1.4%2.2%3.0%
Total32.4-37%-46%1.6%2.6%3.1%

Indirect tourism GSP for all states and territories was $33.1 billion in 2020-21. Total GSP (direct plus indirect) was $65.5 billion in 2020-21 as a result. This direct and indirect GSP contribution was a 3.2% share of national GDP in 2020-21. This compares with a:

  • 5.1% share in 2019-20
  • 6.4% share in 2018-19. 

Table 3 presents similar findings to Table 2 in measuring the total GSP impacts. Compared with 2018-19 pre-pandemic levels, Table 3 shows:  

  • falls in total GSP ranged from 32% for SA to 64% for Vic
  • the fall in tourism’s share of state GSP ranged from 2.2 percentage points for WA to 4.8 percentage points for Tas and NT.
Table 3: Tourism GSP (direct plus indirect) by state and territory, 2020-21
State/territory2020-21 GSP ($B)Change from 2019-20Change from 2018-19Share of economy in 2020-21Share of economy in 2019-20Share of economy in 2018-19
New South Wales20.8-32%-45%3.2%4.9%6.1%
Victoria10.7-55%-64%2.3%5.1%6.4%
Queensland16.8-26%-40%4.6%6.3%7.7%
South Australia5.2-20%-32%4.4%5.9%7.0%
Western Australia7.2-33%-41%2.0%3.4%4.2%
Tasmania2.3-24%-37%6.5%9.0%11.3%
Northern Territory1.4-27%-47%5.5%7.1%10.3%
Australian Capital Territory1.2-34%-51%2.8%4.4%6.3%
Total65.5-35%-47%3.2%5.1%6.4%

Tourism employment

Tourism employed 682,100 workers in 2020–21. This was made up of the:

  • direct employment of 507,000 workers
  • indirect employment of 175,100 workers. 

Compared with previous years: 

  • direct tourism employment was down 20% on 2019-20, and 25% on 2018-19 
  • indirect tourism employment was down 36% on 2019-20, and 49% on 2018-19 
  • total tourism employment (direct plus indirect) was down 25% on 2019-20, and 33% on 2018-19.

All states and territories experienced falls in tourism employment in 2019-20. They also continued to experience falls in employment in 2020-21 (Table 4). Compared with 2018-19 levels: 

  • falls in direct employment ranged from 8.6% for Tas (down 1,400 workers) to 38% for Vic (down 69,600 workers)
  • falls in indirect and direct employment ranged from 9.3% for SA (down 5,800 workers) to 54% for Vic (down 139,000 workers).
Table 4: Tourism employment by state and territory, 2020-21
State/territory2020-21 direct employment ('000 workers)2020-21 direct and indirect employment ('000 workers)Change in direct employment from 2018-19Change in direct and indirect employment from 2018-19
New South Wales146.8197.0-25%-32%
Victoria109.8120.0-40%-54%
Queensland120.6174.0-18%-24%
South Australia37.356.5-8.8%-9.3%
Western Australia56.378.4-16%-21%
Tasmania20.633.6-8.1%-19%
Northern Territory6.810.7-20%-29%
Australian Capital Territory8.411.4-25%-37%
Total507.0682.1-25%-33%

Fluid labour market

The declines in tourism employment from 2018-19 occurred while Australia’s national workforce was growing. This reflects a very fluid labour market for Australia’s visitor economy.

Businesses were reducing workforces due to the downturn in demand. Some employees were also leaving tourism to:

  • work in other sectors
  • relocate to areas with better tourism employment prospects.

If a worker stayed with the same employer, they may not have counted towards Australia’s visitor economy to the same extent as before. This was due to visitors making up a smaller share of customers during the pandemic. For an individual business this meant employees spent less time providing services to visitors.

As a result: 

  • Tourism’s share of Australia’s workforce, based on direct employment, fell from 5.3% in 2018-19 to:
    • 5.0% in 2019-20
    • 3.9% in 2020-21. 
  • Tourism’s share of Australia’s workforce, based on direct and indirect employment, fell from 8% in 2018-19 to:
    • 7.1% in 2019-20
    • 5.3% in 2020-21

These falls in tourism’s workforce contribution were repeated across all states and territories (Table 5).  

