International tourism has hit a new high in Queensland, federal government data reveals, with more visitors spending hundreds of millions more in the Sunshine State. The Tourism Research Australia figures show international spending in Queensland climbed 10.6 per cent above the previous year’s record high of $6.9 billion, in the year to June. Some 2.2 million international tourists touched down – an increase of 2.7 per cent. Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast, where international tourists spent $1.5 billion last financial year. New Zealanders made up the largest cohort of visitors, but more tourists also arrived from India, France and Taiwan.