A record number of Chinese tourists visited Australia in May, and the proportion of self-guided tourists also increased, Australian media reported.

The number of visitor arrivals from China soared to 65,000 in May, beating out the prior monthly record of 61,900 in March, which is a boon for Australia's sluggish tourism industry.

David James, director of Tangalooma Island Resort located in Tangalooma, Moreton Island, the world's second largest sand island, said that Chinese tourists alone can fill up his resort, although he prefers to welcome diversified guests.

China's outbound tourism market is expanding and changing rapidly. James said that with the rising number of Chinese visitors with experience in traveling abroad, many of them prefer to travel around Australia independently, scheduling travel routes and booking trips by themselves instead of tour groups arranged by travel agencies.

James welcomes more Chinese self-guided tourists to Australia, because the market for them is more stable than the market for guided tours. Compared with visitors who come with travel agencies, self-guided tourists stay longer and spend more, and they are willing to break the routine and fine a variety of scenic spots, he said.