Table 5: Tourism share of state and territory employment, 2018-19 to 2020-21
State/territory2020-21 direct share2019-20 direct share2018-19 direct share2020-21 direct and indirect share (%)2019-20 direct and indirect share)2018-19 direct and indirect share
New South Wales3.6%4.4%4.8%4.8%6.3%7.1%
Victoria3.3%5.0%5.4%3.6%6.9%7.7%
Queensland4.7%5.5%5.9%6.7%8.1%9.1%
South Australia4.4%4.7%4.8%6.6%6.8%7.3%
Western Australia4.1%5.0%5.0%5.7%7.0%7.3%
Tasmania8.0%8.5%9.0%13.0%14.5%16.7%
Northern Territory5.2%5.7%6.4%8.2%9.3%11.4%
Australian Capital Territory3.5%4.0%4.9%4.8%6.2%8.0%
Total3.9%5.0%5.3%5.3%7.1%8.0%

Australian Capital Territory summary

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Gross State Product (GSP)

$1.2 billion
Down 34% compared with 2019–20
Down 51% compared with 2018–19

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Gross Value Added (GVA)

$1.1 billion
Down 35% compared with 2019–20
Down 52% compared with 2018–19

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Employment

11,400 persons
Down 21% compared with 2019–20
Down 37% compared with 2018–19

Tourism GSP 

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GSP in the ACT was worth $0.597 billion. This was down 36% on 2019–20 and down 52% on 2018-19. This was a 1.3% direct share of total territory GSP. This was down:
    • 0.8 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.7 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total territory GSP was worth $44 billion. This was up:
    • 4.3% on 2019–20
    • 9.4% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GSP was worth an extra $0.629 billion to the ACT’s economy. This was down:
    • 32% on 2019–20
    • 51% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GSP (both direct and indirect) was worth $1.2 billion to the ACT’s economy. It was down:
    • 34% on 2019–20
    • 51% on 2018–19. 

Tourism GVA   

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GVA in the ACT was worth $0.539 billion (down 37% on 2019–20 and 52% on 2018–19). This was a 1.3% direct share of total territory GVA. It was down:
    • 0.8 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.7 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total territory GVA was worth $41.8 billion. This was up:
    • 4.1% on 2019–20
    • 9.6% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GVA was worth an extra $0.519 billion to the ACT’s economy. This was down:
    • 33% on 2019–20
    • 52% on 2018–19.
  • Total tourism GVA (both direct and indirect) was worth $1.1 billion to the ACT’s economy. This was down:
    • 35% on 2019–20
    • down 52% on 2018–19. 

Tourism employment  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism employment in the ACT accounted for 8,400 employees. This was down:
    • 10% on 2019–20
    • 25% on 2018–19.
    This was a 3.5% direct share of total territory employment. This was down:
    • 0.7 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.4% on 2018–19. 
  • Total territory employment was 239,000 employees. This was up:
    • 2.2% on 2019–20
    • 5.1% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism accounted for 3,000 employees in the ACT. This was down:
    • 41% on 2019–20
    • 57% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism employment (both direct and indirect) accounted for 11,400 employees in the ACT. This was down:
    • 21% on 2019–20
    • 37% on 2018–19. 

Definitions

About direct contribution 

Direct contribution is money spent directly in the tourism industry. Without a tourism industry in the ACT:

  • this money wouldn’t be generated in the Australian economy
  • this employment wouldn’t be created in the ACT workforce.

About indirect contribution

Indirect contribution is the flow-on effect of the tourism industry. For every dollar spent in the tourism industry in the ACT, an extra 79 cents were spent elsewhere in the economy.  

Why we use GVA  

GVA allows easier comparisons across industries. GVA is equal to GSP minus taxes.  

