A new Tourism Australia advertising campaign called Howzat for a holiday?has launched ahead of this summer’s Australia-India Test cricket series to encourage Indian travellers to plan and book an Australian holiday.

Australian Test cricket captain Pat Cummins has teamed up with Tourism Australia’s brand ambassador Ruby the Kangaroo in a TV commercial that highlights visitor experiences including a game of cricket on Sydney’s Palm Beach.

The commercial, which has been tailored for a projected Indian television audience of at least 50 million people, will also be supported by billboards, signage and print advertisements.

The number of Indian travellers visiting Australia already exceeds 2019 levels and, according to Tourism Research Australia, arrivals from India are forecast to double pre-pandemic levels by 2028.

Australian Minister for Trade and Tourism Don Farrell said: “With tens of millions of people across India tuning in to watch the Test cricket series here in Australia, we have an opportunity to showcase to a huge audience why there is no place like Australia for a holiday.

“Indian travellers are already visiting Australia in record numbers, and we expect even more in coming years, which is great news for our tourism industry.

“Howzat for a holiday? will screen in India during breaks in play throughout the five Test series and remind Indian travellers there is so much more to see and do in Australia once the summer of cricket is over.”

Tourism Australia Managing Director Phillipa Harrison: “With a population of more than 1.4 billion people and more Indians looking to travel the potential in the Indian market is endless and we see the upcoming Test series as our chance to get on the front foot and promote our country to a captive TV audience.

“The Test series will attract enormous TV audiences of up to 50 million across India and tens of millions of those are high yielding travellers who are in the market for an international holiday.

“While we have their attention firmly on Australia for the cricket this is an unmissable chance to encourage those travellers to visit Australia and see what we have to offer as a holiday destination.

“The aviation links between India and Australia have never been stronger, the market was one of the first to fully recover after the pandemic and, according to forecasts, the number of Indians travelling to Australia will double 2019 levels by 2028.

“It will be a tough Test series for India on the field, but we are confident Indian travellers will still want to Come and Say G’day.”

Australian Test cricket Captain Pat Cummins said: “I’m so excited to be part of Tourism Australia’s latest campaign to invite Indian travellers to our backyard. Beyond the stands there’s loads on offer across the country for a memorable holiday.

"From our endless coastline to our unique animals and thriving restaurant scene – we can’t wait to welcome you. “Hitting the surf at my local Sydney beach followed by fish and chips on the sand with my family is one of my favourite Aussie summer pastimes.”

View the ad here.

Tourism Australia puts its focus on India

Last week saw Tourism Australia lead a delegation of state and territory tourism organisations and convention bureaux leaders to New Delhi and Mumbai in India.

The four-day program included a series of meetings with more than 600 representatives from airlines and key distribution partners as well as workshops with Aussie Specialist Program travel agents and business events decision makers.

During the visit, Tourism Australia and Air India signed a three-year marketing agreement to sustain and drive the positive trend in Indian visitor arrivals to Australia as Air India expands its presence in the market.

Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), Tourism Australia and Air India will explore opportunities to jointly undertake and implement marketing activities to showcase Australia’s appeal and drive future growth in visitation.

Air India currently operates 17 weekly non-stop flights connecting India and Australia. In the year ending August 2024, the airline transported more than 170,000 Indian travellers, making it one of the largest carriers of traffic from India to Australia.