NZ reports Aussie leisure rise

NZ reports Aussie leisure rise
By admin


Leisure visitors from Australia to New Zealand are on the rise this year, with the destination’s tourism body underlining the role of travel agents in delivering that growth.

Tim Burgess, Tourism New Zealand general manager Australia, referred to April figures which revealed the number of holidaymakers crossing the Tasman rose 6.3% for the month, year on year.

“The visiting friends and relatives sector is slightly in decline so overall remains reasonably flat,” he told Travel Today. “But we’re really happy that the percentage of holiday visitors is in growth.”

The fact that Easter fell in April 2012 and not in April 2013 makes the growth figure all the more pleasing, he added.

Burgess highlighted the role of the Australian travel trade in achieving the positive result from the sector.

“For first time visitors, the travel trade is critical," he said. “For a long time we were more focused on the product manager type level which is still really important, but it’s the agents on the front line that are actually talking to customers.”

Last year, the travel trade accounted for 24% of all Australian visitors to NZ and 28% of all Australian expenditure in the destination.

“The simple logic there is that the travel trade delivers higher value visitors,” Burgess said.

Online retailers accounted for 6% over the same period, with direct bookings proving most popular with repeat visitors that are more familiar with the destination.

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