New South Wales summary

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Gross State Product (GSP)

$20.8 billion
Down 32% compared with 2019–20
Down 45% compared with 2018–19

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Gross Value Added (GVA)

$18.1 billion
Down 34% compared with 2019–20
Down 46% compared with 2018–19

groups

Employment

197,000 persons
Down 23% compared with 2019–20
Down 32% compared with 2018–19

Tourism GSP 

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GSP in New South Wales (NSW) was worth $10.3 billion. This was down:
    • 34% on 2019–20
    • 44% on 2018–19.
    This was a 1.6% direct share of total state GSP. It was down:
    • 0.9 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.3 percentage points on 2018–19.
  • Total state GSP was worth $643 billion. This was up:
    • 3.0% on 2019–20
    • 2.9% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GSP was worth an extra $10.5 billion to NSW’s economy. This was down:
    • 31% on 2019–20
    • 47% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GSP (both direct and indirect) was worth $20.8 billion to NSW’s economy. This was down:
    • 32% on 2019–20
    • 45% on 2018–19. 

Tourism GVA  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GVA in NSW was worth $9.3 billion. This was down:
    • 35% on 2019–20
    • 45% on 2018–19.
    This was a 1.6% direct share of total state GVA. It was down:
    • 0.9 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.3 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  •  Total state GVA was worth $592.4 billion. This was up:
    • 2.2% on 2019–20
    • 2.5% on 2018–19.
  • Indirect tourism GVA was worth an extra $8.8 billion to NSW’s economy. This was down:
    • 32% on 2019–20
    • 48% on 2018–19.
  • Total tourism GVA (both direct and indirect) was worth $18.1 billion to NSW’s economy. This was down:
    • 34% on 2019–20
    • 46% on 2018–19. 

Tourism employment  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism employment in NSW accounted for 146,800 employees. This was down:
    • 18% on 2019–20
    • 25% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 3.6% direct share of total state employment. It was down:
    • 0.9 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.2 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  •  Total state employment was 4.1 million employees. This was up:
    • 1.1% on 2019–20
    • 0.7% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism accounted for 50,200 employees in NSW. This was down:
    • 33% on 2019–20
    • 48% on 2018-19. 
  • Total tourism employment (both direct and indirect) accounted for 197,000 employees in NSW. This was down:
    • 23% on 2019–20
    • 32% on 2018–19. 

Definitions

About direct contribution 

Direct contribution is money spent directly in the tourism industry. Without a tourism industry in NSW:

  • this money wouldn’t be generated in the Australian economy
  • this employment wouldn’t be created in the NSW workforce.

About indirect contribution 

Indirect contribution is the flow-on effect of the tourism industry. For every dollar spent in the tourism industry in NSW, an extra 82 cents were spent elsewhere in the economy.  

Why we use GVA  

GVA allows easier comparisons across industries. GVA is equal to GSP minus taxes.  

Northern Territory summary

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Gross State Product (GSP)

$1.4 billion
Down 27% compared with 2019–20
Down 47% compared with 2018–19

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Gross Value Added (GVA)

$1.2 billion
Down 26% compared with 2019–20
Down 46% compared with 2018–19

groups

Employment

10,700 persons
Down 13% compared with 2019–20
Down 29% compared with 2018–19

Tourism GSP 

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GSP in the Northern Territory (NT) was worth $0.655 billion. This was down:
    • 24% on 2019–20
    • 43% on 2018–19.
    It was a 2.6% direct share of total territory GSP. This was down:
    • 0.7 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.9 percentage points on 2018–19.
  • Total territory GSP was worth $25.1 billion. It was:
    • down 4.8% on 2019–20
    • up 0.1% on 2018–19.
  • Indirect tourism GSP was worth an extra $0.719 billion to the NT’s economy. It was down:
    • 29% on 2019–20
    • 50% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GSP (both direct and indirect) was worth $1.4 billion to the NT’s economy. It was down:
    • 27% on 2019–20
    • 47% on 2018–19. 

