Newsletter : January 2017
Written by Steph Kendall
Welcome to the New Zealand Tourism Guide www.tourism.net.nz January 2017 issue. If you have news or comments, please email us news@tourism.net.nz.
In this January newsletter:
Markets for Tourism Operators' Radars
As we head into another year, we encourage tourism operators to take look at some of the tourism trends forecast from 2016 to 2022 and some of the statistics from the end of 2016. For tourism operators looking to target specific markets, the data suggests that focusing on tourists and travellers coming from the following markets may be beneficial:
- Australia (largest visitor market)
- China (largest expenditure)
- India, USA and Argentina (key emerging markets)
Useful resources
- http://www.tourismnewzealand.com/markets-stats/research/infographics/australia-market-information/ - Australian Market Snapshot and Consumer Profile
- http://www.chinatoolkit.co.nz/ - This toolkit produced by New Zealand Tourism is designed to inform your business about the Chinese visitor market and enable you to provide the best possible experience to our Chinese visitors. It is all about helping the visitor sector to develop and deliver experiences that Chinese visitors value and enjoy.
- http://www.tourismnewzealand.com/markets-stats/ - Other markets information and statistics.
Tourism Industry 2016 - 2022 Forecasts
Each year MBIE (Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment) produces the tourism forecasts – a report that informs and supports planning and investment decisions in the tourism industry. The forecasts are based on econometric modelling, current trends and best available forecasts of international factors and have been developed with input from members of the tourism industry.
Latest forecasts are for the 2016- 2022 period:
- Visitor arrivals to New Zealand are expected to grow 5.4 per cent a year, reaching 4.5 million visitors in 2022 from 3.1 million in 2015 and total international spend is expected to reach $16 billion in 2022, up 65.5 per cent from 2015.
- Most of this forecasted growth is expected to come from holiday makers and those visiting friends and relatives.
- Australia is New Zealand's largest visitor market, providing more than 1.3 million visitors in 2015. The forecasts show that this market will continue to be healthy and looks set to grow by 25 per cent by 2022.
- Another key market for New Zealand is China, and our tourism forecasts predict that China will become New Zealand's largest market in terms of expenditure by 2017.
Further Reading
- MBIE's Tourism Forecasts for 2016 - 2022
- MBIE have aninteractive web tool for users to explore forecast results for key markets.
- The New Zealand Tourism Dashboard is a one-stop shop for all information about tourism. It brings together a range of tourism datasets produced by MBIE and Statistics New Zealand into one easy-to-use tool. Information is presented using dynamic graphs and data tables.
Milford Visitor Numbers Continue to Rise
Visitor numbers to Milford sound are expected to reach nearly 600,000 by the end of March and operators are preparing for what is forecast to be a busy Chinese New Year.
Milford Sound Tourism General Manager Tim Holland said he expected visitor numbers this season to top last year's 585,000. There had been a steady number of visitors of the last couple of weeks, Holland said, and the infrastructure was handling the visitor numbers well.
Cruise company Southern Discoveries' Chief Executive, Tim Hunter offered a few insights into Milford Sound tourism in his recent interview with Stuff:
- Accommodation was almost at capacity and disappointment had been expressed that no new accommodation had been built in Queenstown
- Tour groups were becoming more flexible in their itineraries including Invercargill and the Catlins in their plans
- Visitors to Milford Sound were staying in Wanaka, Cromwell, Omarama and even Invercargill
- Te Anau was developing into an important hub to service Milford Sound
- More room to develop accommodation in Te Anau than Queenstown, he said.
- Biggest test for tourism operators and accommodation providers would come at the end of January with Chinese New Year celebrations.
Visitors numbers have risen steadily from 475,966 in 2007 to 585,000 in 2016.
Successful Spring Season Recorded
Latest international visitor arrival figures show continued growth with total arrivals up 11.7% for the year ending November and another successful spring. The results come as the tourism industry heads into what promises to be the biggest summer on record.
The 2016 spring shoulder season growth was strong with a 16.1% increase in holiday arrivals across the September-November months. Brighid Kelly, acting Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive says this is a great result when compared to the 15.1% growth seen over last year's peak.
Holiday arrival figures for Australia, India and the United States were of particular note. And a key emerging market identified was Argentina.
