According to Roy Morgan, Melbourne has narrowly replaced the Gold Coast as Australia’s favourite destination for an overnight holiday.

The survey found Melbourne is almost twice as popular as Sydney, with 20.1% of respondents choosing Melbourne and 10.3% selecting Sydney. Melbourne’s popularity has risen 1.1% since last year, while Sydney’s brand took a battering – dropping 4.7%. With 19.5% of respondents choosing the Gold Coast, it is our second favourite destination followed by Sunshine Coast at 13.5%.

“Melbourne has built a strong brand as a holiday destination. It is renowned for its shopping experiences, world-class restaurants, and thriving cafe society. In addition it offers quality theatre and major sporting and cultural events. Other domestic destinations such as Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Sydney have not been able to compete with Melbourne’s popularity,” said Jane Ianniello, international director of tourism – travel and leisure, Roy Morgan Research.

Ianiello extrapolated that Tourism NSW hadn’t had a consistent brand since the Olympics and hadn’t spent a lot on tourism, juxtaposed with Melbourne’s consistent brand. She also mentioned the Cronulla riots were still possibly affecting Sydney’s brand, four years on.