Tourism GVA  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GVA in the NT was worth $0.589 billion. This was down:
    • 25% on 2019–20
    • 43% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 2.5% direct share of total territory GVA. It was down:
    • 0.6 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.9 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total territory GVA was worth $23.9 billion. It was:
    • down 5.6% on 2019–20
    • up 0.3% on 2018–19.
  • Indirect tourism GVA was worth an extra $0.580 billion to the NT’s economy. It was down:
    • 26% on 2019–20
    • 48% on 2018–19.
  • Total tourism GVA (both direct and indirect) was worth $1.2 billion to the NT’s economy. It was down:
    • 26% on 2019–20
    • 46% on 2018–19. 

Tourism employment  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism employment in the NT accounted for 6,800 employees. It was down:
    • 9.5% on 2019–20
    • 20% on 2018–19.
    This was a 5.2% direct share of total territory employment. It was down:
    • 0.4 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.2 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total territory employment was 131,000 employees. It was down:
    • 0.5% on 2019–20
    • 0.8% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism accounted for 3,900 employees in the NT. It was down:
    • 19 % on 2019–20
    • 41% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism employment (both direct and indirect) accounted for 10,700 employees in the NT. It was down:
    • 13% on 2019–20
    • 29% on 2018–19. 

Definitions

About direct contribution 

Direct contribution is money spent directly in the tourism industry. Without a tourism industry in the NT:

  • this money wouldn’t be generated in the Australian economy
  • this employment wouldn’t be created in the NT workforce.

About indirect contribution

Indirect contribution is the flow-on effect of the tourism industry. For every dollar spent in the tourism industry in NT, an extra 82 cents were spent elsewhere in the economy.  

Why we use GVA  

GVA allows easier comparisons across industries. GVA is equal to GSP minus taxes.  

Queensland summary

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Gross State Product (GSP)

$16.8 billion
Down 26% compared with 2019–20
Down 40% compared with 2018–19

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Gross Value Added (GVA)

$14.7 billion
Down 28% compared with 2019–20
Down 41% compared with 2018–19

groups

Employment

174,000 persons
Down 15% compared with 2019–20
Down 24% compared with 2018–19

Tourism GSP 

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GSP in Queensland (Qld) was worth $8.3 billion. This was down:
    • 28% on 2019–20
    • 39% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 2.3% direct share of total state GSP. It was down:
    • 0.9 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.5 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total state GSP was worth $366.3 billion. This was up:
    • 1.3% on 2019–20
    • 0.1% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GSP was worth an extra $8.5 billion to Qld’s economy. This was down:
    • 25% on 2019–20
    • 41% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GSP (both direct and indirect) was worth $16.8 billion to Qld’s economy. This was down:
    • 26% on 2019–20
    • 40% on 2018–19. 

Tourism GVA  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GVA in Qld was worth $7.5 billion. It was down:
    • 29% on 2019–20
    • 40% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 2.2% direct share of total state GVA. It was down:
    • 0.9 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.4 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total state GVA was worth $341.4 billion. It was:
    • up 0.3% on 2019–20
    • down 1.0% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GVA was worth an extra $7.2 billion to the Qld economy. It was down:
    • 27% on 2019–20
    • 43% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GVA (both direct and indirect) was worth $14.7 billion to the Qld economy. It was down:
    • 28% on 2019–20
    • 41% on 2018–19. 

Tourism employment  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism employment in Qld accounted for 120,600 employees. It was down:
    • 13% on 2019–20
    • 18% on 2018–19.
    This was a 4.7% direct share of total state employment. It was down:
    • 0.8 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.2 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total state employment was 2.6 million employees. It was up 2.9% each on 2019–20 and 2018–19.
  • Indirect tourism accounted for 53,400 employees in Qld. It was down:
    • 19% on 2019–20
    • 35% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism employment (both direct and indirect) accounted for 174,000 employees in Qld. It was down:
    • 15% on 2019–20
    • 24% on 2018–19. 

