ANZAC Day hotel bookings show popularity of four-day weekend

Securing a four-day long weekend courtesy of the ANZAC Day public holiday on Thursday might have involved taking a day off on Friday, but that doesn’t seem to have dampened the enthusiasm of Aussie travel lovers. 

Data from leading travel and lifestyle website www.lastminute.com.au, reveals that hotel room nights booked for the ANZAC Day period* are up 88% on last year when the public holiday fell mid-week.

Whether these holiday-goers used an annual leave day or perhaps *ahem* less legitimate methods remains to be seen.

WA and QLD leading the rise in bookings

Western Australia and Queensland have seen the most dramatic rise with a 123% and 112% increase in bookings year-on-year respectively for the ANZAC Day period.

Accommodation providers in Victoria (up 92%), New South Wales (up 86%) and South Australia (up 85%) also saw an increase in visitors, while off lower bases respectively, Tasmania (up 130%) and the ACT (up 137%) are also on the up.

“Aussies love any excuse to squeeze in a getaway and this year’s ANZAC Day public holiday is no exception. Who can blame them with so many great destinations an easy drive distance from capital cities including the Hunter Valley, Gold Coast and Margaret River,” said lastminute.com.au General Manager Kirsty Labruniy.

Top five hot spots for the ANZAC Day

Destinations with the most hotel room night bookings via lastminute.com.au for the ANZAC Day period include:

NSW Sydney Newcastle Hunter Valley Blue Mountains Byron Bay	VIC Melbourne Bright Cowes Daylesford Yarra Valley	QLD Gold Coast Sunshine Coast Brisbane TNQ Hervey Bay
SA Adelaide McClaren Vale Port Lincoln Victor Harbor Mt Gambier	WA Perth Margaret River Busselton Dunsborough Mandurah	TAS Hobart Launceston & Tamar Valley Port Arthur Devonport Strahan