Sturdy attendance was recorded on the annual Lodging Australia NSW Chair Drinks, held Wednesday on the Sofitel Sydney Darling Harbour, for members throughout the trade.
The occasion, hosted by AA NSW Basic Supervisor, Stacey McBride, additionally noticed Minister for Jobs and Tourism, Steve Kamper offering an summary of the present panorama and outlook of the tourism and lodging sectors.
“It’s our probability to lift a glass and welcome within the 12 months earlier than the calls for of the 12 months overtake us, though I’ve to say that this 12 months, it looks like that has already occurred, and it appears to be like prefer it’s shaping as much as be one other busy 12 months,” McBride mentioned.
“The Australia Day lengthy weekend historically marks the top of the vacation season, and regardless of the warmth and excessive climate in elements of the nation, occupancy outcomes have been sturdy. In truth, it was the strongest December to January interval for lodging suppliers in over half a decade.”
In December, New South Wales reached a mean occupancy of 77% up 2.8% year-on-year, with an ADR improve of 9%, adopted by a report occupancy and room charges for New Yr’s Eve in Sydney.
January outcomes present resort occupancy enhancing throughout most capital cities, with Sydney seeing a 5% enchancment in occupancy. In the meantime, complete arrivals within the 12 months to November 2025 reached 8.6 million, up 7% from the earlier 12 months, with vacation arrivals up 10%.
“When vacation arrived at 3.9 million, up 10% and to place that in perspective, vacation arrivals traditionally peaked at 4.48 million within the 12 months to December 2019, so if this progress continues, we might see over 4.8 million vacation arrivals within the 12 months to June 2026, and for the primary time for the reason that pandemic, the numbers stepping into the appropriate course,” McBride mentioned.
McBride attributed the momentum to being supported by coverage settings, and referred to the Federal Authorities’s not too long ago launched tourism Motion Plan, which units a deal with rising customer expenditure to $230 billion by 2030.
Lodging Australia NSW Deputy Chair and CEO of Daiwa Dwelling Nesuto Holdings, Mark Ronfeldt, mirrored on 2025’s new resort openings throughout the state, together with the introduction of latest manufacturers to the market, in addition to main occasions such because the Lions Tour, offering momentum for the sector.
“Lodging Australia now has greater than 300 members in New South Wales, starting from small regional motels and repair departments to massive native and worldwide accommodations, New South Wales lodging accommodations generate greater than $2.7 billion annually in income and contribute greater than $2.2 billion in worth to the state economic system,” Ronfeldt mentioned.
Minister Kamper echoed the significance of the sector to the state’s customer economic system and a full occasion calendar assisted with its progress.
The Minister mentioned this 12 months’s fashionable Vivid competition was being redesigned, with a “smaller footprint”. Vivid 2025 noticed a rise in guests to 2.53 million and delivered the very best Could occupancy since 2019.
“New South Wales is already a customer economic system powerhouse, however we’re capable of make it even increased with our 2035 go to economic system technique focusing on $91 billion in customer expenditure by 2035,” Kamper mentioned.
“To get there, we’ll have to ship 8.5 million extra aviation seats, 150,000 further jobs, and, importantly, 40,000 new lodging rooms throughout the state.”
“That is formidable, but it surely’s undoubtedly achievable, and should you go by final 12 months’s progress, we’ll clear that quantity up, we’ll get there simply,” Kamper mentioned.
“To assist facilitate the rooms we want, our authorities has established an Funding Supply Authority to quick observe main non-public investments throughout the state, together with massive scale resort developments.”
In response to Kamper, accommodations have been the primary trade to obtain a “particular carve out within the IPA, which is the Funding Supply Authority, as a result of we perceive how important further rooms are to the expansion of our economic system,” he mentioned.
Kamper mentioned the opening of the upcoming 24-hour operational Western Sydney Worldwide Airport will help with the sector’s progress, because it attracts new interstate and worldwide arrivals into New South Wales, saying it will be a “actual recreation changer” for the state and Western Sydney specifically.