Definitions

About direct contribution 

Direct contribution is money spent directly in the tourism industry. Without a tourism industry in Qld:

  • this money wouldn’t be generated in the Australian economy
  • this employment wouldn’t be created in the Qld workforce.   

About indirect contribution

Indirect contribution is the flow-on effect of the tourism industry. For every dollar spent in the tourism industry in Qld, an extra 84 cents were spent elsewhere in the economy.  

Why we use GVA  

GVA allows easier comparisons across industries. GVA is equal to GSP minus taxes.  

South Australia summary

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Gross State Product (GSP)

$5.2 billion
Down 20% compared with 2019–20
Down 32% compared with 2018–19

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Gross Value Added (GVA)

$4.4 billion
Down 20% compared with 2019–20
Down 31% compared with 2018–19

groups

Employment

56,500
Down 4.2% compared with 2019–20
Down 9.3% compared with 2018–19

Tourism GSP 

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GSP in SA was worth $2.6 billion. This was down:
    • 18% on 2019–20
    • 28% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 2.2% direct share of total state GSP. It was down:
    • 0.7 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.1 percentage points on 2018–19.
  • Total state GSP was worth $117.7 billion. This was up:
    • 6.4% on 2019–20
    • 7.4% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GSP was worth an extra $2.7 billion to SA’s economy. This was down:
    • 21% on 2019–20
    • 36% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GSP (both direct and indirect) was worth $5.2 billion to SA’s economy. This was down:
    • 20% on 2019–20
    • 32% on 2018–19. 

Tourism GVA  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GVA in SA was worth $2.3 billion. This was down:
    • 20% on 2019–20
    • 29% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 2.1% direct share of total state GVA. It was down:
    • 0.7 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.1 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total state GVA was worth $109.0 billion. This was up:
    • 5.8% on 2019–20
    • 6.9% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GVA was worth an extra $2.1 billion to SA economy. This was down:
    • 19% on 2019–20
    • 34% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GVA (both direct and indirect) was worth $4.4 billion to SA’s economy. This was down:
    • 20% on 2019–20
    • 31% on 2018–19. 

Tourism employment  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism employment in SA accounted for 37,300 employees. This was down:
    • 6.5% on 2019–20
    • 8.8% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 4.4% direct share of total state employment. It was down:
    • 0.4 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 0.5 percentage points on 2018–19.
  • Total state employment was 855,000 employees. This was up:
    • 1.4% on 2019–20
    • 0.8% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism accounted for 19,200 employees in SA. This was:
    • up 8.7% on 2019–20
    • down 10% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism employment (both direct and indirect) accounted for 56,500 employees in SA. This was down:
    • 4.2% on 2019–20
    • 9.3% on 2018–19. 

Definitions

About direct contribution 

Direct contribution is money spent directly in the tourism industry. Without a tourism industry in SA:

  • this money wouldn’t be generated in the Australian economy
  • this employment wouldn’t be created in the SA workforce.   

About indirect contribution

Indirect contribution is the flow-on effect of the tourism industry. For every dollar spent in the tourism industry in SA, an extra 80 cents were spent elsewhere in the economy.  

Why we use GVA  

GVA allows easier comparisons across industries. GVA is equal to GSP minus taxes. 

Tasmania summary

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Gross State Product (GSP)

$2.3 billion
Down 24% compared with 2019–20
Down 37% compared with 2018–19

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Gross Value Added (GVA)

$2.0 billion
Down 25% compared with 2019–20
Down 38% compared with 2018–19

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Employment

33,600
Down 7.7% compared with 2019–20
Down 19% compared with 2018–19

Tourism GSP 

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GSP in Tas was worth $1.1 billion. This was down:
    • 26% on 2019–20
    • 36% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 3.2% direct share of total state GSP. It was down:
    • 2.2 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.4 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total state GSP was worth $34.8 billion. This was up:
    • 6.1% on 2019–20
    • 9.6% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GSP was worth an extra $1.1 billion to Tas’s economy. This was down:
    • 22% on 2019–20
    • 39% on 2018–19.
  • Total tourism GSP (both direct and indirect) was worth $2.3 billion to Tas’s economy. This was down:
    • 24% on 2019–20
    • 37% on 2018–19. 

