Top holiday hotspots where Aussies spent up big and businesses benefitted

08 January 2026
Consumer Spending

• Lorne (VIC), Lakes Entrance (VIC), St Helens (TAS), Swansea (TAS) and Jervis Bay (NSW) among beach towns that saw the biggest overall summer spending boost

• Two-week spending spike contributed an additional $84m to local economies, with restaurants, retail and accommodations among the biggest winners

• Hotspot and industry breakdowns and NSW and VIC case studies below 

Summer-loving Aussies are fuelling a boon for local businesses, with an 80% spending surge in key tourism hotspots.  

The summer spending spike is estimated to be worth an extra $84m to local economies, according to new NAB analysis. 

Restaurants and retail saw the biggest overall spending increases as Australians took the opportunity to hit the road, head away for a holiday, and dine out in recent weeks.

The top holiday hotspots were identified by analysing a sample of almost 500,000 merchant terminal transactions in the popular beach towns in the fortnight when millions of Aussies visited compared to a normal two-week period. 

NAB Executive, Metro and Specialised Business Julie Rynski said Australia’s tourism sector hit its stride in summer and, in turn, provided a boost for local businesses across the country. 

“Millions of Aussies are in holiday mode and enjoying a well-deserved break. The mass exodus from capital cities to holiday hotspots is crucial for smaller, local economies,” Ms Rynski said.

“While visitors enjoy beach days and summer reads, business owners in these areas are often at their busiest as the population of holiday hotspots swell. This peak period contributes to much of their annual turnover as the increases in accommodation, hospitality and service station spending show.

“Accommodation had the biggest increase in spending in Lakes Entrance in eastern Victoria, with spend up more than 600% over two weeks, while Margaret River in southern Western Australia has seen a 786% rise in retail sales.” 

Ms Rynski said the boost in trade meant more shifts for seasonal staff and more orders for suppliers.

“A sweet-toothed surge at candy stores in Batemans Bay, a boat hire boom at Lakes Entrance and a bakery blitz in Jervis Bay are among the quirkier spend trends we’re seeing among customers based on the data,” she said.

“While many people returned to work this week, thousands remain on holidays or preparing to take time off. Business customers tell us they expect to remain busy until after the Australia Day long weekend.” 

Notes:

• Estimates taken from NAB merchant terminal data from Saturday 20 December 2025 to Sunday 4 January 2026, inclusive, compared to a normal fortnight of trade in May 2025.

• About $104m is spent in an average fortnight (May 2025) in key tourism industries (detailed below) in 20 summer tourist towns (known as hot spots and detailed above). 

• That amount increased by 80% to $188m in the fortnight between Saturday 20 December 2025 and Sunday 4 January 2026. Therefore, the summer spending spike is worth an extra $84m to the combined economies of summer tourist towns. 

• Data relates to key industries including accommodation, hospitality, retail, service stations, tourist attractions, membership clubs and the businesses within them as defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. 

• Accommodation includes hotels, motels and caravan parks.

• Pre-settlement data has been used to indicate trends and % movements. Final, exact figures are subject to change.