Australia and New Zealand are pushing artificial intelligence deeper into their tourism strategies as both countries prepare for a future where travellers increasingly discover destinations, hotels and experiences through AI-powered planning systems.
Australia has made engagement with machines, algorithms and AI systems an immediate priority within its Tourism 2035 strategy. New Zealand, meanwhile, has committed NZ$800,000 to improve tourism information so it can be more easily accessed and understood by AI-powered travel platforms.
Together, the initiatives signal a major change in tourism distribution.
For destinations and businesses, online visibility may increasingly depend not only on attractive websites or search rankings, but also on whether digital systems can accurately identify what an experience offers, where it operates, when it is available and how travellers can book it.
Australia builds on powerful tourism data network
Australia enters this transition with a significant existing advantage.
The Australian Tourism Data Warehouse provides structured tourism information across accommodation, attractions, tours, events, transportation, food and drink, hire services and other experiences.
Its national network supports more than 50,000 tourism businesses and connects tourism information with large numbers of potential visitors.
This structured approach is particularly important for AI-powered travel planning.
Digital systems searching for a suitable regional hotel, accessible attraction or seasonal experience require clear information about location, opening hours, facilities, availability and booking options.
When information is incomplete, outdated or inconsistent, even a high-quality tourism product could become more difficult for automated systems to understand.
Tourism 2035 puts machines into marketing strategy
Tourism Australia’s Tourism 2035 strategy, released on August 5, 2026, places machine-driven discovery among the forces shaping the next phase of Australian tourism.
The strategy recognises that traveller attention and booking journeys are becoming increasingly fragmented across traditional search engines, social media, online travel agencies and emerging AI tools.
Australia therefore wants its tourism offering to remain discoverable wherever future travellers search.
This has particular importance for regional destinations.
Australia’s major gateways, including Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth, already benefit from extensive tourism infrastructure and strong international recognition.
Smaller destinations may depend more heavily on accurate digital information if AI systems begin recommending lesser-known experiences based on highly specific traveller requests.
New Zealand directly funds AI-ready tourism
New Zealand has moved beyond strategy by allocating public funding specifically to AI discoverability.
The NZ$800,000 programme will improve the accessibility and accuracy of Tourism New Zealand information for AI systems.
Thousands of tourism and hospitality business records are expected to benefit from better structured information.
Regional tourism organisations will also provide additional content to Tourism New Zealand’s AI travel-planning capabilities, helping travellers discover more locations beyond established gateway destinations.
New Zealand’s approach builds on an established national tourism platform rather than creating an entirely new system.
Tourism businesses already provide information through the country’s Tourism Business Database, while newzealand.com directs travellers toward tourism operators and experiences.
AI planning moves toward mainstream travel
The investment reflects changing traveller behaviour.
Tourism New Zealand research cited in the supplied material indicates that 62% of audiences across key international markets are likely to use AI tools when planning their next trip. Another 53% expect their use of AI travel planning to increase.
This creates new opportunities for destinations.
Travellers may eventually ask AI systems highly specific questions rather than searching broad destination terms.
A family could request an accessible wildlife experience near a regional town. Another visitor might want a luxury lodge available during a particular month, while a business traveller could search for accommodation close to an event venue.
Accurate tourism data becomes essential in each scenario.
Regional operators face a new visibility challenge
The biggest risk may fall on smaller tourism businesses with limited digital resources.
Australia had more than 360,000 tourism-related businesses in June 2024, according to figures referenced in the supplied material, with around 95% classified as small businesses.
Many regional operators may have exceptional visitor experiences but incomplete online profiles.
Missing opening dates, accessibility details, geographic coordinates or booking information could weaken their ability to appear within AI-generated itineraries.
Tourism businesses therefore increasingly need consistency across destination databases, regional tourism profiles and their own websites.
Tourism data becomes destination infrastructure
AI is unlikely to replace travel agents, tourism websites, online travel agencies or conventional search engines.
Instead, structured tourism information could become a common layer supporting all these channels.
Travel professionals will remain important for confirming availability, assessing suitability and checking complex traveller requirements.
However, AI can accelerate discovery by narrowing thousands of possibilities into relevant choices.
For Australia and New Zealand, the wider tourism opportunity is significant.
Improving machine-readable information could help international visitors discover regional hotels, attractions, tours and experiences that previously struggled for visibility.
As AI-powered travel planning expands, destination competition may increasingly depend on something travellers rarely see: the quality of the information behind every recommendation.
Australia’s extensive tourism data network and New Zealand’s newly funded AI programme suggest both countries are preparing for that future.
The next tourism battle may therefore take place not only through advertising campaigns and search rankings, but inside the digital data systems that determine which destinations and experiences AI can confidently recommend.
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