Hotel, airport records set at Gather Round 2025
The 2025 instalment of Gather Round has delivered a boost to South Australia’s economy, with record-breaking attendance and the greatest ever number of rooms occupied and revenue generated for Adelaide hotels.
A total of 269,506 fans attended the nine Gather Round matches across the State, with the Footy Festival recording 118,543 visitors over four days – an increase of 17 per cent on last year.
The Barossa region made its Gather Round debut, with the newly completed $45.7 million Barossa Park precinct hosting two AFL matches. The Bounce Around the Barossa hop-on hop-off bus service transported almost 4000 passengers to more than 45 local businesses and wineries across the region.
“The inclusion of the Barossa in Gather Round 2025 has been a fantastic opportunity for our region,” said Barossa Mayor Bim Lange.
“We’ve seen a real buzz in our towns and a genuine sense of excitement from both locals and visitors, plus it’s provided a great economic boost for our regional economy,” Lange said.
The Norwood Food and Wine Festival recorded over 90,000 people. The event was held on The Parade with more than 50 local traders, pop-up bars, wineries and distilleries and live entertainment headlined by ARIA Award-winning band Birds of Tokyo.
“This is exactly why we invest in major events that bring people to our State and drive dollars into our local economy,” said Acting Minister for Tourism and Minister for Small and Family Business, Andrea Michaels.
Norwood Food and Wine Festival. This picture: Frankie the Creative.
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The Friday night of Gather Round 2025 was the strongest night ever for hotel occupancy and revenue, with 10,669 rooms occupied, generating $4.8 million in revenue for Adelaide hotels.
Across the Thursday to Saturday, hotels had a recorded average occupancy of 93 per cent (10,587 rooms per night), generating an average nightly revenue of $4.6 million. This occupancy rate surpasses the 2024 Gather Round occupancy by 12 per cent and revenue up 25 per cent on last year.
Adelaide Airport had its busiest week on record with approximately 200,000 people flying in and out of Adelaide on 1107 flights. This beats the previous Adelaide Airport record of 182,000 set during Gather Round 2023.
“Gather Round is about more than just footy – it’s an opportunity to showcase our regions, our hospitality, and our world-class food and wine to visitors from across the country,” Michaels said.
