VISITOR numbers to the ACT have recovered to 87 per cent of pre-covid levels, but expenditure has surpassed pre-covid levels, at 107 per cent (compared to year ending December 2019), according to the latest figures from the “National Visitor Survey and International Visitor Survey”.

The survey, compiled by Tourism Research Australia and released on Wednesday, show visitor expenditure in the ACT for year ending December 2022 was up 144 per cent to $3.03 billion.

The government says this is the highest visitor expenditure in a 12-month period in the ACT.

There were 5.33 million domestic and international visitors, up 71 per cent on the previous year.

The ACT recorded 3.03 million domestic overnight visitors in 2022. While all states and territories recorded domestic overnight visitor growth last year, the ACT experienced the strongest at 75 per cent.

The figures show that NSW remains the main source of domestic visitors to the ACT, accounting for two-thirds of overnight visitors, and three quarters of day-trip visitors.

There was an increase in overnight visits from all states and territories last year, with the biggest increase coming from south-east Queensland (Gold Coast and Brisbane) which, the ACT government says, can be attributed to Jetstar launching routes between Canberra and Brisbane in December 2021 and the Gold Coast in September 2022.