Tourism GVA  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GVA in Tas was worth $1.0 billion. This was down:
    • 27% on 2019–20
    • 36% on 2018–19 
    This was a 3.1% direct share of total state GVA. It was down:
    • 1.4 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 2.2 percentage points on 2018–19.
  • Total state GVA was worth $32.6 billion. This was up:
    • 6.0% on 2019–20
    • 9.1% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GVA was worth an extra $1.0 billion to Tas economy. This was down:
    • 23% on 2019–20
    • 39% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GVA (both direct and indirect) was worth $2.0 billion to Tas’s economy. This was down:
    • 25% on 2019–20
    • 38% on 2018–19. 

Tourism employment  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism employment in Tas accounted for 20,600 employees. This was down:
    • 3.3% on 2019–20
    • 8.1% on 2018–19. 
    This was 8.0% direct share of total state employment. It was down
    • 0.8 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.0 percentage point on 2018–19. 
  • Total state employment amount was 258,000 employees. This was up:
    • 2.4% on 2019–20
    • 3.3% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism accounted for 13,000 employees in Tas. This was down:
    • 14% on 2019–20
    • 33% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism employment (both direct and indirect) accounted for 33,600 employees in Tas. This was down:
    • 7.7% on 2019–20
    • 19% on 2018–19. 

Definitions

About direct contribution 

Direct contribution is money spent directly in the tourism industry. Without a tourism industry in Tas:

  • this money wouldn’t be generated in the Australian economy
  • this employment wouldn’t be created in the Tas workforce.

About indirect contribution

Indirect contribution is the flow-on effect of the tourism industry. For every dollar spent in the tourism industry in Tas, an extra 84 cents were spent elsewhere in the economy.  

Why we use GVA  

GVA allows easier comparisons across industries. GVA is equal to GSP minus taxes.  

Victoria summary

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Gross State Product (GSP)

$10.6 billion
Down 55% compared with 2019–20
Down 64% compared with 2018–19

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Gross Value Added (GVA)

$9.4 billion
Down 57% compared with 2019–20
Down 65% compared with 2018–19

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Employment

120,000
Down 48% compared with 2019–20
Down 54% compared with 2018–19

Tourism GSP 

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GSP in Vic was worth $5.4 billion. This was down:
    • 57% on 2019–20
    • 63% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 1.1% direct share of total state GSP. It was down:
    • 1.5 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 2.0 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total state GSP was worth $474.2 billion. This was up:
    • 0.9% on 2019–20
    • 2.8% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GSP was worth an extra $5.3 billion to Vic’s economy. This was down:
    • 54% on 2019–20
    • 64% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GSP (both direct and indirect) was worth $10.7 billion to Vic’s economy. This was down:
    • 55% on 2019–20
    • 64% on 2018–19. 

Tourism GVA  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GVA in Vic was worth $4.9 billion. This was down:
    • 57% on 2019–20
    • 64% on 2018–19.
    This was a 1.1% direct share of total state GVA. It was down:
    • 1.5 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 2.0 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total state GVA was worth $442.6 billion. This was up:
    • 1.3% on 2019–20
    • 3.7% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism GVA was worth an extra $4.5 billion to Vic economy. This was down:
    • 56% on 2019–20
    • 65% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GVA (both direct and indirect) was worth $9.4 billion to Vic’s economy. This was down:
    • 57% on 2019–20
    • 65% on 2018–19. 

Tourism employment  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism employment in Vic accounted for 109,800 employees. This was down:
    • 36% on 2019–20
    • 40% on 2018–19. 
    This was 3.3% direct share of total state employment. It was down:
    • 1.8 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 2.2 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total state employment was 3.4 million employees. This was:
    • down 0.5% on 2019–20
    • up 0.3% on 2018–19. 
  • Indirect tourism accounted for 10,200 employees in Vic. This was down:
    • 83% on 2019–20
    • 87% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism employment (both direct and indirect) accounted for 120,000 employees in Vic. This was down:
    • 48% on 2019–20
    • 54% on 2018–19. 

