Brisbane, QLD – A new national report released today by digital training leaders Tourism Tribe reveals that while Australian tourism businesses are beginning to embrace artificial intelligence (AI), many are at risk of falling behind due to lack of confidence, skills, and resourcing.
Titled The State of Artificial Intelligence in Tourism – 2025 Edition, the report is the first of its kind in Australia and captures responses from 90 tourism organisations — including regional tourism operators, councils, visitor centres, and destination marketing organisations (DMOs).
Titled The State of Artificial Intelligence in Tourism – 2025 Edition, the report is the first of its kind in Australia and captures responses from 90 tourism organisations — including regional tourism operators, councils, visitor centres, and destination marketing organisations (DMOs).
“AI is rapidly reshaping how travellers discover, plan and book their experiences. But small businesses and tourism teams are under pressure to keep up with the pace of change,” said Liz Ward, CEO and co-founder of Tourism Tribe. “This report highlights the need for proactive AI-digital strategies to guide regional and sector-based visitor economies through this unprecedented technology disruption.”
The report underscores a growing adoption gap between well-resourced DMOs — who are applying AI in business operations including data analysis, and content automation — and small-to-medium operators who are typically using tools like ChatGPT and Canva Magic Studio for marketing tasks, but often lack the time or know-how to fully benefit.
Tourism Tribe is calling on government, regional tourism bodies, and industry associations to invest in upskilling programs and ethical AI implementation strategies, ensuring all businesses have the opportunity to remain visible and competitive in the evolving travel economy.
“The future of destination marketing, customer service, and even itinerary planning is already being shaped by AI tools,” said Fabienne Wintle, Tourism Tribe CIO and co-founder. “If we don’t act now, we risk leaving parts of the industry behind — especially those in small business and regional tourism.”
The full report is available to download here.
Tourism Tribe has also released a podcast episode exploring practical steps to help tourism websites remain discoverable by AI-powered search tools like ChatGPT and Gemini (episode 12).
Tourism Tribe is a leading AI-digital learning and support platform for the global tourism industry. Committed to empowering businesses with the technical support they need to navigate the AI-digital world, Tourism Tribe believes in making the tourism industry stronger by enabling access to practical training, best practices, and fostering a global community of learning and growth.
Liz Ward, Chief Executive Tourism Tribe
0419 578 200
liz@tourismtribe.com
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