Agent Selling Tips: Active/Sports Holidays
18-Oct-2025
Category: News Stories
We sat down with Pete Mills, Board Member of PATA UK & Ireland and Partnerships and Distribution Manager UK/Northern Europe, Tourism Australia where he explains just how active and sport themed holidays play such an important part in Australia’s tourism industry.
• There are so many incredible activities and sporting themed activity available in Australia. Great Walks of Australia offers a collection of multi-day guided walking experiences, showcasing some of the most iconic and diverse landscapes in Australia.
• On the West Coast, Ningaloo Reef is the perfect spot for an active holiday, offering a slew of outdoor adventures. Travellers can book a guided kayak or snorkel tour, swim with the world’s biggest fish, the Whale Shark or Manta rays.
• The Great Barrier Reef is also an incredible place to book for active travellers, with snorkelling one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World.
• For a traveller looking for a Red Centre activity, you can’t go past cycling around Uluru. The 15km path around the base is the perfect way to experience Uluru.
Recent booking trends
• We’ve seen people booking their travel to Australia around key sporting events. The British & Irish Lions brought an estimated 40,000 UK residents to Australia for the tour, who get to experience Australia while watching their favourite sport.
• Another trend we’ve seen is ‘Mara-tourism’ is also a trend we’ve seen, with people travelling to compete in the Sydney Marathon, pairing it with an Australian trip.
Forward booking predictions
• The Ashes is expected to bring a huge influx of travellers into Australia, as people continue to book their holidays around major sporting events. For the first time since the 2017-18 Ashes series, Brits can travel to Australia for the Ashes. According to Cricket Australia, more than 50,000 tickets were sold to UK residents during the pre-sales this year.
• Active holiday activities will remain popular, especially activities that are on traveller’s bucket lists, like snorkelling the Great Barrier Reef or cycling around Uluru.
• We expect the demand for Outback and Cultural experiences to continue to increase, so travellers can combine physical activity with cultural immersion.
• There are so many incredible activities and sporting themed activity available in Australia. Great Walks of Australia offers a collection of multi-day guided walking experiences, showcasing some of the most iconic and diverse landscapes in Australia.
• On the West Coast, Ningaloo Reef is the perfect spot for an active holiday, offering a slew of outdoor adventures. Travellers can book a guided kayak or snorkel tour, swim with the world’s biggest fish, the Whale Shark or Manta rays.
• The Great Barrier Reef is also an incredible place to book for active travellers, with snorkelling one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World.
• For a traveller looking for a Red Centre activity, you can’t go past cycling around Uluru. The 15km path around the base is the perfect way to experience Uluru.
Recent booking trends
• We’ve seen people booking their travel to Australia around key sporting events. The British & Irish Lions brought an estimated 40,000 UK residents to Australia for the tour, who get to experience Australia while watching their favourite sport.
• Another trend we’ve seen is ‘Mara-tourism’ is also a trend we’ve seen, with people travelling to compete in the Sydney Marathon, pairing it with an Australian trip.
Forward booking predictions
• The Ashes is expected to bring a huge influx of travellers into Australia, as people continue to book their holidays around major sporting events. For the first time since the 2017-18 Ashes series, Brits can travel to Australia for the Ashes. According to Cricket Australia, more than 50,000 tickets were sold to UK residents during the pre-sales this year.
• Active holiday activities will remain popular, especially activities that are on traveller’s bucket lists, like snorkelling the Great Barrier Reef or cycling around Uluru.
• We expect the demand for Outback and Cultural experiences to continue to increase, so travellers can combine physical activity with cultural immersion.
