The National Visitor Survey (Case Study) The Bureau of Tourism Research National Visitor Survey (NVS) began operations in January 1998, replacing the Domestic Tourism Monitor (DTM), which had been conducted since the late 1970s. According to Barry (1999), the introduction of the new survey was initiated as a result of the recognition that: travel patterns had changed considerably • the utility of the DTM statistics was restricted by small sample size and limited topic coverage • there was a need for research into overseas travel, regional visitation, expenditure, accommodation choice and niche markets. Australian tourism industry personnel expressed concern about this changeover, but the NVS appears to be a superior survey in several respects. The most important improvement lies in the reliability of the information generated, with an increase in sample size from the DTM's 65000 to 80000. The States and Territories are not represented proportionally in the overall sample, since those with the largest levels of tourist activity can be reliably estimated with a relatively smaller sample. The largest increases in sample size were in the less visited States (South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania) and the Northern Territory. However, data for some of the more remote and rarely visited regions are still subject to high variability. The larger sample is more easily surveyed by using computer assisted telephone interviewing (CATI), involving electronic entry and editing of data instead of face-to-face interviews. Households are randomly selected by telephone number, and a person within the household is selected on the basis of age and gender. While DTM interviews were conducted only on weekends, NVS interviews are held every day, providing a wider range of respondents, including those who are away from home on weekends. The NVS also collects a wider range of data, including: • all trips involving at least overnight stays (including overseas travel) plus day-trips • regions visited • leisure activities undertaken itemised expenditures • more detailed demographic information on travellers and non-travellers • impacts of health conditions on ability to and arrangements for travel. Cross-tabulations can be generated among visitor profiles, regions visited, length of stay, transport used, accommodation used, activities, total expenditure and expenditure by item. Reliability is also improved by asking respondents only about travel experiences in the relatively recent past (three months for overseas trips, eight weeks for overnight trips and one week for day-trips). NVS data can be used along with information on inbound visitors (collected by the International Visitor Survey) and the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Survey of Tourist Accommodation (STA) to provide a more complete picture of travel within Australia. It is possible to commission additional questions, for example on special interest travel, in the NVS questionnaire. State, Territory, regional and industry organisations may also be able to commission questions on their particular areas of interest. The major disadvantage of the changeover is the unavoidable interruption to time-series data based on the previous DTM program, which has implications for forecasting and planning. However, the Bureau of Tourism Research can offer advice to researchers on ameliorating this problem. The Tourism Forecasting Council has fully supported the implementation of the NVS and has made full use of the data produced since April 1999. Question1: Explain the contention that, in the National Visitor Survey, States 'with the largest levels of tourist activity can be reliably estimated with a relatively small sample'. Question2: Construct other questions that could commissioned through the NVS to provide additional useful information on the national, State or local scale.
The National Visitor Survey (Case Study)
The Bureau of Tourism Research National Visitor Survey (NVS) began operations in January 1998, replacing the Domestic Tourism Monitor (DTM), which
had been conducted since the late 1970s. According to Barry (1999), the introduction of the new survey was initiated as a result of the recognition that:
travel patterns had changed considerably
• the utility of the DTM statistics was restricted by small sample size and limited topic coverage
• there was a need for research into overseas travel, regional visitation, expenditure, accommodation choice and niche markets.
Australian tourism industry personnel expressed concern about this changeover, but the NVS appears to be a superior survey in several respects. The most important improvement lies in the reliability of the information generated, with an increase in sample size from the DTM's 65000 to 80000.
The States and Territories are not represented proportionally in the overall sample, since those with the largest levels of tourist activity can be reliably estimated with a relatively smaller sample. The largest increases in sample size were in the less visited States (South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania) and the Northern Territory. However, data for some of the more remote and rarely visited regions are still subject to high variability.
The larger sample is more easily surveyed by using computer assisted telephone interviewing (CATI), involving electronic entry and editing of data instead of face-to-face interviews. Households are randomly selected by telephone number, and a person within the household is selected on the basis of age and gender. While DTM interviews were conducted only on weekends, NVS interviews are held every day, providing a wider
The NVS also collects a wider range of data, including:
• all trips involving at least overnight stays (including overseas travel) plus day-trips
• regions visited
• leisure activities undertaken
itemised expenditures
• more detailed demographic information on travellers and non-travellers
• impacts of health conditions on ability to and arrangements for travel.
Cross-tabulations can be generated among visitor profiles, regions visited, length of stay, transport used, accommodation used, activities, total expenditure and expenditure by item. Reliability is also improved by asking respondents only about travel experiences in the relatively recent past (three months for overseas trips, eight weeks for overnight trips and one week for day-trips). NVS data can be used along with information on inbound visitors (collected by the International Visitor Survey) and the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Survey of Tourist Accommodation (STA) to provide a more complete picture of travel within Australia. It is possible to commission additional questions, for example on special interest travel, in the NVS questionnaire. State, Territory, regional and industry organisations may also be able to commission questions on their particular areas of interest. The major disadvantage of the changeover is the unavoidable interruption to time-series data based on the previous DTM program, which has implications for forecasting and planning. However, the Bureau of Tourism Research can offer advice to researchers on ameliorating this problem. The Tourism Forecasting Council has fully supported the implementation of the NVS and has made full use of the data produced since April 1999.
Question1: Explain the contention that, in the National Visitor Survey, States 'with the largest levels of tourist activity can be reliably estimated with a relatively small sample'.
Question2: Construct other questions that could commissioned through the NVS to provide additional useful information on the national, State or local scale.
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