Rising travel costs and inflation-induced cost of living pressures fail to dampen the demand for New Zealanders wanting to travel overseas, with outbound travel numbers reaching record levels towards the end of the review period. According to Statistics New Zealand, 328,100 New Zealand-resident travellers (classified by Stats NZ as people living in New Zealand and arriving back after an absence of less than 12 months) arrived back in January 2024, an all-time high for the month.
In 2020, the rapid onset of the COVID-19 pandemic saw air travel links between New Zealand and the world abruptly shut down. While links to key markets such as Australia and North America quickly returned as the country reopened, air capacity between New Zealand and China has been slow to recover due to the slower reopening of China post-COVID, compared to most other countries.
The return of Chinese tourists and increased connectivity with the USA, as new airlines launch services to New Zealand and existing US carriers expand services across New Zealand, have resulted in the continued recovery of lodging sales in 2024 – particularly in the South Island, with hotels in Queenstown, Christchurch, Nelson, and Marlborough setting the bar in terms of occupancy and room revenue. For example, Christchurch hotels benefit from the additional seasonal inbound air capacity provided by United Airlines, Cathay Pacific, and China Southern.
As New Zealand emerges from the country’s borders being shut during the pandemic years, businesses are extremely eager to re-establish business relationships and trade links with international partners. While the country is in the midst of an economic downturn, Flight Centre Group reported an unexpected surge of 66% growth year-on-year in international business travel, driven mainly by the manufacturing and construction sectors.
While there are positive elements for the local tourism industry to savour in 2024, the full recovery of what was once New Zealand’s top export earner is not expected until 2025 at the earliest. While Chinese visitor numbers continue to recover, the full reinstatement of air links to pre-COVID levels did not occur until early 2024, and engine issues for national carrier Air New Zealand have also constrained capacity growth between the two countries.
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Travel
Travel encompasses several categories including tourism flows, lodging, travel modes, in-destination spending and booking.
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