International visitor arrivals are holding steady as the tourism
industry heads into the off-peak season, with visitor arrivals down
only slightly in May compared with the same month last year.
Statistics New Zealand figures out today show international
visitor arrivals were down 0.4 per cent in May 2010, compared to
2009, to 141,000 visitors. They were up 3 per cent for the year to
date.
Arrivals from the Asian markets of China, Japan and South Korea
saw significant growth compared with last May, when outbound travel
from these countries was heavily impacted by the Influenza A H1N1
(Swine Flu) outbreak.
Tourism New Zealand Chief Executive Kevin Bowler says arrivals
from the Asian markets are yet to return to the levels seen prior
to the global economic downturn, but there are still signs they are
returning to strength.
"We're unsure of the impact the Shanghai Expo will
have on travel from China in the short term, but our work in this
market is firmly focused on driving growth beyond 2010," says Kevin
Bowler.
Arrivals from the United States are also showing signs of
improvement, with arrivals up 6.3 per cent (to 11,520 visitors) in
May. This is a positive for New Zealand following a drop in
arrivals of 14.6 per cent in April compared with 2009. Growth has
come off the back of affordable airfares, returning economic
stability and some high-profile campaign and PR activity in
market.
Arrivals from the UK continue to fall back (down 14.7 per cent),
with the May general election, ongoing economic uncertainty and the
tail of disruptions caused by last month's Icelandic ash cloud all
impacting travel from New Zealand's second-largest visitor
market.
Kevin Bowler says New Zealand is also likely to see some impacts
over June/July as Europeans stay closer to home during the FIFA
World Cup, and backpackers stop off in other destinations to watch
the World Cup games.
Arrivals from Australia were down 4.7 per cent in May, compared
with 2009 when the market was up 15.8 per cent. With 64,300
arrivals, however, the market is still performing strongly.
Arrivals are up 11.2 per cent for the year to date, with holiday
arrivals up 19.0 per cent.
International Visitor Arrivals May 2010
|
Month of May 2010: |
Year-ending May 2010: |
| Australia |
64,300 |
Down 4.7% |
1,114,121 |
Up 11.2% |
|
UK
|
9,040 |
Down 14.7% |
250,068 |
Down 5.1% |
| USA |
11,520 |
Up 6.3% |
195,036 |
Down 1.0% |
| China |
7,740 |
Up 37.8% |
102,246 |
Down 7.1% |
| Japan |
5,340 |
Up 51.4% |
80,687 |
Down 13.4% |
| Germany |
1,820 |
Down 6.4% |
65,049 |
Up 3.3% |
| South Korea |
4,300 |
Up 52.2% |
60,198 |
Down 6.9% |
| Canada |
2,260 |
Up 4.6% |
48,777 |
Down 1.9%
|