CANBERRA, March 7 (Xinhua) -- Australia has launched a new campaign to attract more young Chinese travellers.

According to local media the Sydney Morning Herald, the new 5-million-Australian-dollar (3.5 million U.S. dollars) advertising campaign, featuring the slogan "too Australian for words" on billboards showing imagery of natural scenery was launched in metro stations and major cities in China this month.

China is Australia's biggest source of tourists with more than 1.4 million people visiting the country in the 12 months to September 2018, contributing 11.5 billion Australian dollars (8.08 billion U.S. dollars) to the economy - a 12 percent increase on the previous year.

Simon Birmingham, Australian minister for trade, tourism and investment, said in a statement on an official website on Thursday that the government aims to attract an emerging and lucrative type of Chinese visitors to Australia, commonly known as "free and independent traveller (FIT)."

"FITs tend to be younger, more adventurous and are willing to get out of their comfort zone," said the minister, adding that Chinese FITs tend to stay in Australia three times longer on average than those on a group tour, which presents a great opportunity for Australia's regional tourism offerings given the strong correlation between length of stay and likelihood to travel beyond Australia's gateways and iconic attractions.

"Australia already has a strong affinity amongst Chinese travellers; however, we must continue to find new ways to appeal to the Chinese market," he said.