Noosa Tourism Statistics - How many tourists visit? (2024)

Published 9 Sept 2026

Noosa is a stunning coastal town in Queensland, Australia, known for its beautiful beaches, lush national parks, and vibrant local culture. It's a popular destination for outdoor activities like surfing, hiking, and wildlife spotting, offering a relaxed yet upscale atmosphere with a variety of dining and shopping options.

How many tourists visit Noosa each year?

Noosa welcomed around 2.1 million tourists on average annually from financial year (FY) 2018-2019 to FY 2023-2024. This includes both overnight visitors and day trippers.

The year ending June 2019 (FY 2018-2019) welcomed around 2.5 million visitors.
A decline was observed, with the number dropping to 2 million in FY 2019-2020, likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In FY 2020-2021, the trend continued downward, reaching 1.9 million, indicating a significant dip.
A slight recovery occurred in FY 2021-2022, with the value increasing to 2 million, showing a positive shift after the previous year's drop.
In FY 2022-2023, further improvement was seen, as the number of domestic visitors rose to 2.2 million, demonstrating continued recovery or growth.
A modest decline was observed in FY 2023-2024, with the number of visitors reaching 2.1 million, reflecting a stable yet slightly reduced level compared to the previous year.

Vertical bar chart of Noosa's total annual visitors by financial year from 2018-19 to 2023-24, peaking in 2018-19, dipping mid-period, then partially recovering. — Total tourists visiting Noosa annually, FY 2018-2019 to FY 2023-2024.

How many tourists visited Noosa in FY 2024-2025?

Noosa welcomed 1.04 million visitors from January 2025 to June 2025.
Only six months of domestic visitation data (Jan–Jun 2025) is available for Noosa due to Tourism Research Australia's new DoTS methodology introduced in 2025.

How many tourists visited Noosa in FY 2023-2024?

In the financial year 2023-2024, Noosa welcomed approximately 2.1 million total visitors, including both overnight and day trip visitors.
A 4.5% decrease in the number of visitors has been recorded compared to the previous year.
Among 2.1 million visitors, 52.4% of visitors were overnight visitors, while the remaining took day trips.

How many tourists visited Noosa in 2022-2023?

In the financial year 2022-2023, Noosa welcomed approximately 2.2 million visitors, including both domestic overnight visitors and day trippers.
This period saw a strong recovery in tourism for Noosa, driven by increased domestic travel following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions.
Among the 2.2 million visitors, 52% visitors were overnight visitors, and the remaining took day trips.

How much do visitors spend on Noosa?

Visitor spending in Noosa has experienced fluctuations amounting to several billion Australian dollars. During the 2022-2023 financial year, a record-high level of spending was recorded.

In FY 2018-2019, visitor spending reached AU$1.1 billion, marking a significant contribution to the local economy.
Data on visitor spending for FY 2019-2020 was not recorded, leaving a gap in the trend analysis.
Spending decreased slightly to AU$1.06 billion in FY 2020-2021, reflecting a modest decline from the 2018-2019 figures.
BY FY 2021-2022, visitor spending rebounded to AU$1.15 billion, showing signs of recovery and economic improvement.
In FY 2022-2023 a remarkable increase was observed, with spending surging to AU$1.74 billion, the highest recorded in the history of Noosa tourism.
In the last financial year, spending dipped to AU$1.4 billion, indicating a reduction compared to the previous year's peak but still maintaining a strong economic contribution.

Vertical bar chart of Noosa's annual visitor spending in billions of AUD across five financial years, roughly flat near AU$1.1B then spiking to a peak in 2022-23 before easing. — Annual visitor spending in Noosa by financial year (AU$ billions).

How much do visitors spend on Noosa in 2024-2025?

Noosa visitors spent AU$670 million from January to June in 2025
Only six months of domestic visitor spending data (Jan-Jun 2025) is available for Noosa due to Tourism Research Australia's new DoTS methodology introduced in 2025.

How much do visitors spend on Noosa in 2023-2024?

In the 2023-2024 financial year, the amount of visitor spending was AU$1.4 billion. This figure indicates a 27% increase compared to pre-COVID-19.
International visitors have spent around AU$116 million, which is second highest on record.¹

How much do visitors spend on Noosa in 2022-2023?

Noosa welcomed 2.2 million visitors in 2022-23 who spent a record AU$1.74 billion (approximately), which is a milestone in terms of visitors' spending.
This was 58% more than pre-COVID-19.
The record spending was mostly due to record breaking spending by interstate visitors and day time trippers.¹

How much does it cost to visit Noosa?

In the 2023-2024 financial year, Noosa welcomed around 2.1 million visitors and average spending per tourist per visit in 2023-24 was approximately AU$666.67, which is 15.7% less than previous year.
In the previous year, average spending per tourist per visit in 2022-23 was approximately AU$790.91.

Why do people visit Noosa?

The main reasons for international visitors' trips to Noosa are primarily for holiday purposes. In 2024, visitors to Noosa were more likely to be visiting on holiday.

Purpose of visit in recent years:

Holiday: 64.7% (Approximately 1.43 million visitors)
Visiting Relatives and Friends: 22% (Approximately 485,000 visitors)
Others: 13.3% (Approximately 293,000 visitors)

Pie chart of visitor purpose for Noosa split into three segments: Holiday as the dominant share, Visiting Relatives and Friends, and Others. — Purpose of visiting Noosa by share of visitors, 2024.

How popular is Noosa National Park as a tourist destination?

The Noosa region is recognized for its environmental stewardship and sustainability efforts through the Noosa Biosphere Awards.²
Noosa's Main Beach, located next to the national park, was recently recognized as Australia's favorite beach by a panel of experts, celebrated for its golden sands, safe surf, and picturesque views of the park.³

Noosa Tourism Statistics - International & Domestic Visits

Before the pandemic, there were approximately 2.5 million visitors in total in 2018-19, with 167,000 international visitors and 997,000 domestic visitors. The remaining were day trippers.
During the recovery phase following the pandemic in 2023-24, the number of international visitors decreased to 145,000, while domestic visitors totalled 962,000. Day trippers accounted for 984,000.
From January to June in 2025, there were 78,000 international visitors, 470,000 domestic visitors and 496,000 day trippers.

Overnight visitors and day trips to Noosa by period.
Period	Domestic Overnight Visitors	International Overnight Visitors	Day Trips
Pre-Pandemic (2018-19)	997,000	167,000	1,300,000
Recent FY (2023-24)	962,000	145,000	984,000
Latest (Jan 2025 - Jun 2025)	470,000	78,000	496,000

Related Travel Statistics

When is the best time to visit fairy pools in Noosa?

The Noosa Fairy Pools are one of Noosa's hidden natural attractions, located along the coastal walking track in Noosa National Park.

The ideal time to visit the Noosa Fairy Pools is during low tide, as it ensures safe access and provides the best visibility of marine life.
Early in the morning, right after sunrise, is the perfect time to avoid crowds and experience the pools in a tranquil environment.
Noosa enjoys sunshine and clear skies year-round, making a visit to the Fairy Pools a wonderful way to spend the day, even during the winter months when tourism slows down.⁴

References

Tourism Noosa Annual Report · visitnoosa.com.au ↑ b
Noosa Biosphere Awards 2024 · noosabiosphere.org.au ↑
Australia's Favourite Beach Revealed · news.com.au ↑
The Ultimate Guide to Noosa Fairy Pools · somethingoffreedom.com ↑
Tourism Research Australia — Local Government Area Profiles (Noosa) · Tourism Research Australia
Average Weather in Noosa Heads, Queensland · weatherspark.com