DOMESTIC travel might be up but it appears Australians don’t really know much about their own backyard.
New insights from travel booking site Wotif reveals the average Aussie has visited fewer than one per cent of the 15,268 towns, cities and suburbs throughout the nation, and a staggering 53 per cent can only name up to nine regional destinations in Australia.
As a result, almost a quarter of all Australians – and 36 per cent of those ages 25-34 years – admit to feeling embarrassed about the small amount of destinations they’ve visited.
While Aussies are sticking to the same locations, festivals are a big motivation for travel, with 39 per cent of locals hitting the road – or skies – specifically for events, music and food and wine festivals.
Noosa Food and Wine Festival, Western Australia’s Truffle Kerfuffle and Byron Bay’s Splendour in the Grass are some of the nation’s most-loved festivals, attracting thousands of revellers each year.
In a bid to get Aussies travelling to destinations beyond their tried and tested favourites – and to celebrate what makes our country unique – Wotif have launched a nation-wide initiative, The Festival of Wot?
The travel company is searching for towns, cities and suburbs that have something they’d like to be famous for, with Wotif set to gift a deserving Aussie location a new festival in honour of said ‘thing’.
“Australia’s most memorable festivals are centered on celebrating a particular pastime or passion, and for many locations across the country festivals encourage a tremendous sense of community spirit,” says Wotif Managing Director, Daniel Finch.
“In creating The Festival of Wot?, our intention is to help celebrate some of the unique stories and characters from around the country to create an experience that locals love and is worth travelling for.”
Aussies can submit their entries to wotif.com.au/festival from tomorrow until August 18.
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