Definitions

About direct contribution 

Direct contribution is money spent directly in the tourism industry. Without a tourism industry in Vic:

  • this money wouldn’t be generated in the Australian economy
  • this employment wouldn’t be created in the Vic workforce.   

About indirect contribution

Indirect contribution is the flow-on effect of the tourism industry. For every dollar spent in the tourism industry in Vic, an extra 79 cents were spent elsewhere in the economy.  

Why we use GVA  

GVA allows easier comparisons across industries. GVA is equal to GSP minus taxes.  

Western Australia summary

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Gross State Product (GSP)

$7.2 billion
Down 33% compared with 2019–20
Down 41% compared with 2018–19

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Gross Value Added (GVA)

$6.3 billion
Down 34% compared with 2019–20
Down 42% compared with 2018–19

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Employment

78,400
Down 17% compared with 2019–20
Down 21% compared with 2018–19

Tourism GSP 

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GSP in Western Australia (WA) was worth $3.5 billion. This was down:
    • 35% on 2019–20
    • 41% on 2018–19. 
    This was a 1.0% direct share of total state GSP. It was down:
    • 1.1 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 0.8 percentage points on 2018–19.
  • Total state GSP was worth $361.8 billion. This was up:
    • 16% on 2019–20
    • 26% on 2018–19.
  • Indirect tourism GSP was worth an extra $3.6 billion to WA’s economy. This was down:
    • 30% on 2019–20
    • 41% on 2018–19.
  • Total tourism GSP (both direct and indirect) was worth $7.2 billion to WA’s economy. This was down:
    • 33% on 2019–20
    • 41% on 2018–19. 

Tourism GVA  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism GVA in WA was worth $3.2 billion. This was down:
    • 37% on 2019–20
    • 42% on 2018–19.
    This was a 0.9% direct share of total state GVA. This was down:
    • 0.8 percentage points on 2019–20
    • 1.1 percentage points on 2018–19. 
  • Total state GVA was worth $348.5 billion. This was up:
    • 16% on 2019–20
    • 26% on 2018–19.
  • Indirect tourism GVA was worth an extra $3.1 billion to WA economy. This was down:
    • 31% on 2019–20
    • 42% on 2018–19. 
  • Total tourism GVA (both direct and indirect) was worth $6.3 billion to WA’s economy. This was down:
    • 34% on 2019–20
    • 42% on 2018–19. 

Tourism employment  

In 2020–21: 

  • Direct tourism employment in WA accounted for 56,300 employees. This was down 16% each on 2019–20 and 2018–19. This was a 4.1% direct share of total state employment.
  • Total state employment was down 0.9 percentage points each on 2019–20 and on 2018–19.
  • Total state employment amount was 1.4 million employees. This was up 1.9% on 2019–20 and up 2.3% on 2018–19.
  • Indirect tourism accounted for 22,100 employees in WA. This was down:
    • 17% on 2019–20
    • 30% on 2018–19.
  • Total tourism employment (both direct and indirect) accounted for 78,400 employees in WA. This was down:
    • 17% on 2019–20
    • 21% on 2018–19. 

Definitions

About direct contribution 

Direct contribution is money spent directly in the tourism industry. Without a tourism industry in WA:

  • this money wouldn’t be generated in the Australian economy
  • this employment wouldn’t be created in the WA workforce.   

About indirect contribution

Indirect contribution is the flow-on effect of the tourism industry. For every dollar spent in the tourism industry in WA, an extra 79 cents were spent elsewhere in the economy.  

Why we use GVA  

GVA allows easier comparisons across industries. GVA is equal to GSP minus taxes.  

Data tables

Find out more about tourism consumption, employment and economic activity in our data tables.

