Tourism Australia's Facebook page 'most popular on the planet'

Tourism Australia has cracked two million fans on Facebook, helped by a video of the spectacular Sydney Harbour New Year's Eve fireworks.

Tourism Australia on Tuesday announced that its Facebook page now had more than two million fans worldwide, making the page the most popular tourism site on the planet.

It said a viral short film based around Sydney's New Year's Eve celebrations had generated 85,000 fans in three days, with the film viewed by some 450,000 people.

Tourism Australia Managing Director Andrew McEvoy said the result shows how critical Facebook is for promoting Australia overseas.

"Through Facebook we get real stories about what people are currently thinking about Australia which influences our marketing and makes the platform a primary interaction point with our global advocates," Mr McEvoy said in the statement.

Photos of native animals like koalas and kangaroos posted on the page generate the most "likes", comments and shares by fans, Tourism Australia said.

Tourism Australia's Facebook page was launched in May 2008, and in 2011 generated 855,000 new fans.

AAP