Minister for Tourism - Hon Paula Bennett
New Zealand Prime Minister John Key announced his resignation in an unexpected move at the beginning of December 2016 saying it is the "right time" to step down and he is leaving on his own terms. He has been succeeded as Minister of Tourism by the Hon Paula Bennett.
Bennett has lived in Auckland since 1992, first in the North Shore and now in West Auckland. She grew up in Taupo. She became a Minister of the Crown in 2008 after being elected to Parliament in 2005. Upon National taking office in 2008, Paula was made Minister of Social Development, a role she held until October 2014. Paula's tenure made her the longest serving Minister of Social Development in New Zealand's history.
At the beginning of January, Bennett announced that tourism spending in New Zealand continued to grow throughout most regions in the year to November 2016, providing a solid base ahead of the high summer season. She says, "The latest data shows that, overall, the earthquake on 14 November had a limited impact on national tourism expenditure. However, it had a significant impact on the total visitor spend in the North Canterbury region. The Government has already announced several support packages for the earthquake affected areas, underlining our commitment to supporting the local tourism industry. As the earthquake occurred midway through November, the full impacts on the regional economies in affected areas are not completely shown. The data for the month of December, due to be released on 26 January, will give a clearer indication of how tourism spending has been affected."
Key facts for earthquake affected areas:
- Tourism spending in North Canterbury, which includes Kaikoura and Hurunui Districts, saw a 20 per cent fall in tourism spending in November 2016 (to $22 million) compared with November 2015.
- International visitors' spending in North Canterbury fell 29 per cent in November 2016 (compared with November 2015), while domestic visitor spending fell 13 per cent over the same period.
- In areas adjacent to North Canterbury: Marlborough fell 1 per cent in November 2016 (compared with November 2015); Christchurch increased by 1 per cent; and South Canterbury grew a strong 12 per cent.
Tools for Business: Free Online Training
Are you interested in upskilling or refreshing your existing knowledge about New Zealand? If you want to know how to sell not just your business, but New Zealand as a great place too, you may be interested in the free online training seminars offered by Tourism New Zealand.
Visit the website for more information: http://traveltrade.newzealand.com/en/training/online-training-modules/
These free training modules may help both you and your staff:
- boost knowledge of New Zealand's regions so you can assist your visitors with appealing itineraries
- discover what makes New Zealand special – and your area of New Zealand so special - so you can sell it as a great destination with total confidence.
Each module takes about 40 minutes to complete.
Top Tourism Site of the Month
This month's Top Tourism Site Award goes to Clear Ridge Apartments.
Clear Ridge Apartments offer 5-star accommodation in Hanmer Springs and their website is modern, fresh and clean in design. It is exceptionally easy to read and navigate, with much thought given to international travellers who do not have speak English as a first language and an emphasis on website users making online bookings.
- Emphasis on online booking system, which is easy to use and available in 17 languages – perfect for non-English speaking FIT travellers
- Use of home page icons to illustrate what facilities are available – again easy to understand for all nationalities
- Clear and easy to navigate menu, striking headings and easy to read font
- Clear photographs of good quality. Featuring real guests enjoying the apartments would perhaps lend them more warmth, 'feel good' factor
- The News section needs an update as news from June 2016 is a bit dated, although the home page addresses includes comment about the earthquake impact in November 2016.
Congratulations Clear Ridge Apartments, a very worthy winner this month.
Nominate a Site
If you think a New Zealand travel or tourism website deserves a 'Top Tourism Site Award', let us know about it. (View further information about the award criteria).
About the Top Tourism Site Award
The New Zealand Tourism Guide confers a Top Tourism Site Award to websites that:
- Enhance New Zealand as a travel destination
- Publish useful and informative content
- Are laid out in a professional and aesthetically-pleasing manner
- Are designed effectively for the World Wide Web
- May demonstrate easy functionality, interactivity, originality, outstanding graphic quality and marketing reach.
We welcome any feedback — send your comments to: news@tourism.net.nz
Kind regards,
The Team
Ph 0800 14 65 49
www.tourism.net.nz
New Zealand Tourism Guide
Head Office: Ground Floor, 518 Colombo Street, Christchurch