International visitor numbers in the Northern Territory of Australia are at their lowest level since records began 14 years ago.
Budget papers this week revealed the record low was recorded while international tourist numbers nationally were rising.
International visitor numbers to the Territory in 2012 dipped by more than 12%, to about 250,000. That was almost half the number the Territory attracted in 2001.
The national increase in international tourist numbers was driven by the Chinese. The ABC reports their most popular holiday activities were gambling, shopping and going to the beach, but they do not favour coming to the Territory.
The Territory Government has boosted the budget for Tourism NT by 17% and its spending on international promotion has been doubled.
"It can't be turned around overnight but we are working on it quite dramatically with this new budget," said international operations director Suzanne Morgan.
Kakadu Culture Camp, a tourism operator at Kakadu National Park. said international visitor numbers have fallen by more than a third in the past three years, forcing the company to cut jobs. The ABC reports international visitors make up about 90% of its business.
