Mortality rate of Australian tourists overseas has doubled in the past ten years

Almost 9 million Australians travel internationally each year. The number of people under 25 who travel overseas has doubled since 2001.

The number of Australian tourists, below 25 years of age, dying overseas has also doubled in the past ten years. Reported in the Canberra Times (January 26, 2014), 1,138 Australians died while overseas in 2011-2012, mostly due to illness.

A 2013 report by the Lowy Institute indicated that more young Australians are travelling for adventure, and they are likely to take risks while overseas that they would not normally at home. The Lowy report showed that adventure activities are more likely to cause injury or death. For example, a hospital near an adventure site in Laos recorded 27 tourist deaths in 2011 alone. And a hospital in Bali, Indonesia, treats up to 300 traffic victims every day, predominantly tourists.

The Canberra Times reported that the director of Drug and Alcohol Research and Training Australia, Paul Dillon, said high-risk tourism tends to encourage youth to push the boundaries. “The evidence is very clear that young people are aware of the risks and know what the consequences can be, but they think it won’t happen to them,” Dillon said. “There is a tendency that the shorter the trip, the more intense an experience young people will seek.”

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