A record number of Chinese tourists visited Australia in May, and the proportion of self-guided tourists also increased, Australian media reported.

The number of visitor arrivals from China soared to 65,000 in May, beating out the prior monthly record of 61,900 in March, which is a boon for Australia's sluggish tourism industry.

David James, director of Tangalooma Island Resort located in Tangalooma, Moreton Island, the world's second largest sand island, said that Chinese tourists alone can fill up his resort, although he prefers to welcome diversified guests.

China's outbound tourism market is expanding and changing rapidly. James said that with the rising number of Chinese visitors with experience in traveling abroad, many of them prefer to travel around Australia independently, scheduling travel routes and booking trips by themselves instead of tour groups arranged by travel agencies.

So far, the Australian dollar remains as low as $0.90, which means the cost of visiting Australia is lower, even as the cost of outbound tourism for Australians increases. However, the number of visitors to Australia has seen a steady decline after it reached a new record last December.

The Australian dollar dived in the middle of April, just three months ago. For Paul Bloxham, the chief economist for HSBC in Australia, the price effect takes time to kick in. Thus, he estimated that a decrease in outbound tourism will be seen in the coming months.

Bloxham emphasized the significances of Chinese outbound tourism visitors for injecting capital into Australia, which is expected to contribute much to rebalance the Australian economy. He said he hopes other sectors of the national economy can get support from Asian countries, when Australia changes its strategy of the mining industry driving the economy. It has already happened in the tourism industry.

James welcomes more Chinese self-guided tourists to Australia, because the market for them is more stable than the market for guided tours. Compared with visitors who come with travel agencies, self-guided tourists stay longer and spend more, and they are willing to break the routine and fine a variety of scenic spots, he said.

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