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State Tourism Satellite Account 2020-21 data tables

View the summary results for 2020-21
 
download

XLS 1.0MB

Explanatory notes

Revisions to the ABS national accounts data have affected the STSA. These data are revised annually by the ABS to reflect changes in the economy. This is in line with international best practice.

ABS has started updating input-output relationships based on the latest available supply-use tables. In this case this refers to 2018–19. This means that in this edition of the STSA the input-output tables (I-O tables) used in generating indirect contribution of tourism resulting from Output and employment multipliers have also been revised using 2018–19 I-O tables. This has resulted in a revision of results for the whole time-series. This means data from previous editions is not directly comparable to this STSA. 

Regional expenditure data revisions have also affected this STSA. These data are sourced from the:

  • International Visitor Survey (IVS), year ending June 2021
  • National Visitor Survey (NVS), year ending June 2021. 

Methodology

The STSA 2020-21 publication presents a complete set of data on the direct and indirect economic contribution of tourism for all states and territories. It builds on the ABS National TSA. 

The report highlights changes in 2020–21, in nominal terms. It also examines longer term patterns in tourism’s contribution to:

  • the national economy
  • state economies
  • territory economies. 

ABS System of National Accounts 

The ABS System of National Accounts (SNA) doesn’t capture tourism as a single industry. This is due to the sector’s diverse products and services. The National TSA bridges this gap by: 

  • measuring the economic contribution of tourism 
  • supplementing the SNA.

You can then compare between: 

  • the tourism industry’s economic contribution, and 
  • conventional industries’ contribution within an economy. 

You can also compare tourism sectors across different countries. 

Check the  Australian National Accounts: Tourism Satellite Account methodology on the ABS website for more information on the National TSA. 

Sources for data and methodology 

The approach in this STSA is to derive the direct contribution of tourism. It is similar to the approach developed by Pham et al. (2009). Tourism spend data and state/territory industry input-output (I-O) data are combined with the National TSA benchmark. This is to capture the: 

  • supply of tourism at the state/territory level 
  • demand for tourism at the state/territory level. 

The main sources for the data and methodology are: 

  • unpublished modelled regional expenditure data from Tourism Research Australia’s: 
    • IVS 
    • NVS.
  • I-O database from The Enormous Regional Model (Horridge, Madden & Wittwer, 2003). 
  • National TSA produced by the ABS (2021). 
  • Pham, T.D., L. Dwyer and R. Spurr (2009) ‘Constructing a regional TSA: The case of Queensland’, Tourism Analysis, 13, 5/6, pp. 445-460. 
  • Pham, T.D. and Dwyer, L. (2013), ‘Tourism Satellite Account and Its applications in CGE Modelling’, in Tisdell (ed), The Handbook of Tourism Economics – Analysis, New Applications and Case Studies, Chapter 22, World Scientific Publishing. 
  • Dwyer, L. and Pham, T.D. (2012), ‘CGE Modeling’, in Dwyer, Gill and Seetaram (eds), Research Methods in Tourism, Chapter 13, Edward Elgar Publishing. 

Indirect and total contribution of tourism 

We also measure indirect effects of tourism demand on businesses that provide goods and services to the tourism industry. For example, the indirect tourism demand generated from supplying a meal to a visitor. This starts with production of what the restaurant needs to make the meal. This might include fresh produce and electricity for cooking. 

This approach complements the direct effects presented through the TSA framework. It gives a clearer picture of the total contribution of tourism to the economy. However, they have been calculated using I-O analysis methods. This is because the TSA framework doesn’t measure these indirect effects at state and territory level. 

The I-O analysis methods give a breakdown of the supply and demand of commodities in the Australian economy. 

Multipliers for calculating tourism’s indirect effects 

We use multipliers for standard industries in the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industry Classification (ANZSIC) as the basis for calculating tourism’s indirect effects. This is because the tourism sector doesn’t represent a single industry in the economy. 

Contact TRA

mail   tourism.research@tra.gov.au

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